Veggie Delight
In an effort to cook and eat healthy, I made sure I dropped some veggies in my supermarket cart last week. I bought some lettuce, broccolli and cabbage only to discover when I got home and opened the fridge that I still had half a bunch of broccolli, two lettuce heads and a head of cabbage! Plus, I still had an unopened bag of baby carrots and one that is open already! So you see, the effort to cook healthy and include lots of vegetables in our diet has been with me all this time. 
Not only that, there was still left over roasted chicken (supermarket bought) from I don’t know when (but still tasted good, promise!) and the previous night’s shrimp in garlic and butter.
To avoid being reprimanded for hoarding veggies and letting them waste in the fridge, I had to do something with the vegetables. And so, I took out the half-a-head of broccolli, what’s left of the opened package of carrots, some mushrooms and the left-over shrimps and chicken and proceeded to cook a maskipaps (maski papaano) vegetable dish. 
The procedure: In a pan of hot oil, saute about 5 cloves of crushed garlic and half an onion (sliced, of course!). And then add the carrots and mushrooms and allow everything to simmer for a few minutes. Next, throw in the shrimps and chicken (or whatever you found in your fridge) and the broccolli last. Add a tablespoon or two of oyster sauce and a dash of salt and pepper to taste. If you prefer a crunchy broccolli, turn off the fire as soon as it changes to a bright green color. Otherwise, wait until it’s all wilted. Voila. A veggie dish that’s easy to make and healthy, too!
Fruits & Vegetables | Comment (1)
Hearty Treats
This is my entry to Toni’s A Show of Hearts Blog Carnival.
Because this is a food blog, it is but proper that I showcase edible hearts. This turned out to be a walk in the park because I only needed to dig into Abby’s Valentine’s Day goody bags (from her school party) and voila.
First, the goody bags. Well, two of them, at least. Hee hee! Yep, there’s more than two!
Hershey’s chocolate hearts
More choclate hearts which came in this…
…heart-shaped box.
loads of candy hearts
hearts on candy wrappers
There. You could just imagine how hyper the kids were by the end of the hour-long Vday party. 
PS. If you have time, check out my other entries here and here.
Tags/Memes | Comments (8)
Shrimp in Butter and Garlic
Not too long ago, I posted an entry on halabos na hipon. I received a few suggestions, which I took to heart. Meeya and Abby, this is for you…
I sauteed the shrimp in butter and garlic and seasoned it with salt and a bit of freshly ground pepper. Because we have a little girl in the house whose tastebuds have yet to develop tolerance for spicy food, I did not add hot sauce to the entire dish. We just added the hot sauce when the shrimps were already on our respective plates. That way, everyone is happy! Hahaha.
This was actually my second attempt. The first time I whipped up this dish, I didn’t peel the shrimps and the end result left me wondering where all the butter and garlic went. Hee hee! I thought maybe I should have peeled the shrimps first. So that’s what I did the second time around. I peeled and deveined the shrimps, but left the tails. That must have done the trick because this time, there was no missing the buttery and garlicky taste.
Simple yet satisfying. You don’t need a master’s degree to do this. Not even a bachelor’s!
Oh, and if I may add another variation to the halabos na hipon which I used marinate and steam in salt and sprite (or 7-up), I have now taken to substituting the soda with honey. And it’s yummy still…if not yummier.
Seafood | Comments (6)
Cocoa Mousse
One of three desserts I made for our Christmas dinner was Cocoa Mousse. I thought I’d give baking muffins, brownies and cookies a rest and try something new, that is, something I have yet to do. It was a toss between cocoa mousse and chocolate cream puffs. I chose the simpler of the two…the cocoa mousse.
It was a very rich chocolate dessert and very easy to make. If there’s something that’s keeping me from being 100% satisfied with the finished product, it’s the unemelted cocoa granules that was still ever present. I’m thinking next time, I’ll probably press the cocoa with a spoon first before dumping it into the saucepan to make sure every bit of cocoa dissolves and no tiny balls end up in the serving cups.
If you’re a chocolate lover like me and want to give this chocolatey goodness a try, here’s the recipe:
Cocoa Mousse
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup cocoa
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 cups (1 pint) cold whippint cream
Note: If you want to make it into a Cocoa Cappuccino Mousse, add 2 teaspoons dissolved powdered instant coffe or espresso.
- Combine sweetened condensed milk, cocoa, butter and coffee in a medium saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until butter melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; cool.
- Beat whipping cream in large bowl until stiff. Gradually fold chocolate mixture into whipped cream. Spoon into dessert dishes. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours. Garnish as desired.
Makes 8 servings.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours
Recipe Source: Hershey’s Classic Recipes
Desserts/Sweets/Baked Goodies | Comment (0)
