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.

Déjà vu lumpia and monggo

When I love something, I want to have it all the time.  Like this all-vegetable MSG-free lumpia from this little kiosk in SM Cubao.  Yeah, this is not my first time.

Last Day 5

Wholesome street food to go!

Love can also be spelled as m-o-n-g-g-o.  But I jazzed this one up with a native ampalaya (the small ones used in pinakbet), chopped and added to the dish at the last minute to keep the nutrients intact.  Plus, when it comes to veggies, the smaller, the bitter.

Last Day 6

I like different colors on my plate, palette and palate.

* * *

And because I am a bagoong fan, sometimes an addict, let me rave about my new favorite.  This particular kind is made of shrimp fry.  It goes well with mangoes, but really for me, bagoong is great with anything.  (I ate it with the monggo!)

I love getting pasalubong in food form.

Mestisang yogart / Takaw sa taco

Mestisang Yogart

May matangkad na Greko
Na bumisita sa preso
Natipuhan ng isang Pilipino
At pinakilala sa kanyang apo
Na bumisita rin sa preso

Mahinhin na dalagita
Ang gusto ng banyaga
So nag-date sila sa Luneta
At nagholding-hands pa
Sa ilalim ng mangga

Isang taon ang lumipas
Nagpakasal din sa wakas
Ang nagmamahalang si Tomas
At si Annalyn Bagasbas
Sa simbahan sa Batangas

Isang araw, may naka-realize
Na pinsan ni Lynlyn na si Lyz
Na marami palang sinabing lies
Itong si Tomas na mukhang plays (English: "pliers")
Na minsan ay mukha 'ring katol

Pero bago sila maghiwalay
May isang araw na sila'y sumablay
Dahil itong si Lynlyn na mahalay
Ay gusto palang maging nanay
So nagpabuntis siya kay Tomay

Mestisong bata ang lumabas
Crush ng bayan itong si Kulas
Kaso di niya alam ang panglunas
Sa kanyang pusong butas
Na di kayang takpan maski ng bayabas

So nagtangka ang bonitong mestiso
Na pumunta sa kabilang dako
Nang sa kanya may nagpayo
Na isa ring mestisong gwapo
(Na anak ng maitim na Kano)

Sayang beauty mo sister, sabi niya
Sumama ka nalang sa akin sa Maynila
At doon tayo magpakaganda!
Di tayo bagay maging Shanna
Dahil, hello, mukha tayong artista!

Napangiti si Kulas ng malaki
Kasi finally sa kanya may nakaintindi
Na kapwang magandang lalaki
Na feel din na siya'y pwedeng-pwede
Maging isang BB Gandanghari!

So nagpaparty si Kulas sa kanila
Dahil sa wakas alam na niya
Na siya pala ay isang bakla
And buti cool din si Mama
Na ang anak nya'y maging mestisa


Last Day 3

Ang mestisang yogart: maganda sa mata, maganda sa tiyan.

* * *

Takaw sa taco

'Pag pagod ka na sa katatakbo

Posibleng makaubos ka ng taco 

Sa loob ng limang minuto

Gaya ko

('Yun lang!)

Last Day 4

Magpasalamat ka at sinakop tayo ng iba't ibang bansa.

The Attack of the Cabbage Patch

Do you remember the Cabbage Patch Kids?  I heard of those dolls when I was a kid but I never had one.  What I had instead was a paper doll that I never showed to anyone because my mother had drawn breasts and pubic hair on it.  True story.

Anyway, back to veggies.

I didn’t know when I picked up that head of cabbage that I would be holding in my hands one of the most awesome vegetables there is!

Some cabbage facts:
1. Rich in vitamin C and selenium, a chemical element that combines with proteins to prevent cellular damage

2. Contains HUNDREDS of plant compounds that can prevent cancer (read more in this book) 
3. Natural remedy for stomach ulcers 

Cabbage belongs to the cruciferous family which includes cauliflower, cress, bok choy, horse radish, mustard seeds, arugula, wasabi, and broccoli.  These “super veggies” are all good sources of cancer-fighting components like beta-carotene and fiber, as well as supply calcium, iron, and folate.  Whew!

I went on a cabbage holiday and cooked the vegetable three different ways:


DAY 4

Stir-fried cabbage with spicy bagoong, red rice, tomato, and pineapple juice.

DAY 5

Coleslaw with pineapple and carrots.  Dressing is cane vinegar, olive oil, muscovado, and salt.

DAY 6

Cabbage pansit with bell pepper and carrots.  Smeared with chili soybean paste.

Loco for Mexican Taco (Salad)

DAY 3

I didn't feel like making my own dinner so I treated my pets (dog and human) to a late night out on Maginhawa Street.

For Tobi, walking is enough of a treat, so we braced our ears for the territorial barking of the poor caged dogs along the street while the little one absolutely enjoyed every second of its leashed freedom.  I treated C to a super burrito at my favorite place on the resto strip, Mexican Express, while I got a colorful taco salad* for myself.

Did you know that UNESCO has added traditional Mexican cuisine to its list of the world's intangible cultural heritages?  There's a TV show I always catch on Sundays that features Mexican food and because of it, I have added Mexico to my own list of must-visit countries. 
 

The Mexicans know how to salsa.

*Taco salad is a Mexican-inspired dish invented by Americans.  It's not a traditional Mexican dish.

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.

Starring: Ampalaya, Black Beans, Tomatoes and Camote Tops

DAY 1

I have to admit, cooking ampalaya intimidates me, particularly because of its bitter taste quality.  And it doesn't help that the critic’s* reviews on my past two ampalaya dishes were not exactly encouraging.  "Di pa luto. Mapait pa.”  That was his polite way of saying that he didn't like it.

But an ampalaya dish need not be 'un-bitter' to be good according to my officemate, who is an experienced cook. Emboldened by those words, I decided to forge ahead and launch this 21-day veggie challenge with ginisang ampalaya.

The dish turned out pretty well actually, in my humble opinion.  I added a bit of chili soybean paste to make it sexy.  The pineapple juice chased the heat away.

Eat ampalaya and live to be a supercentenarian!  This vegetable is a significant ingredient in the cuisine of the of the inhabitants of Okinawa Island, Japan, home of the world's oldest people.

DAY 2

One of my all-time favorite dishes is ginisang black beans and tomatoes.

I thank my officemate for teaching me this recipe which I absolutely love because it’s a no-brainer: just saute chopped garlic, onions, and black beans, let them get acquainted for around five minutes then add the chopped tomatoes.  I remove the seeds in my tomatoes because I don't like looking at them.  Sorry, seeds.  You know it's cooked when the tomatoes have become a bit soft but still firm.

Tip: Rinse the beans thoroughly before cooking to remove all the excess salt.

DAY 3

Camote is a super plant.  The highly-fibrous tubers are great sources of complex carbohydrates and anti-oxidants, and the young leaves (camote tops) are packed with polyphenolics, antioxidative compounds that may prevent cancer and cardiovascular diseases, as well as being rich in iron, calcium, vitamins A, C, and B₂ (riboflavin), according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

I actually didn't have a plan when I bought the camote tops at the neighborhood palengke.  But I knew I didn't want another sauteed dinner.

So I opted for a salad this time.

To prepare the leaves, I placed them in a strainer and poured boiling water over them.  Then I put small mounds of spicy bagoong on the tomato slices to add a dimension of color to the dish.  No, I’m joking, I just really love bagoong.  So I will feel less guilty about the salt, I spilled extra virgin olive oil over the greens.

That's three days down, 18 to go! 

New rule: Beginning today, I will eat only good-looking food.

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* To make life easier for me, let’s just refer to my boyps as “C” or “the critic”.