Buffet Spread for My Daughter's 5th Birthday

Ashrie celebrated her 5th Birthday yesterday and we hosted a simple dinner for close friends over the weekend. Along with her DIY birthday cake and cupcakes (both from The Icing Room), we served Mashed Potatoes, Pavlova, Baked Honey-Glazed Chicken wrapped in bacon, Seafood Salad Wrap, Roast Beef, and Roast Broccoli and Mushroom with Pine Nuts. All very simple and easy-to-make recipes.

So to my sweetie, Happy Birthday Ashrie! Daddy and I loves you very much!

Cheers!
Jane

Mason Jar Salad

Hi JK friends!

I’ve been making fresh salads in the past and I constantly have the problem of throwing leftover vegetables especially leafy greens. It’s always not good to serve it the next day because it doesn’t retain its freshness even you store it in the fridge. Just imagine the time it took from the farms to the grocery to my kitchen. Good thing I’ve discovered doing Mason Jar Salads.

 Placing the salad in mason jars will keep vegetables fresh and can save you time and money. It is also the best way to store other food items because it is endlessly reusable, easy to clean, and of course, BPA-free. When the lid is airtight, the salad can last even up to four days! There are just some easy guidelines that we need to remember and I would gladly share them with you.

1. In a clean and dry mason jar, place the salad dressing first followed by the heaviest veggies such as carrots, beans, etc.

2. Continue to add the remaining vegetables. The lightest should be on the top. Make sure the lettuce does not touch the dressing so that it will not be mushy.

3. Fill the jar with the salad until top, the less air pocket the better.

4. Close the lid tightly and place in the fridge.

There you have it! You can grab one salad jar anytime, bring it as a packed lunch or a healthy picnic treat.

Happy healthy eating!

Jane

Pininyahang Manok

If you are craving for something savory, creamy and sweet, well this dish might be the one for you. Pineappled Chicken is an easy-to-do and definitely a yummy all-time favorite among Pinoys. You can either use evaporated milk, cooking cream or even coconut milk for the sauce. And add as much chilli as you want for that extra spice. Here’s the recipe.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken (chopped into serving parts)

1 can evaporated milk

1 small ginger, sliced

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 can pineapple chunks (reserved the syrup)

Fish sauce to taste

Black pepper to taste

Cooking oil for sautéing

Procedure:

1. In a skillet of hot cooking oil, sauté the ginger, garlic and onions. Add the fish sauce.

2. Add in the chicken and stir fry for about five minutes.

3.  Pour the pineapple syrup and let it simmer for about fifteen minutes or until chicken is tender. Add the pepper.

4. Pour in the evaporated milk and the red bell peppers and bring to a quick boil.

Transfer to a serving dish and enjoy with hot steamed white rice.

Cheers!

Jane

Chicken and Pork Vermicelli

Chicken and Pork Vermicelli is a healthy and hearty dish which is rich in nutrients and history. It originated from China and is adapted to suit the Filipino palate. It is believed to bring long life (noodles are not cut prior to cooking) and is served at birthdays and special occasions. Though not necessarily a believer of that, we love this dish very much.

Ingredients:
1/4 kg sotanghon (glass noodles)
1 onion, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
1/4 kg lean pork, diced
1/4 kg chicken breast, sliced
1 carrot, sliced thinly
100 g string beans, sliced diagonally
6 pcs shiitake mushroom, sliced
3 cups water
2 chicken stock cubes
2 tbsp soy sauce to taste
spring onions for garnish
fried shallots for garnish
vegetable oil for sautéing

Procedure:
1. In a bowl of hot water, soak the vermicelli for about 15 minutes. Set aside.
2. In a wok, sauté the onions and garlic in oil. Add the pork and chicken and cook until tender.
3. Add in the vegetables and stir-fry until half-cooked.
4. Pour water and drop in the stock cubes. Let it simmer. Drain the vegetables and meat from the soup mixture and set aside.
5. While the soup is simmering, drain the vermicelli from the water and transfer it onto the simmering mixture. Season with soy sauce.
6. Stir continuously over low heat until the liquid is almost absorbed by the noodles or until cooked. Add half of the drained vegetables and meat and mix well.
7. Serve in a platter, top with the remaining half of the vegetable-meat mix and garnish as desired.

Cheers,
Jane

Baked Chicken Adobo

It was raining heavily the other day that the clothes I have washed needed to be hung inside at the laundry area, (which is adjacent my kitchen) to dry. I have already planned to cook Adobo but I’m afraid doing this would give me an Adobo-scented clothes. The solution, bake the Chicken Adobo in the oven instead of cooking it on the stove. The result was excellent! Perfectly tender chicken in a rich soy and vinegar sauce. Try it!

Ingredients:

1 kilo chicken thighs

1 onion, diced

1/2 tsp whole peppercorns

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water

2 bay leaves

3 to 4 hardboiled eggs (optional)

seaweed flakes (optional)

Procedure:

1. In an oven-safe saucepan, marinate all ingredients except for the eggs and seaweed for at least an hour.

2. Bake in the oven at 170 degrees Celsius for 1 hour, checking once in a while if the sauce is getting too dry. Add water when necessary.

3. After an hour, remove from oven, drop in the eggs and garnish with seaweed flakes.

Serve with steamed white rice.

Cheers,

Jane

Filipino-Style Chicken Curry

Almost every country in Asia has a version of the famous curry chicken. Typical of Indian cooking, the Filipino version has less pungent taste, absolutely less spicy but nevertheless competitive when it comes to creaminess and richness in texture to its Asian counterparts. The dish can be adapted with minor variations to cook meats like beef, fish or prawn. And while others like to eat it with bread or prata, Pinoys would definitely serve this with rice.

Ingredients:

1 kilo chicken, cut into serving pieces

2 large potatoes, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

5 stalks celery, cut into bite-size pieces

Red and green bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 small ginger, cut into strips

1 cup coconut milk

2 tbsp curry powder

1 cup water

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

Separately pan-fry the potato and chicken. Set aside.

In the same pan, sauté the garlic, onion and ginger.

Add the pan-fried chicken and mixed in the curry powder.

Add water and simmer until the chicken is tender. Season with salt and pepper.

Put-in the remaining vegetables then simmer for 5 minutes.

Finally, add the coconut milk and mix well. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

Cheers,

Jane

This recipe was adapted from panlasangpinoy.com.