Learning to Cook and Other Things

No one is excused from today's financial worries. All over the world people are stressed about practically the same things: roof over the head, food on the table, money to pay the bills, savings for the children's education, hospital care insurance, funds for retirement, etc. Some lucky guys have these all and yet feel there is still something missing. I, for one have constantly complained and questioned, is this all what I got to show out of my life? Is this all there is to it? My children are well on their way to building their own lives, need I worry about them still at this point? Maybe, I should just start worrying about myself. How can I be happy? How do I achieve that certain degree of serenity? And peace? How do I live the remaining years of my life productively? How can I serve as a blessing to others? How good would all that be? But aside from my family what about others? Those who are out there, somewhere? At this very same moment, people are dying from dis...

My friends have expressed concern about my weight. They noticed that I seem to be losing weight at a steady pace. I always tell them that it is because I am hypertensive. And not only that, I have been suffering from extreme stress since the start of the year. Last week my business partner suggested that I try malunggay. She told me that she knows someone who instead of getting chemotherapy opted to try the malunggay juice concotion. The guy, who used to have a fist sized malignant tumor is now almost completely healed. His tumor been reduced to just an inch size. This is anecdotal I know. But then again, I thought, what have I got to lose, if I try it too? Malunggay , said to be a miracle plant is an excellent anti-oxidant. It is good for those suffering from diabetes, hypertension, asthma, cancer and so many other ailments. So, my partner got me a whole bunch of malunggay leaves four days ago. As instructed, I used my kitchen mortar and pestle, which was made of marble. Then I g...

It is possible that 30,000 packages of green beans imported from China and sold in Japan maybe contaminated with large concentration of pesticides. Japanese investigative reports said that the beans contained more than 34,000 times the acceptable limits. News reports further revealed that the beans were imported by Nicherei Foods, a Tokyo based company from Yantai Belhai Foodstuff, said to be located in Shandong, China. See the full story here . Meanwhile, in Kaoshiung, Taiwan, frozen octopus balls imported from Shandong , China, may also contain melamine. According to the Health Bureau of Kaohsiung County, 1.1 parts per million of melamine was found in octopus balls. Almost 900 boxes of the food product were already sold in Taichung. See the complete story here . So, when and where are all these going? Or, perhaps this is just the beginning?

Unless I tell you... Yes, I have been tagged by my friend girl for all status . And I think my post title says it all. Here are seven things you would not normally know about me unless, you ask or I confirm. And because this is a food blog, I will relate these things to food or the kitchen: 1. I am an oc when it comes to my kitchen and dining room areas. All my kitchen and dining utensils are in places I have designated them to be and I hate it if anyone will attempt to disrupt that order. 2. I am a spendthrift when it comes to my dining ware. Actually, they will cost a fortune if bought today. 3. What I can not eat at home because it is bad for my health, I eat outside, alone. And I love the binging. 4. I love food ingredients that are made in Italy: olives, balsamic vinegar, cheese, olive oil, wine, pasta, anchovies, sauces, pesto, anything. I also love non-food Italian items like leather goods as in wallets, shoes, belts as well as bags. Anyway, who wouldn't right? 5. My fa...

Time and again I have heard and read health and nutrition professionals speak and write about the health benefits provided by fresh fruits. No doubt about that. But, are some fruits better than others? "Fruits are the ripened ovaries or carpels that contain the seeds". That is the botanical definition of a fruit. Accordingly it can be classified as 'simple, aggregate or multiple'. Wow! I didn't realize that it's mere classification is not really that simple. Anyway, some examples of common simple fruits are legumes, nuts, carrots, radish, and beets. There are also those known as fleshy, simple fruits like, tomatoes, avocado, plums, cherries, peaches, apricot, olive, banana, cranberries, apple, and pears. Aggregate or fruits that develop from a flower are raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries. On the other hand, examples of multiple fruits or those that come from a cluster of flowers are pineapple, edible fig, mulberry, osage-orange, and breadfru...

If plants are the main determinant of a good home, feng shui, then my home certainly qualifies. But maybe, I need a truckload more. Ha! Ha! Your Feng Shui is Amazing Your home is the perfect place to work, play, and unwind. Beautiful and streamlined - you understand the importance of design and flow. Your home is not weighted down by clutter, but it's not austere or sterile. You treat your home as well, and as a result, it treats you well! How's Your Feng Shui?

We have recently been gifted with a large bag of corn coffee. I was supposed to take a photo of the product to be uploaded here but heck my feebling mind got in the way again :-) Anyway, our first attempt to brew, resulted in a dark mixture, fresh but lightly aromatic. Actually, I could not have guessed it was made from corn. My partner found it way too light to be called coffee. Well that was the first. The second was much, much better. I think longer brewing time allows the true taste to reveal itself. In a pan, we put 2 heaping tablespoons of the ground thing on 2 cups of water. We boiled it for three minutes. The brew practically turned my dirty kitchen to a pleasantly smelling space, that evoked coffee strength as well as flavor. Way to go. I understand that corn coffee has been in the market for awhile now. They were originally, from southern Philippines and is slowly catching attention. Corn coffee is made from corn, dried under the sun and roasted on hot coals....

If you like kimchi, please help yourself to this latest controversy. Both China and South Korea avid producers of that vegetable delicacy are accusing each other with providing their respective markets with extra flavored kimchi. The flavors are lead, artificial sweetener, food coloring, or could come with parasites. The Korea Food and Drug Administration admitted that Korean made kimchi were found to be contaminated with parasite eggs. These were found from 16 out of 502 local makers. As a result 472 kilograms or 1,041 pounds were impounded. Some of these kimchi were exported to China. On the other hand, Chinese made kimchi are said to be tainted with carcinogenic materials as mentioned but found its way to Korea because it was cheaper. "One of the largest Korean producers, Doosan, established its factory in Beijing's suburban Miyun industrial zone in Au gust 2003. According to a Korean kimchi factory manager based in China, who declined to be identified, there ar...

Some days, I find my refrigerator crisper almost empty. What's left are a few tomatoes, a large sized green bell pepper. And on my cupboard, 3 pieces of medium sized potatoes. From the freezer, I bring out, 2 pieces of chicken breasts which have already been filleted, and sliced in bite sizes. The chicken needs to be thawed for awhile. Think. What can I cook out of these few ingredients. Aaahh. Okey. From my cupboard, I gath er several cloves of garlic and 1 large onion. How I did it? I pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil on the pan. In very low fire, sauteed garlic, diced onions and then tomatoes. And then add the chicken. Cook until almost brown. I added a pinch of salt and liberal serving of freshly milled black pepper. Last, add sliced green bell pepper for that sweet pimiento aroma That was it. Easy preparation. Cooked in a jiffy.

After that egg trivia post, I will now post about capons. Surely, not Al Capone. But capons of the rooster kind. With poultry, I prefer hens to roosters. Broilers to be specific. In the first place, I had the impression that rooster meat are tough. But I am getting ahead the story. So what are capons? They are roosters without penises which have been surgically removed at a young age. Typically, the castration is "performed when the chicken is between 6 and 20 weeks old". Capons are essentially a no-fighting bird as an after effect of castration. Eliminating its testes make the bird tamed. Capons live just to serve as a father for baby chicks. That's it. And because, capons grow slower than uncastrated cocks, they accumulate more body fat; the "concentration of fat in both the light and dark areas of the capon meat is greater than in that of the uncastrated males". Thus, capons are more tender, juicier and flavorful. In fact, in some places, capon...

At this age, I realized recently, that I am not an egghead but still am 'ignorant'. Or perhaps, just maybe naive? Because, one morning as I was preparing breakfast and was taking out the eggs from the refrigerator, I suddenly got dense curious, do hens make love at all? Do they always do it with rooster to produce eggs? Huh! To even think this, early in the morning :-) And this is what I found out. All commercially sold eggs; those found in the super and wet markets are never fertilized. Generally, laying hens never mate. This type of hens are raised for laying purposes alone, nothing more. Awww shucks, those roosters are missing a lot. Joke! But when roosters and hens mate, the eggs resulting from 'the act' are what we call fertilized. We can still eat fertilized eggs, though. No, problem, still provide the same nutritional value. Though fertilized, eggs never develop into embryos because of refrigeration, the other end of the chicken egg production pendulum ...

My family loves beans, not the kidney but the white variety. We cook it with different cuts of pork, like chops, belly, loin or ribs flavored further with ham, bacon or sausages sauteed in olive oil, garlic, shallots and tomato sauce. Our bean recipe is further enhanced by the rich addition of cabbage (red) or chinese cabbage or what is locally known as pechay. Beans can be rich in protein and could be a good substitute to pork. This means that you can have this dish with less pork and just enough to save on the food budget. But did you know that improper way of cooking beans can prove toxic? Toxic enough to cause food poisoning? "Poisoning can be induced from as few as five raw beans and symptoms occur within three hours, beginning with nausea then vomiting which can be severe and sustained (profuse), then diarrhea. Recovery occurs within four or five hours of onset, usually without the need for any medical intervention". Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA, or phytohema...

My THANKS to this blog's Top Entrecard Droppers. As always, my sincere appreciation to all of you guys. 1. Tasty Thoughts 2. Beaded Tail 3. The Positive Side 4. Hongkong iPod and Joomla 5. Losing Weight Intentionally 6. A Taste of Both Worlds 7. Pink Hues 8.Acakadut (EC did something to this blog) 9. Prove Me Wrong 10. A Second Cup