Learning to Cook and Other Things

Since I am on the subject of grapes aaannnd wine, I am looking f orward to serving a dear cousin who's coming to visit next week. She's going to have some 'great' wine from Italy . We have in our wine bar an o ld, old labeled Cinzano Asti Spumanti. I am posting about this because I am trying to learn as much as I can about different types of wine and their origin. According to Wikipedia Asti or A sti Spumante is a *DOCG white sparkling wine produced in an area to the south of the town of Asti in Piedmont , Italy . Made from the Moscato Bianco grape, it is sweet and low in alcohol, and often drunk with dessert. It retains its sweetness through a complex filtration process. DOCG or Denominazione di origine controllata is an Italian quality ass urance label for food products and especially wines. modelled after the French AOC and was instituted in 1963 and overhauled in 1992 for compliance with the equivalent EU law on Protected Designation of Origin , wh...

My friend who recently came down from California, believe it or not gifted me with grapes harvested from her own family's Napa Valley grape plantation and wineries. Yes, she married into a family who's been into wine making for the longest time . Swell. And the green seedless grapes were delivered in a large balikbayan box, delivered door-to-door in time for her arrival. And so, af ter disbursing some to my mom's and brothers' I asked myself, what shall I do with these luscious looking fruits? Good thinking. There's more than enough to prepare a green grape salad concoction such as this: 1 kilo seedless grapes, washed very well, peeled, refrigerated in a separate glass bowl 1 cup grated queso de bola 1 cup grated ordinary cheddar 1 cup lemon juice 1 cup mascu vado sugar 2 cups sour cream Mix everything in a large glass mixing bowl. Chill. When almost ready to eat, toss peeled grapes into the mixture. Serve lusciously :-) This is really decadent as f...

Breakfast as we all know is the most important meal of the day. But who among us take this fact seriously or thoroughly. Not even I who is sort of a health nut. My last post was about a new food wellness menu I designed to suit my hypertensive condition. This post will further expand that because I shall write about different breakfast combinations that can be tried or explored. So here goes: BTW my breakfast combis utilize locally sourced food items -meaning it is mostly for Philippine audiences. 1. Fruits in season as listed below: in balls, slices, chunks, tidbits, or in shake, or perhaps juiced. Bananas as in Lakatan Pineapple Papaya Mango Melon Watermelon Melon-Papaya Chico Guyabano (Sour Sop) Atis Avocado Ube Halaya Fresh fruit salad 2. Boiled Banana Saba - plain Natural Honey Glazed Kamote or Sweet Potatoes Baked Potatoes bathed in Evoo Boiled Saba Bananas with mascuvado sugar Boiled natural Corn drizz...

My new food wellness menu: Breakfast: Extra Virgin Olive Oil (evoo)on top of a grated garlic topped slice of bread (2pcs) (I don't take any processed anything for my bread no more) Any fruit in season, maybe papaya, avocados, melon, pineapple, ripe mangoes (2-3 slices depending on fruit size) Coffee (quarter of a teaspoon instant coffee grains and same amount of brown sugar) Snack 15 minute Meditation plus a slice of fruit Lunch Dinner left over (steamed again)usually fish or lean meat portions only Vegetable Salad of any hodge podge of green turned into a salad (with ginger and evoo on top) Less than a cup of rice Fresh Fruit Snack Fresh fruit juice with any type of pasta (chicken breast or clam or shrimp) with liberal evoo dressing) Dinner Vegetable usually, onion soup (uncreamed) Green salad bathed in evoo Steamed fish or chicken breast Fresh fruit I have been on this for almost a week and I feel good about it. The weather over in this part of the world is scorching heat and h...

Here's a squash recipe I tweaked to fit into my newly designed wellness menu: 3 cups peeled and cut tidbit sized squash green chilies 1 1/2 cups of coconut milk 4 regular sized blue crabs steamed, (Remove claws, and slice each crab in to two, set aside) 2 small dried bayleaf 1/2 tsp cumin 1 small onion quartered 5 cloves of pounded garlic 2 tbsps vegetable oil 5 cloves of pounded garlic On low heat, saute garlic on vegetable oil, then add onions. Add the 3 cups of squash. When squash is half-cooked, add crabs. Stir often to avoid veggie burning. Add bayleaf, salt, cumin and coconut milk. Cook until coconut begins to oil and curdle. Add green chilies. Serve hot. Serves 4.

Since a week ago I have designed a new wellness menu to see whether I will feel better. This onion soup recipe is a component of that wellness menu. I need 4 tablespoons evoo 5 cups thinly sliced white onions 6 cups chicken breast stock 1 cup dry white wine 5 slices french bread or wheatbread goat's or white cheese (if available) pinch of salt and black pepper to taste Saute the onions on evoo for 10 minutes. This requires continuous stirring. Add broth and wine and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. Salt to taste. Add freshly milled black pepper. Pour into deep bowls. Best when hot.

I am just wandering whether over here where I come from, if changes in the law, or if there is any law at all concerning the use of waste cooking oil from household and catering environments. Also, do we have a law governing or permitting waste cooking oils from food manufacturing, fresh or unused cooking oil”, to be used in animal feeds. In the U.S. laws had long been instituted as a measure to “safeguard animal health and the subsequent food chain under the Animal By-Products Regulation EC 1774/2002 (ABPR) and applies across Europe, including the UK ”. In most member states the ban has applied since May 2002. After October, 2004, anyone using waste cooking oil from catering premises as an animal-feed, as an ingredient in animal-feed or who consigns waste cooking oil to such animal feed operations commits an offense. Furtheremore, the ABPR mandates that “catering premises shall have their waste cooking oil taken away by their usual collectors” and/or expected to “supply...

Enzymes are living organisms found in raw food. Fact is, humans are also born with a designated supply of naturally occurring digestive enzymes. Let’s say that our body’s supply is equivalent to 100,000 credits. As we get older, a 100 credits here, a thousand, over here, another ten thousand over there. Credits deducted. The food that we take can also spell the difference. What we eat can either add, or further reduce credits. Note that food cooked over 121 degrees Fahrenheit or more has zero credit. It is dead as far as enzymes are concerned. And so are processed foods. The more we eat these types of food, more enzyme credits are gone to the wind because the body actually needs more enzyme credits to digest dead food. This sounds morbid but it is the truth. I know I have been there. Eating right is crucial in maintaining a healthy number of enzymes. Because we cannot avoid cooking our food, we therefore need a way to add to, or at least maintain a good number. This m...

1. Allergic reactions occurring with your babies may be caused by your latex rubber nipples if you are still using it. Latex can also contain substances that maybe linked to cancer. 2. Your best bet is to use glass bottles. I remember my father telling a story that we were drinking infant formula from a pepsi cola bottle. (My God that’s more than 50 years ago). Studies have shown that plastic bottles can leach a bisphenol A (BPA) a highly toxic chemical. Use bottles that are not marked “7” or “PC”. Avoid hard, plastic feeding bottles. 3. Do not soft plastic liners which may leach chemicals into formula, especially when heated. 4. Use filtered tap water. If water is fluoridated use a water filtrating equipment that use reverse osmosis. This is to remove fluoride from the water. The American Dental Association discourages fluoridated water most specially for infants 5. In choosing infant formula, better to use powdered. Liquid formulas have higher levels of BPA. 6. Use only ...

All my children were breastfed. First, because it was healthier and second, it was cheaper. But because my milk only lasted till they were 5 months, there was no other choice but go formula. I normally chose the middle brands, not so expensive, yet not so cheap. Except for my youngest son, who drank only soya powdered milk because he was lactose intolerant, I experienced using many formula brands. I was never loyal to any. Whatever, was cost effective and yet provided the “nutrients” a child needs, that was my brand. At the start, I also used glass bottles, for the milk formula preparation. Even at that early stage, I knew from my gut that I could not trust plastics. I believed then, as I believe now that plastic is something that will bring more harm than good, in the long term. But because the glass bottles keep breaking and was costing me a lot, I had no choice but go plastic bottles. Now, why am I talking about this here? My children are all adults now. But recently, I read this ol...

What's that? Ahh, yes. Yesterday, it was camels, today its kangaroo meat. I really was ignorant about kangaroo meat for food or as a substitute for beef and lamb chops :-) My nearest recollection of coming face to face with a kangaroo was in a zoo. And here's what 'roo' meat advocates say. The fight against global warming can use the help of those who might be interested to try kangaroo steak or kangaroo lasagna. Because, if you do, that's less cattle butchered and that means less cattle farting. Cattle passing gas contributes to greenhouse gases. Yes, sireeee, seriously, as in methane:-). This is not funny. In fact Greenpeace , the most widely recognized environment inspired organization aside from WWF, made a "controversial call to eat less beef" and instead switch to kangaroo meat. It is said that, " nearly a quarter of the planet's greenhouse gases came from agriculture, which releases the potent heat-trapping gas methane". On the othe...

‘Magic milk’ or milk that comes from camels are said to be highly nutritious, three times more than Vitamin C and ten times iron provided by cow’s milk. It is said to cure numerous illn esses like diarrhea or even tuberculosis and may even act like an aphrodisiac. Camels are of two breeds: the Bactrians or the two humped camels which are famo us for their meat and hair; and the Dromedary or single humped which are best for milk production. Milk is expr essed by hand and it appears that camel milk yield is really dependent on the bre ed, it’s grazing and the time of the year. Camel milk is expressed best in the presence of its young. So if you get the chance, wou ldn’t it be nice to taste what I am sure would be an exquisite serving of camel dairy products from milk to cheese, chocolates and ice cr eam. YUM ! And by the way can you gu ess what animal wears a br a? See the basis of this po st here and here .

If you are thinking of having tacos one of these days, try this avoca do based dip called guacamole. As if you didn't know that. But this is my version and as if it is any different from the rest:-) We all know that avocado is the healthiest fruit ever. And because it is in season over here, I am going to take advantage of that and use it as dip, as dessert or as salad add-on. Now for my version, I would need: 3 very ripe avocados, mashed 1 small onion preferably red, chopped fine green onions, chopped fine 3-5 cloves of minced garlic 1 cup finely chopped ripe tomatoes 1/8 cup of lime juice freshly milled black pepper according to taste salt to taste 1/2 tsp chilis finely minced Just mix everything well and then off to be chilled. Re-calibrate taste before serving. Use as dip for your favorite tacos.