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

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

Baked Leche Flan

Leche Flan (Spanish) which literally translates to milk pudding is a classic, well-loved dessert from the Philippines. It is usually steamed but this recipe is oven-baked. Still, the result is that soft, creamy, melts-in-your mouth texture. The success lies in the perfect timing of removing it from the oven and allowing the remaining heat to cook the flan. It is the perfect thing to cook after the Pavlova because of the unused egg yolks of the meringue-based dessert.

Ingredients for the custard:

10 egg yolks

1 can condensed milk

1/2 cup fresh milk

1/2 tsp. lemon zest

3/4 cups brown sugar

For the toppings: (Optional)

Kiwi

Cherry

Or any citrus fruit

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius.

2. In a small saucepan over low heat, dissolve the sugar until it is caramelized into a golden brown syrup. Carefully transfer into your baking pan covering its entire bottom.

3. In a mixing bowl, cream together the egg yolks and both the condensed and fresh milk. Add the lemon zest.

4. Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking pan with the caramelized sugar and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake in the oven for at least 45 minutes.

5. Remove from heat and let it cool.

6. Transfer to a serving platter by flipping the baking pan upside down. Top with you fruit of choice.

Regards,

Jane

Pavlova

The first time I made a Pavlova, Eds blogged about it his blog, Me&MyGirls. Below is an excerpt from his post:

Dating back from the 1920's, and named after the great Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova, this dessert has been loved by millions with its lightness, subtle sweetness, and the simplicity of the recipe. It's a meringue-based dessert with cream and fruit topping. A successful pavlova has a meringue that is crisp on the outside and a soft, chewy, marshmallowy center. Both Australia and New Zealand claim ownership of the first dish creation but latest research shows it might probably be from the latter. But who cares, this dessert, beyond any shadow of a doubt, tastes just as heavenly as it sounds.

Many chefs fail in making the meringue beautiful, avoiding cracks. But as this dish has a cream frosting and fruit topping, it hides the flaws while making it look like a cake. So it's okay if the meringue cracks, as long as you make sure it tastes good.

After that, we had many pavlovas on different occasions. And this would probably my fourth. It’s easy-to-do, it’s fruity, and most of all, Ashrie love it when I make pavlova because she can eat the crunchy meringue flakes on top.

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