Leche Flan

Leche Flan

It has always been my dream to make this.  I just do not know why I never did it.  Probably because I am not confident with my dessert making abilities.

This is the most famous Filipino dessert which comes to my mind.  Made of milk and eggyolks, it is our traditional creme caramel.

Bon appetit!


Ingredients:

10 eggyolks
1 can condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk 
lemon zest

1 cup sugar

Directions:
1. Beat the eggyolks with a fork.  Add all milk and zest and mix thoroughly with the fork. You do not want any air so do not use a beater. Set aside.

2. In a baking mold, melt the sugar until dissolved. Then swirl so the sides would get the caramel too.  Wait few minutes to cool down the sugar. Strain the egg mixture into mold. Cover mold with aluminum foil.

3. Steam.  I have done this in 180C in the oven. I placed the mold in a water bath inside the oven.  I waited until the knife comes out clean as you see the mark in the picture.  30-40 mins.

Apple Crumble

Apple Crumble

The last time I have made a good crumble was in Suva, Fiji Islands.  I always thought afterwards that it is so difficult to make one.  But now I know that as long as the crumble is thick and crumbly, one cannot go wrong!











Ingredients

Filling:
500 g apples, cored, peeled and sliced
50 g brown sugar
pinch of ground cinnamon
1 T flour


Crumble:
300 g flour (or 200 g oats + 100 g flour)
175 g brown sugar
200 g butter, room temp


1.  Preheat oven at 180C.
2.  Mix all the filling ingredients.  Pour into a buttered pyrex dish.
3.  Cut in the butter the crumble ingredients. Top apples with this mixture.
4.  Bake 40-45 mins.  If the crumble turns brown too fast, cover with a foil until time ends.

Pesto

Pesto

During our stay in El Salvador, I had a marvelous gardener. Together with him we transformed a small patch of the garden to a non-stoppable basil haven.  I had tons of basil leaves and started making pesto and also gave them to friends.

I do remember blending altogether:

Lots and lots of basil leaves
Anchovies
Parmesan Cheese
Pine nuts
Olive oil
Garlic


In this bottle, I do not have the pine nuts though. I have used the Thai fish sauce instead of anchovies.

Beef Salpicao

• Seeing from my Facebook friends' posting about going out and having Beef Salpicao often, at one point I needed to cook it myself.  So easy and tasty as ABC.
• 
  
• 
  
• Beef Salpicao
• 
  
• Ingredients
• 1 lb beef, tender and cut into 1/2 inch strips ( If you have time, I would macerate the meat first)
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 6 cloves garlic, minced 
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• oyster sauce
• Maggi seasoning
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine

Directions:

1. 1
   Combine oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and paprika in a bowl. 
2. 2
   Marinate beef  in garlic-oil mixture for a couple of hours or more in the fridge.
3. 3
   Saute marinated beef (including marinade) in VERY hot oil.
4. 4
   Keep stirring until beef strips are browned evenly.
5. 5
   DO NOT lower heat.
6. 6
   Add oyster sauce and liquid seasoning in accordance to your taste.  It could turn very salty.
7. 7
   Cook a few seconds more; add butter last. I used my leftover home made garlic bread spread.
8. 8
   Remove from heat and serve immediately over hot steamed rice.

Chicken Teriyaki Sticks

As I was preparing the Teriyaki sauce, I realized how similar it is after all to our very own Chicken Adobo.  They are defined separately by ginger and bay leaf, respectively.  However, when the Chicken Teriyaki Sticks arrived at its party destination, they were called Philippine Chicken Barbeque.  Now I am really lost!




Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon flour or cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 12 skinless and boneless chicken thighs

Directions

1. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the cornstarch, cold water, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger and ground black pepper. Let simmer, stirring frequently, until sauce thickens and bubbles.
2. Preheat grill.
3. Cut chicken pieces and put them in sticks.  Lay them on a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Brush chicken with the sauce. Turn pieces over, and brush again.
4. Grill until brown. Turn pieces over, and brush with sauce. Grill further until brown.
5. I advise that the chicken be marinated overnight for better taste.

Pattaya Perch

I have a favorite Thai recipe book in which now I do not know where it is.  From all our moves, it can only be in Argentina. But since I have been using it in the early stages of my married life, the ingredients for making this got stuck with me. Originally it is called, Pattaya Shrimp. But I had no shrimps and had nice Perch fillets. So it is Pattaya Perch.  Sounds confusing but delectable. I just had it and it was mouthwatering.  Even my husband who is fish-unfriendly found it so.




Pattaya Perch


Ingredients:
any fish fillet cut into cubes
oil
oyster sauce
sugar
vinegar
garlic cloves, cut small
red onion, cut in slices
2 small chilies, cut
red bellpepper, cut in julienne
Thai basil leaves


Direction:
1.  In a flat pan, deep or not, place some oil and saute garlic and onion until wilted.
2.  Add oyster sauce (a lot depending on how much fish fillets), sugar and a bit of vinegar.  Add chilies and red bellpepper.
3.  Add fillets flat on the sauce taking care to turn them around after a short while.
4.  Add basil leaves and serve with rice.  I had no Thai basil leaves but the Italian ones were a good sub.