One of the Adventurous type?

Pampanga won't fail you..

Introducing, KAMARU or cricket.

Where did we have this? At..

Kamaru are crickets of the rice fields and the farmers are the suppliers of Everybody's Cafe owned by Mr. Poch Jorolan himself. And according to Mr. Poch they consume more than 20000 kilos of Kamaru every year!

The feet and antennae are removed and it will be sauted with tomatoes and onions.

Enjoy! Promise, it won't fail you. It's yummy!!

Thanks again to Mr. Luis Manlungat, my official photographer :)

Heaven Sent Deserts

Turones de Casuy and Sans Rival

The place that I'm talking about in the last entry is the Ocampo-Lansang Delicacies D'Original pasalubong. It is very famous; in fact when we got there, the flow of people buying from them is non-stop. The shop is actually just adjacent in the front of the humble house of the Ocampo-Lansang's. Going inside, you could see many life size statues, religious statues lined in the walls and at the far corner is an altar. One could see the religiosity of the family, from the moment the recipe of Turones de Casuy and Sans Rival is being taught (the story is from my last post) until now that their business had grown.

 The Turones de Casuy is a long, slim stick of cashew nut covered with honey and wrapped in a sheer wafer that is similar to the ingredients of hosts (ostsa). The super sweet taste of the Turones contrasted well with its wrapper as it tamed the taste. According to ate there, from the recipe that was passed on from them, the way they cook, prepare and the ingredients had not been changed at all. So generally speaking, we have tasted what the three maidens have tasted before.

Sans Rival on the other hand is a layered cake torte sprinkled on top is finely chopped cashew. The layer of meringue is then slathered with rich buttercream, and topped with a golden butter icing that probably all the angels in heaven created. One amazing thing about the Sans Rival is that the butter does not melt even on room temperature, an evidence of how Kapampangans master their craft well.

Once I relished the heavenly-no-rival taste of the Sans Rival and the Turones de Casuy, I could say that I’ve been touched-or rather- my tongue’s been touched by angels and right then and there, I’ve been in heaven…

Credits to Mr. Luis Manlungat for the photos :)

Three Sweet Maidens

My next entry is my favorite stop.

I’m not really fan of sweets, I don’t have sweet tooth, so when I learned that our next stop is a famous pasalubong sellers of the place, I groan inside because I know that most pasalubongs are all sweets.

Before we get down out of the bus, Mr. Poch, our tour operator, imparted us the story of how the owner of the place learned about the recipe. By the way, I haven’t introduced yet the delicacy - or delicacies, should I say, and it is, my favorite, Turones de Casuy and Sans Rival.

According to Kuya Poch, the “origin” Turones de Casuy and the Sans Rival in the family, goes back as the olden days of the Spanish occupation in the Philippines. The story?

Characters: 1. Three maidens (tatlong Maria)

                  2. Friar

Setting: Philippines under the Spanish occupation in a church.

             Once upon a day from long ago, a friar living alone began to tire in attending and maintaining the church all by him. The church is used by all people hence; imagine the vast space this church occupies and an old, fragile, lone friar maintaining the place, all by himself.

         One day three beautiful maidens suddenly appear. Asking for nothing, these tatlong Maria volunteered to help the friar in looking after the church. They cleaned, swipe the floor, wash the chalices, wipe the dust off every pews, the crucifix the table, wash and iron the friar’s robes and see to it that before every mass, the place of worship is worthy of Christ’s blessing.

                                                           the Three Maidens

                                                             (charot lang! :P)

              They accepted no money from the friar. But the friar feeling ill inside, accepting something but giving nothing insisted on the three maidens to teach them the recipe of Turones de Casuy and Sans Rival averring that it is not money but an added skill is not hurting their faith. They accepted.

Thus, three generations after, we could still taste the heaven sent desert that the friar had taught the maidens as they passed this recipe from their sons and daughters and theirs sons and daughters to their sons and daughters as well.

            Such a beautiful story imparted to us by Mr. Poch. This is only the story of their origin and for my next blog entry, I will tell ya’ll how our stop went and describe to ya’ll the ‘no rival’ taste of Sans Rival Ocampo Lansang style and the Turones de Casuy.

Burquillos

In the same barangay that we had our first Patko, we also had our own barquillos on the same place. Own, because we had the chance to make one. Barquillos is a buttered cylinder wafer that is a good snack.

The moment we entered, the waft of butter swirls around the place making my mouth water as ate barquillera makes one of thousands of burquillos she make every day. Not only does it smell good but it is also fun to eat the sweet, buttery, delicate cylinder wafer. It is fun to eat it because of the shape and its not-so-sweet taste that brings back memories of my childhood. It had been one of my favorite snacks when I was in kindergarten to grade 2. And it’s been a long time now since I last have one.

The recipe for Burquilos is simple, flour, sugar, egg and butter. Ate barquillera have a square metal plate where 1/3 tablespoon of the mixture is being poured and spread all over using the concave part of the spoon. After that, the other square plate attached to the other is pressed down to the mixture to grill it. On its handle there is a lock to ensure that the two metal plates are pressed properly to even out the mixture. After some seconds it is flipped to the other side, linger for 5 seconds, open the plate and as a stick that looks like a drum stick, it will help shape the burquillos.

Making my first barquillos feels good but eating is better. Unfortunately, I cannot find my photo in the albums of my friends so I cannot add my photo here making one.

                   

Thanks to my classmates in T120 for the photos! :) No copyright infringement intended.

Foodie Poetry

                   Food Inglorious Food

Be it known as convenience food, junk food or munchies;
whether spicy, melt-in-your-mouth soft, or crunchy,
food, inglorious food, seduces with ease
and ensnares with the emptiest of calories.

Disguised as a comfort food comes macaroni
with creamy Alfredo and kin, Fettucini,
To not be outdone, spaghetti entices
with large fattening meatballs and sauce rich in spices.

“Deep fried” knows our weakness for fat, which gives pleasure
and saturates fast foods, it seems, in great measure:
KFC (finger-licking), batter-fried fishes
and chicken fried steaks -high cholesterol dishes.

Even fruits will attack with enjoyment unhealthy
as tarts, pies or pastries. That apple is stealthy!
Veggies can also be treacherous things
in guise of corn fritters and gold onion rings.

Too much of a good thing is pizza (so cunning,
so meaty, so cheesy), which no one is shunning.

The taco, burrito, and big burger too


in great numbers descend on us. What can we do?

Those delectable luscious desserts that we eat
have only to sit there; we cannot retreat!
Candies and chocolate, our decadent sin,
sweetly defeat us. We simply give in.

Ice cream, a smooth foe, knows when we are blue.
On a cone or a spoon, it drips, waiting for you.
As a milkshake, a frosty, a sundae or float,
or between split bananas, it sure floats MY boat!

Buttered popcorn is one salty foe, and we love it!
The hot dog implores in our mouths that we shove it.
Baked bread, so alluring, entraps with its scent,
which wafts through the air as if heaven sent!

The standards of junk food -America’s pride -
crisp bacon and nachos, chips and foods fried,
invade our malls’ food courts and lurk high and low.
Their smells overwhelm us wherever we go!

We might try but we can’t make our junk food desist.
for only the health nuts can dare to resist.
In the war with inglorious food I adore,
I say, Bring it on! Here’s my plate; I want more.


The Synathroesmic Cat Contest Poetry contest of Suzanne Delaney



Poetry Poems. Poetry Soup. October 8, 2013. taken from <http://www.poetrysoup.com/poems/best/food>


I don't own any of the photos. all are downloaded in the internet. No copyright infringement intended.

Patko: Crepe Twist

Craving for sweets?

Have a try on native delicacies of Pampanga! J

The last blog I entered is about our field trip in the food capital of the Philippines, but all I talked about it is just our itinerary but not focus on the delicacies. So for the following blogs I will tell you some of their history, how they are made, and how mouth-watering these delicacies truly are.

Our second stop of the trip is the Patko and Barquillios.

Everybody knows what crepe is (need I say more about this sent-from-above desert?). But do you know that a good filling for this is grated coconut nub? ‘Cause that is what Patko is.

Prior to our visit, I really have no idea what Patko is, the food that came from my mind is some stir fried insect. Not that I don’t eat these kinds of stuffs (I’m a food adventurer kaya! :P) but the name doesn’t really give the impression of a desert.

Patko is rolled over a banana leaf, stuffed with oh-so-yummy-oh-so-nutritious coconut nub, covered by the velvety crepe that is mellifluous to the mouth.  One bite instantly sends you to seventh heaven. I’ve never tasted something like it before.

Although one drawback of it is that you cannot eat as many as you desire since its sweet and nakakasuya.

But still, if taken in moderation, it could lead you to the clouds.

Credits to Ms. Giezel Gumahad for the  photos :)

Bloated Tummies and Memories

Last September 22, we had an OCLA in Pampanga, dubbed as the food capital of the Philippines, entitled Memory Making in Food Consumption. This field trip is not only to fill our stomachs but has the main purpose of understanding the culture of the Kapampangans as reflected by the way they make their food. Though food is just mere symbols and just one aspect of their real culture, storytelling is also included in our itinerary to somehow provide a sliver of what Kapampangans are. So, as we fill our stomachs with luscious food, we also fill our mind with memories of Pampanga’s food stories and our actual food eating, which I admit is the best part.

The trip includes 9 stops that gave us insights of how Kapampangan foods are prepared, evolved, and stories of their history.

Before we make our stop in a particular delicacy, Mr. Poch give us backgrounds about the delicacy and I notice that from the suman makers of Bacolor, to Turones de Casuy and Sans Rival, to Patko and Burquillios, to the sampaguita cookies from La Moderna Bakery, even our lunch at Everybody’s café and the San Nicholas cookies of Atching Lillian Boromeo, are recipes passed on from one generation to the next. With only a few modifications to keep up with the modern world like the suman topped with chicken strips, egg and ham. Also, the San Nicholas cookies that two men were making at the La Moderna Bakery do not have the image of San Nicholas on their molder.

I also notice the influence of the church over some of the Kapampangan food we ate and the interesting stories of their history. Like the Sans Rival and the Turones de Casuy, to give thanks to the three ladies that helped in maintaining the church the recipes were passed on to them by the friars. Thanks to them and their grand children, I had the chance to relish the heavenly-no-rival taste of the Sans Rival and the Turones. One amazing thing about the Sans Rival is that the butter does not melt even on room temperature, an evidence of how Kapampangans master their craft well.

Another where christianity is truly apparent is the San Nicholas cookies of Atching Lillian (my favorite stop since I got the chance of making my own cookie and its perfect!). This stop got my attention to actually listen to the story behind this delicacy. As early as 1600 Spaniards already taught this recipe to Filipinos around the country but only the Kapampangans have preserved this delicacy until today and thus now became one of their trade marks. Atching Lillian even owns molders dated back to as early as 1900 as evidenced by the colors. And overtime, some families made their own design of molders sometimes with San Nicholas or none at all. Though the recipe is simple, Kapampangans before only bake this kind of cookie once a year. But since this cookie became well known, it is now baked all year round as it is made pasalubong of tourists.

I also observed how creative Kapampangan’s make their food. Like the additional toppings on their suman, chicharon partnered with achara, Turones wrapped with edible paper, and San Nicholas cookies with lemon zest. They are not contented on conventional ways of cooking but they add more ‘twist’ to that distinguishes their cuisine to other places.

This trip did not only fill my stomach but it also proves that culture truly differs from one place to another, as I got the chance to compare Kapampanan food to Ilocano food. It differs because of its history and the way people had interacted with each other overtime. But I must admit that Kapampanangan food is much more fabulous than Ilocano food.

Mama Chit's: Hidden Guilty Pleasure

Looking for another burger place worth checking out?

If you have tried Zarks, the one I featured before, Mama Chit’s is one place worth trying.

It started small, according even to someone I know, that whenever he passes by the place customers are next to nothing but the moment it was featured (yes, it was featured!) on Kris TV, a talk show of Kris Aquino, customers surged over.

One good thing about the location is it is along a residential place and not on highway so there is not much car and pollution since it is an open refectory. And the breeze feels good; it was even a reason why we don’t want to go yet but since customers keep on splurging we were forced to stand up.

Like Zark’s, it offer a wide variety of burgers, I’m just not certain about its menu since it is a self-service eatery and I’m not the one who ordered. I was just the one watching over our bags outside so I got the chance of wandering my eyes over the place. Photographs, signages, paintings of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, a big crown of Coke and Pepsi hang over the walls. 

Their burgers are accompanied with potato chips and mayo sprinkled with fried garlic and onion leaves.

Here are photos of the burger and you be the judge.

Located at 278 J. P. Rizal St, Lungsod ng Marikina 1800.

credits to the owner of the photos :)

Zark's Burger: An Ultimate Burger Experience

Burgers.

Eeeeeekkk…

Jump-packed with calories and for the healthy-living-slim-fit-persons whose top priority is to cut calorie count as high as possible or even banishing the word ‘calorie’ on their dictionary forever, burgers, perhaps tops their ‘The Forbidden Food’ list.

Who can’t blame them? Since average burgers contain 266 calorie count… it definitely adds an extra inch on that well-sculpted waist of yours…

Since I don’t belong to that group, I just eat whatever I want, sometimes a little over the bad side other times a little over the good side; I didn’t even think twice when my friends decided to eat along Katipunan. We decided to check Zark’s place, a dwelling abode for burger fanatics who doesn’t give a f*&%'s care about the calorie content the food they offer.

It was actually introduced to us by our friend whom just last Saturday went there with his family. The place offers an American atmosphere with NBA games being played on muted TV, American rock bands playing over the stereo almost drowning the chatter of fancied customers, basketball and baseball memorabilia on frames displayed over the walls.

They have a wide selection of burgers from Minor League to Major League that includes French fries, another sinful food (such a sinful combination!). I ordered Bourbon Burger, a mushroom cheeseburger topped with their very own bourbon barbecue sauce, which I don’t particularly enjoy. Yet, the burger itself is enough to satisfy me, a quarter pound with lettuce, cheese, onion, tomato and bacon and with a complete selection of additives in every table you don’t have to ask for some, like ketchup, mayo and mustard. It’s so big I almost didn't finish it.

They even have a challenge for ultimate burger eaters. 

Introducing, the Jawbreaker.

A 1.5-pound cheeseburger with Spam, 5 inches in height and 4 inches in width, with fries included in a matter of just 5 minutes. Finish it, and walk out the place not spending a cent, but unable to do so means paying 250 pesos.

Another  is much scarier, the Tombstone.

It is a 10 inch, 2-pound burger to be finished in 10 minutes. Unable to do so means paying 500 pesos.

Survivors will be included on their Wall of Fame and a free shirt will be given to them.

So for not-so-health-conscious out there Zark’s Burger is worth checking out. And to add more fun, bring someone who would challenge either of the two challenges and cheer him/her on top of your lungs.

They also offer a selection of sandwiches, desserts, rice starters and ribs and steak. Located along 318 Katipunan Avenue, Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

‘Ber’e we go again!

I woke up this morning at about 5:45, an unusual thing for me since I usually wake up at around 8am. After the tossing and turning in a futile attempt to go back to the sweetness that sleep offers, I gave up and went downstairs, surf the net for a while and from jumping from one site to another, decided to cook our breakfast since it’s a already a quarter before seven and from any time people will go down and look for food (it’s an unwritten rule in our house that whoever wake up first will cook our breakfast, that’s why I usually wake at 8  J ). I opened the refrigerator to look for food that could still be reheated and saw a pan which had been there for ages and throw the contents away. That’s when I feel it, and everything comes to place…

Just to be sure I look over the calendar and that’s it. It’s the first of September.

It’s the start of the famous “ber” months. J J J

Maybe that is why I woke up 2 hours earlier than my usual wake up time as if saying,  “Giddy-up Thea! What you feel is not a typical morning- dew frostiness it’s the Ber frost! Go outside and feel it!” And yes, something is different; the cold is iciness that nips my skin in small stings that my skin feels whenever touched by the holiday wind. My skin craves for it as it brings back a surge of memories from my childhood back in La Union. Holiday memories from my childhood, that is. The excitement of exchanging gifts (you might never know what to receive) and the Christmas vacation are just some of it.

But it’s not the just the unusual chill that reminds me of Christmas, because somebody in our neighborhood plays the song Give Love on Christmas Day at this early date. That, I guess, is the biggest contributor why I thought of Christmas this early. And somebody shouts outside greeting someone “Good morning, Merry Christmas!” Both of them just laugh, the person said also the same thing and added “Happy New Year too!” I can’t help but smile with them.

There are still 116 days before Christmas but I know a lot of people already think about the holidays now. Especially with the entry of the first ber month, in which to us Filipinos is one of the reminders of this holiday. Christmas is just around the corner but still is ages away. There are three more ‘ber’ months to do what we need to do to fully enjoy the festivities that this much anticipated season awaits us.

So before thinking about the holidays and devotedly praying and wishing that if possible it could come faster, I might as well do what is needed to be done now.

116 days from now... :)