Easy Appetizers for New Years
December 28, 2009
If your hosting a New Year’s party, then you’ll proabably serve cocktails. If this is the case, you’ll want to provide finger foods for your guest to snack on througout the night. Don’t ruin your day by slaving in the kitchen. Use these simple ideas to provide easy, tasty apps for your guests.
1. Make a veggie plate. Buy pre-cut veggies, and fill a bowl with ranch dressing.
2. Cut up velveeta into cubes and throw them in a crock pot. Add a can or two of rotel tomatoes, and throw some tortilla chips in a bowl.
3. Buy cocktail weenies. Throw them in a crock pot with a bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce.
4. Mix a cup of oil with your favorit spices. Garlic salt, lemon pepper, red pepper, and cumin all work well. Use the oil mixture to coat pretzel sticks by shaking them in a bag.
5. Place bowls of mixed nuts in various rooms.
6.Buy cheese, summer sausage, and crackers, and place them on a serving dish. Add a small bowl of your favorite mustard, and you’ll have a yummy station.
7. Buy a plate of fresh fruit. In a bowl, mix whipped cream with vanilla yogurt for a tasty fruit dip.
8. Buy a bag of party mix, and place it in bowls in various rooms.
Make your holiday simple, and you will be relaxed. Your guests will appreciate your mood, and they’ll enjoy munching on these tasty snacks.
Using a Crock Pot for Easy Meals
December 28, 2009
You shouldn’t feel guilty if you come home from a long day of work and don’t feel like cooking. We’ve all been there. Unfortunately, many of us make a quick trip to a fast food chain to get the chore of providing a meal over with. This habit, however, can have dire results. Instead, invest in a crock pot or a slow cooker. Cooking with a crock pot is an easy way and fast way to create a simple, healthy meal. The good thing about a crock pot is that you can throw in a variety of ingredients, and they usually form a great meal. Here are some ideas.
Put boneless chicken breasts into the crockpot with a bottle of Italian dressing. You can also use dry ranch dressing seasoning. It comes in a packet and can be found in the salad dressing aisle of your grocery store. Add some fresh broccoli and a couple of potatoes. Let the mixture cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours, and you have a complete meal.
Brown some hamburger meat. Thrown in the meat, a can of beef broth, and 3 or 4 cans of your favorite vegetables for a tasty soup. You can even freeze whatever is leftover for an easy meal for later. Again, cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours.
Make chili. Brown hamburger meat. Add a couple cans of chopped tomatoes, a can of tomatoe paste, a couple cans of tomatoe sauce, and any other veggies you like- like onions, celery, jalapenos, or bell peppers. You can also buy a pre-made chili kit that will have all the spices you need (garlic, cumin, oregano, etc…) Cook in the same manner.
Don’t be afraid to create your own concoctions in your crock pot. The great thing is that you can throw it in there, and forget about it. Providing a hot, healthy meal for your family is easily in reach.
Bopiz
December 27, 2009
Ingredients:
1 kilo pork liver
1 pc pork spleen
1 pc pork heart
3 tbsps cooking oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onions, minced
3 large tomatoes, minced
2 beef cubes, dissolved in 1/4 cup water
3 pcs red bell pepper, minced
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
Procedure:
Clean the pork heart, liver and spleen thoroughly. Rub with salt and wash in running water. Boil in enough water to cover for around 10 minutes. Drain and mince. Set aside.
Heat oil and saute garlic, onions and tomatoes. Add minced pork ingredients and saute for about 10 minutes. Add the beef cubes mixture and simmer. Add vinegar, red bell pepper and salt. Simmer for 2 minutes.
Makes 10 servings
Butong with Crabs
December 21, 2009
Ingredients:
2 tbsps cooking oil
1 tbsp garlic, minced
2 tbsps onion, sliced
1/4 cup tomatoes, sliced
3 cups butong (young coconut) meat, grated
1-1/2 cups coconut juice
2 tsps salt
3 pcs crabs, boiled and cut into halves
2 tbsps spring onions, chopped
Procedure:
1. Saute garlic, onions, tomatoes, and butong.
2. Add coconut juice, and salt to taste.
3. Add halved crabs and cover.
4. Cook for 10 minutes.
5. Add spring onions and cook for 2 more minutes
(Makes 6 servings)
For the dip
Ginataang Langka or Jackfruit in Coconut Milk
December 21, 2009
Ingredients:
1/2 kilo young jackfruit, boiled, cut into strips
1/4 cup dried shrimps (hibe)
3 cups kakang gata or first extraction (coconut milk)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, minced
1/4 tsp salt
Procedure:
1. In a kawali, combine coconut milk, dried shrimps, garlic, onion, and jackfruit.
2. Cook over medium heat with constant stirring until the jackfruit is tender.
3. Season with salt.
(Makes 6-7 servings)
Pako Salad
December 21, 2009
6 cups pako leaves
Dressing:
1/3 cup vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
4 tsps onion Tagalog
6 medium-sized tomatoes, sliced
Procedure:
1. Blanch pako leaves.
2. Mix ingredients for dressing except tomatoes and onion.
3. Pour over pako leaves.
4. Garnish with tomato slices and onion rings.
(Makes 10 servings)
Kinilaw na Tuna
December 21, 2009
Ingredients:
1 kilo fresh tuna, cut into chunk cubes
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup calamansi juice
1 head of garlic, minced
1 big onion, minced
2 tbsps ginger, minced
3 pcs finger peppers, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 cup chicharon, crushed
Procedure:
1. Wash the tuna and drain well.
2. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients except for the chicharon.
3. Combine fish in the mixture.
4. Transfer to a serving container and top with chicharon.
5. Chill and serve
(Makes 6-8 servings)
how to cook
December 19, 2009
About Mushrooms
At the market look for mushrooms that appear fresh, feel firm and smell good. They should not look dry, shriveled, or darkened – these signs indicate the mushrooms are old.
They can be stored in the refrigerator for several days but they must have good air circulation. Store them in a paper bag with a few holes punched in it. Do not store them in plastic – they will sweat and rot quickly.
To prepare them for cooking, trim away any darkened or discoloured parts with a knife and remove the stems. Use as little water as possible to clean them. A soft-bristled dry brush is good for removing most dirt. A dampened paper towel can also be used to wipe them clean.
Large Portobello mushrooms should be peeled and the dark gills under the cap removed. (The gills will impart an unpleasant brown colour to anything they’re cooked with.) Cut the cap in half. Place the cut-side on the work surface. With a sharp paring knife slice off the dark gills as though you’re slicing a piece of bread from a loaf.
Spears of asparagus are the tender young shoots of a large Eurasian perennial plant, asparagus officinalis. It grows into a four-foot tall, fern-like plant, each plant requiring several square feet of space. For this reason it isn’t very practical to grow in a small kitchen garden.
The spears are harvested in the late spring when they are between 6 and 12 inches above the ground and quite green. The first spears to be harvested can be very thin; the stalks fatten and get juicier as they mature. For this reason always look for the fattest specimens.
BICOL EXPRESS
December 18, 2009
Ingredients:
1 kilo lean pork, cut into small strips
1 head garlic, crushed
1-1/2 cups kakang gata or first extraction (coconut milk)
1/2 cup bagoong alamang (fish paste)
1 cup finger pepper, sliced
Procedure:
1. Place pork and garlic in a saucepan.
2. Pour in coconut milk.
3. Let boil until pork is tender.
4. Once boiling, add in the bagoong alamang and let simmer for 25 minutes or until the liquid has oiled.
5. Add sliced finger pepper and mix.
(Makes 6-7 servings)
Ginataang Kalabasa
December 18, 2009
SQUASH IN COCONUT MILK
Ingredients:
4 cups squash or kalabasa, cut into cubes
2 cups kakang gata or first extraction (coconut milk)
1 tbsp bagoong alamang (shrimp paste)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tinapa, flaked
100 grams shrimps
1/4 tsp salt
Procedure:
1. Pare the squash or kalabasa and cut into cubes.
2. In a saucepan, combine coconut milk, bagoong alamang, flaked tinapa, garlic, shrimps, and kalabasa.
3. Let boil while constantly stirring until kalabasa is tender.
4. Season with salt.
(Makes 5-6 servings)
