A Quiet Sunday Lunch at Home

It's the day prior to my birthday, hubby and I decided to spend it at home to relax. I made really simple dishes based on what I could find in our fridge.

Fish Siomai and Chili Prawns





Yum!

Chicken Inasal

I got this recipe from hubby. A friend emailed it to him and he forwarded it to me so that we can try making it at home. We've already tried the recipe twice and both were a huge success despite the frightening image you see below :-)



Chicken Inasal

1 whole dressed chicken, sliced into quarters, or 8 pieces chicken drumsticks or thighs (I used whole butterflied chicken)
1 c native cane vinegar
1 bottle (about 1 1/3 cups) 7-up
1 thumb-sized ginger, minced
6 pcs calamansi
2 tbsp rock salt
2 tsp pepper

For basting sauce:
1/4 c cooking oil
2 tbsp margarine (I used butter)
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp achuete seeds
2 pcs calamansi

Marinate chicken in mixture of vinegar, 7-Up, ginger, calamansi juice, salt and pepper for at least one hour, or overnight in refrigerator.

When ready to cook, heat an indoor grill or charcoal in an outdoor grill to medium. If desired, thread chicken into barbecue sticks. Cook chicken over grill until done, basting frequently with the basting sauce.

To prepare basting sauce:

Heat oil in a saucepan then add margarine (I used butter) and salt. Drop in achuete seeds and stir until color is extracted. Remove from heat and add calamansi juice. Use to baste chicken.

This recipe is from Chef Pauline Banusig. A guest chef at the Hotel Intercontinental Iloilo Food Festval held last September. You can find a write-up at Inquirer.net

Based on personal experience, chicken thighs grill the best.

Tuna Soft Tacos

More about the swapping thing. When I told hubby that we were having soft tacos for merienda (mid-afternoon snack), he was so happy but that quickly faded when I told him it would be made of tuna, instead of beef.

Hubby grudgingly agreed to try it while he kept a monologue on why he's on a diet when he's not even sick.

Here's my ultra simple recipe for Tuna Soft Taco:

2 Cans of Century Tuna in Calamansi, drained
Cumin
Fresh Tomato Salsa
Lettuce, shredded
Grated Cheddar cheese
Tortillas



1. Heat the Century Tuna in 1 teaspoon of its oil. Add cumin, lighly toss until heated through. Turn off the heat. Set aside.

To assemble:
1. In a tortilla, add the lettuce, salsa, Century Tuna and cheese.
2. Roll.
3. Bite.



Hubby, ate his words and had five, yes five, tuna soft tacos.

Don't knock it 'till you try it.

From my garden

Can you believe all these flowers are from my garden?



I was feeling a little sad that hubby had to work on my birthday weekend. These flowers brightened my morning immediately.

I made some sort of fritata/omelet this morning which also helped my mood a bit. I didn't go all out with the ingredients since it was just me eating. Hubby had his corn flakes already and I'm limiting his egg intake.

Vegetable Fritata

2 Eggs, beaten
Non fat milk
Grated cheese
1 small potato, diced
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 small bell pepper, diced
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix together beaten eggs, milk, cheese, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In a separate pan, heat up the olive oil and cook the potatoes.
3. When potatoes are cooked, drain off excess oil. Add the tomatoes and bell peppers, toss gently until warmed through.
4. Add the egg mixture and cook until eggs are set to your liking. I like mine a bit runny.



This fritata would go well with scalions, mushrooms, blanched broccoli and spinach. For a healthier variation, use only egg whites.

For a more decadent version, use butter instead of olive oil, cream instead of non-fat milk and add lots of bacon!

Darn, I would have added bacon if I had some. He he he.

Tuna and Asparagus Aioli

This is a super easy recipe to do. I made this the other night after coming from work. This literally takes less than 30 minutes to pull off and very healthy to boot.

You will need:

1 can Century Tuna Flakes in Oil (202 can, that's the tall can), drained
Spaghetti pasta, cooked in boiling salted water just shy of al dente
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Clove of garlic, minced
2 diced tomatoes
Pinch or two of anchovy fillets
Baby asparagus spears, sliced
Fresh basil leaves, torn



1. While the pasta is cooking, saute garlic in olive oil (do not brown).
2. Add tomatoes to the pan.
3. Add the asparagus to the boiling pasta, 30 seconds before you drain it.
4. Drain the pasta and asparagus.
5. Immediately add the pasta to the hot pan with olive oil, garlic and tomato. Toss.
6. Add the Century Tuna and basil leaves and toss gently.

Enjoy!

My birthday weekend starts...now!

The company that I work for throws a big lunch for all it's monthly birthday celebrants. This month there are six of us celebrating our special day.

We had some really nice food from Amber's and Northpark. Our lunch consisted of Chicken Teriyaki, Fish Fillet in Sweet and Sour Sauce, Lengua (Ox Tongue), Lumpiang Shanghai, Pork Barbecue, Tofu Vegetable Stir-fry and Pichi-pichi for dessert.

Dining al Fresco.. at lunchtime!

It was pleasant overcast afternoon in Makati. I couldn't resist eating al Fresco at Glorietta 5. My friends and I went for a short shopping expedition during our lunch break. Since I've already bought the item that I was looking for just within ten minutes of getting off the cab, I had plenty of time to wander around the mall by myself while the rest wandered off by themselves to shop.

I wasn't particularly hungry but the lovely weather urged me to sit down at the verandah and enjoy the breezes. I decided to have a light lunch at The Soup Kitchen. I ordered their combo meal of half soup and half sandwich, which was more than enough to fill me up.

I had the she crab soup, it's creamy and tomato-ey kind of soup with imitation crabs and chopped onions. Not very impressive. Maybe I'll try the clam chowder next time.



I also had half a ham sandwich, which was nice. It's got moyannaise on it, I can't believe how much I miss having mayonnaise in my sandwich!



The soup kitchen has a wide variety of dishes on their menu. Their soup specials change daily.

The Soup Kitchen also offers a wide variety of breads for your sandwiches, you have a choice of brown, raisin, herb, cinnamon pecan, strawberry, honey oak (now that seems interesting for a crab and mango sandwich, oh sorry, I'm daydreaming again). I may have to go back to The soup Kitchen to try their specialty sandwiches next time.

The weather was so perfect, I'm glad that I ventured out of the office for a short while to enjoy it.