Comfort pizza

Last night I needed something familiar and ready-to-eat after I crossed out my Long Weekend Plan A to visit the Vegetable Capital of the Philippines.  (pouty face)

My visit to the Victory Liner station proved futile when I found out that all early-morning Manila-Baguio trips the following day were already fully booked, as expected.  I wasn't entirely disappointed however, I just took it as a sign that I should rethink and lessen impulsive travel ideas like this in the future.  Then I called Yellow Cab and got the Garden Special and tomato basil soup.

Last Day 12

Thank you, Italy.

Though not exactly comfort food that I grew up with in the traditional sense, in any case pizza evokes fun memories of my freshman year in college.  Those days, my roommate, adopted roommates (friends who made our room their tambayan) and I just loved getting our double pies at Little Caesars especially after a long day of winning inter-dorm basketball games (oh yeah!), or a successful past-curfew in-and-out-the-dorm stealth operation climbing through fire exits and over dorm gates, or when we simply needed tasty edible accompaniment to our girl talk and the occasional bottle of Jose Cuervo Gold we sneak inside the room under our dorm mistress's strict hispanic nose.

Curious coleslaw

Coleslaw, or koolsla as the Dutch say it, means cabbage (kool) salad (sla). 

I've raved about cabbage before but I'll enumerate again some of its awesome qualities: it is rich in vitamin C and selenium (prevents cellular damage), contains hundreds of cancer-fighting compounds, is a natural remedy for ulcers, and has calcium, iron, and folate.  Plus a medium-sized head of cabbage costs less than 30 pesos.  Kool, right?

For the salad, I chopped a third of the cabbage head, a small carrot, and half of a large white onion.  For the dressing, I mixed about two teaspoons of muscovado sugar, about two tablespoons of cane vinegar, and a chopped sili.  Why sili?  Because according to Korean cooking, having all five tastes-- sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and spicy-- makes a 'complete' dish.  Hot!

Last Day 9

Don't forget to season with salt and pepper!

A Raisin Story

There was a raisin that lived in a land of cool, fresh cucumber hills.  She had a lot of sweet raisin friends and for a time she was happy in her familiar home.

One day, a stranger came to town.  He told tales about the Big City, a place peppered with all sorts of spices and seasonings.

The little raisin wrinkled with excitement.  Pickled fruits!  Intricate garnishings!  The city sounded like a delicious and colorful salad party!  She decided that the city is where she should be.

She climbed out of the refrigerator, crossed the kitchen sink, and skipped over the rice box until finally she arrived at the Big City.

It was everything she thought it would be and more!  She roomed with a couple of maraschino cherries and immediately dove into the pulse of city life.

But after a few years, the raisin turned bitter.  She felt like the city had an overpowering taste and she couldn't blend in.

She began wandering aimlessly around carrot skyscrapers, trying to find substance in the white pepper dust.  She finally stopped at a pool of chili soybean mush.  She squinted as she looked down on the shiny crimson surface, feeling the sting from the reflection of the white onion sky.

Then she saw it, the green cucumber moon.

The raisin remembered the cool cucumber hills but at the same time she knew her home was now this savory, sometimes pungent city.

She realized the reason for her bitterness was because she had treated herself like a condiment, always putting her unique zest on the side.

As the raisin created new dreams, her sweetness oozed.  It flowed through her folds, coating the salad city with her beautiful, suggestive flavor.

This is my salad. What's yours?

Everything-But-The-Kitchen-Sink Salad

DAY 11

I confess I got carried away with the knife and just threw everything I can get my hands on, literally.

First, there was the ripe mango I rejected last night, cooling its heels (er, cheeks?) in the ref, already diced and ready for action.  I placed it in a bowl and mixed in a teaspoon of chili soybean paste.

Then I sliced a red bell pepper into strips and an onion into rings.

Then added a bit of peppered cheese from Holland that I got as a pasalubong.

The only decision I really put some analytical thought into is the addition of raisins to the rest of the gang.  I thought I may have put a little more of the chili paste than what was needed so I threw in something sugary to combat the heat.  Fight!

Happy Random Salad Day to you, too.

Wicked salad take-out

DAY 9

I joined my officemates at Wicked Kitchen on Katipunan for an early dinner this afternoon.  They're watching the 7:30 p.m. Varekai by Cirque du Soleil show at the Quirino Grandstand so we were already at the restaurant at 4:30.  I watched the show three weeks ago with boyps, so I was just basically there to finish their buffalo wings.

I wasn't hungry yet so I ordered the "Wicked Garden Salad" to go.  This way I can escape from kitchen duties tonight!

The menu said it had mesclun.  What the heck is that?  The waitress didn't know either.  She shouted over to the manager who went to our table and explained that it's a mix of different kinds of lettuce.  Good to know!

Aside from lettuce, the salad had tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, onions, and walnuts.  Balsamic vinaigrette is the dressing.

I couldn't figure out why they called it "wicked" until I finished eating the salad.  Onion breath.  One word:  Wicked.

Tossed salad is effortlessly sexy.

Sunday Special: Raw Ampalaya Salad

DAY 7

I made it through seven days of veggie dinners! Yehey!!

For this special day, I decided to go ahead and eat them veggies the way nature intended... raw!

As usual, I had the ampalaya slices lie on a salt bed for around 10 minutes, rinsed them with water, then treated them to a cane vinegar bath just to make sure I got rid of at least 90% of the salt crystals.  Then I rinsed them again with water, tossed them in a bowl along with a chopped onion, tomato, and garlic, added two teaspoons of cane vinegar, then seasoned with salt and pepper.

Like eating the colors of the rainbow.

Tonight I celebrate my love... for veggies

DAY 6

Weekend is here! So I thought I'd treat myself to two spicy dishes: mango ensalada* and eggplant with extra hot bagoong.

For the ensalada, I chopped a ripe mango, two tomatoes, and one white onion, tossed them in a bowl, and seasoned the whole thing with salt and pepper. Easy!

Ensalada reminds me of summer days.

The eggplant dish took a little longer to prepare (but not that long).  First, I broiled an eggplant over the stove fire.  The skin of the eggplant had to be pricked with a fork to allow moisture to escape through when the vegetable is heated.  After it becomes cooked and soft on the inside, I peeled the skin off, chopped it and in a bowl, mixed it with spicy bagoong and white vinegar.

Yum-mmmy!

_______
 *Ensalada is just Spanish for salad.

I cheated with Johnny...

DAY 5

...but still ate my vegetable!

What I meant was, I didn't have to chop or blanch or slice anything for tonight's meal because officemate gave me her Johnny Rockets doggy bag which contained a bit of salad and a couple of onion rings.  Which also meant I didn't have to wash any dishes after dinner.  You rock, Johnny!

Thank god it's Free-day.