Kulawong Puso ng saging Recipe

An Auntie of mine is on a short vacation from the US, and requested me to cook for her one of the food posts she saw on my FB account. Who am I to refuse a simple request that would make my father's sibling happy? So let me share with you this simple recipe :)

Kulawong puso ng saging

For this recipe you will need the following:

2 banana heart, chopped or shredded (I chopped mine)

2 cups grated coconut

1 small onion, minced

3 pcs garlic, minced

1/4 cup vinegar, you can add another 1/4 cup

dash of pepper, more if you want 

salt

patis

a little sugar

Admittedly, this recipe needs a smooker. If you do not have access to one, I read from somewhere that you can use live coal to burn the coconut meat. I don't have both so I used my blowtorch and figured it may have the same effect.

Spread the grated coconut meat on an aluminum tray

1. So, spread the coconut meat on an aluminum tray and just blowtorch it until it becomes golden brown. Burning it a little is ok too! I love it when it is more burned than just golden brown. As this will give your Kulawo a kind of smoky flavor. 

2. In the meantime place the banana heart in a bowl with brine water and let it just stay there for about 5-7 mins. After which you may squeeze out the brine from the 'puso ng saging'. Wash the banana heart under running water and squeeze out any excess water. 

3. Now back to Mr. slightly burnt coconut 😃 

Put the slightly burned coconut meat into a bowl and pour vinegar on it. You can add more vinegar if you wish to, just not too much if you will only be using 2 banana hearts. Squeeze the milk from  the grated coconut into a clean bowl. then set aside.

4. Place the coconut milk, garlic, and onion in a pot on medium hear. Just let the coconut milk simmer without you stirring it. Remember that you poured vinegar into it earlier. You will need to patiently cook the vinegar before you can stir it like crazy! :D Let it boil then simmer it for about 5 minutes.

5. Add the banana heart and season with salt and pepper. Add a little sugar to balance the flavor and simmer it some more for about 10 minutes.

***This recipe can be cooked with or without meat. You can use minced pork or toasted alamang for added flavor. 

Let's eat!

Serve hot on equally hot rice! I can just imagine you all drooling! :D

Food for the soul

Our family's diet has passed through different stages... I used to have a hard time thinking of what to prepare for my husband, being a picky eater. I'd always have to think hard and long what to cook. Making a weekly menu helps but it means having to buy more grocery stuff. Not wanting to add more to the list, I am always forced to serve the same dish to my children rather than cook two viands just because only my kids and I eat beef.

Thankfully all that has changed. My husband and I have been weaning ourselves off rice. These days I've been spending shorter times in the kitchen. Our diet consists mainly of vegetables, protein, and fruits. Our kids are exempted from this discipline as far as rice is concerned. But we do have them eat more vegetables. Am discovering more fun ways to serve our veggies. To make them look and taste interesting. I want to be off rice permanently and I feel that my husband is trying his best to keep his resolve.

I love whipping up old recipes with new ideas. Let me share with you some of my recipes. Tonight i made my own version of Yakisoba. For this recipe you'd need the following:

2 cups of beansprouts
2 cups of thinly sliced napa cabbage
1/4 cup thinly sliced meat or shrimps
1 cup japanese tofu cut into cubes
Soy sauce
Mirin
Sesame seeds
1 tbsp minces garlic
1 onion sliced
1 tsp minced ginger
Sesame oil
Salt (optional) and pepper to taste

1. Blanch napa cabbage and beanprouts. Set aside when done.
2. Fry thinly sliced pork in very little oil. Set aside.
3. Saute onion, ginger, and garlic in a little oil. Toss in the pork and fresh noodles pour a little sesame oil. Cook in medium fire for no longer than 5 minutes.
4. Pour in about 2 tbsp mirin or 1 tbsp brown sugar and soy sauce. Pour 1/4 c of water. Put a dash of ground pepper and salt. (Put salt only if necessary, normally soy sauce is enough) Remove from heat. Toss in the rest of the veggies and mix until fully coated with soy. Top with sesame seeds and serve hot.

Enjoy! ;)

Cooking with Peaches

Apart from the regular chicken recipes I know, since we arrived in this country, I would always look for other recipes via the internet. Most times I like simple cooking but there are times when I want to surprise my husband and kids with my culinary ability. Last night for dinner I made Chicken cordon bleu. But instead of the usual fillings, I made mine with sausage (of course chicken sausage as well), carrot and cheddar cheese slices, cream cheese and peaches. For the sauce I made two kinds red sauce and bechamel. Of course the kids and my husband loved it and kept on asking when I plan on cooking the dish again. I would like to share with you my version of Chicken Cordon Bleu with red and bechamel sauce.

For this recipe you will need:
250 grams boneless and skinless chicken breast
Boiled Carrots (you don't need to much), sliced lengthwise
Peaches, sliced lengthwise
**Cheddar or Mozzarella cheese, sliced lenghtwise
Cream or Feta cheese (optional)
Breadcrumbs

Ground pepper
salt to taste

**you can use other kinds of cheese

1)  Thinly slice the chicken breast the same way you do when you make beef rolls. Sprinkle the meat with ground pepper and salt. (you can also rub it with a little lemon if you want your chicken meat a bit tangy)
2) Arrange sliced carrots, cheese, and peaches and roll chicken until filling is completed wrapped. Dip in breadcrumbs. And fry in low fire. You can also add chilis, if preferred (the kind that is used for sinigang). Set aside and let cool.

For the Sauce:
Red Sauce:
3 pieces Garlic, minced
1 bulb Onion, sliced
Tomato paste
a little sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Saute garlic and onion in olive oil add tomato paste and 1/4 cup water, add salt and pepper depending on preferred qty and stir constantly. Add 1/2 to 1 tsp sugar while stirring. Once red sauce is a bit thick, set aside.

White Sauce (bechamel):
7 pcs garlic, minced
5 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 cup grated cheese

Saute garlic in butter add 4 tbsp flour or cornstarch then pour the milk stir until it thickens a bit then throw in the grated cheese. Add a bit of salt and pepper to taste. Once mixture is thick enough. set aside. For this sauce I put a little amount of sugar to balance off the taste.

You can now serve your Chicken cordon bleu with 2 sauces/gravy.

***Please note that the photo above is for visual purposes, this is not the actual picture of the dish I cooked last night. I forgot to take pictures as my husband and kids were excited to dig in! Photo was borrowed from allrecipes.com