What’s Cooking?
Something Japanese: California Maki
It was a very busy Saturday for me. I did the laundry, cleaned the house, and cooked 2 of my favorite foods, California Maki and Coffee-Chocolate Panna Cotta. While resting and reading about hgh supplements, I came across a site showing various Japanese foods and craved on sushi rolls. That’s what made me decide to make a California Maki. I’m glad that I still have all the ingredients needed, but this time I will be using ripe mango as one of the fillers.
So here are the ingredients and tools that you’ll need:
- a bamboo mat, wrapped in plastic to avoid the rice from sticking into the mat
- 2 cups of Japanese rice
- ½ cup mirin
- 2 tbsp sugar
- Nori sheets
- Japanese Mayonnaise
- Riped mango, cut into strips
- Crab sticks
- Roe (can be bought in Japanese grocery, I also found one in Landmark Trinoma)
- Black sesame seeds (can be bought in Japanese grocery)
Procedure:
Mix the vinegar and the sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
Cook until sugar has dissolved completely; remove from heat.
While the rice is still hot, stir the sugar-mirin mixture into the cooked rice.
Cover the bamboo mat with plastic wrap.
Put a sheet of dried seaweed on top of the mat. Spread sushi rice on top of the seaweed and press firmly.
Sprinkle sesame seeds and roe over the sushi rice. (This time, I asked Andre to assist me.) 
Turn the sushi layer over so that the seaweed is on top. Place mango strips and crab sticks lengthwise on the seaweed.
Roll the bamboo mat forward, pressing the ingredients inside the cylinder-shaped sushi. Press firmly the bamboo mat with hands, then remove the rolled sushi.
Cut the sushi roll into bite-size pieces. Top with Japanese Mayonnaise upon serving.
Here’s the final product:
Bok Choy with Garlic Oyster Sauce
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to seriously lose weight. One of the moves I am taking is to prepare healthy foods and introduce more vegetables in our meals. It’s also my first step for a quick weight loss. I am making a weekly meal plan so that I could easily prepare them. I will be sharing with you one of the vegetable dishes I am going to prepare. It’s a very healthy and easy to cook dish. I call it “Steamed Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce”.
Here are the ingredients:
1 bunch Bok Choy or Chinese Cabbage
1 tsp garlic oil*
2 TBSP Oyster Sauce
2 tsp sugar
White pepper
toasted garlic for garnish
Procedure:
1. Blanch the Bok choy and set aside.
2. In a pan, heat the garlic oil then add the oyster sauce and sugar until well blended. Season with pepper and simmer for 1 minute. Turn off the heat.
3. Arrange the Bok Choy in a platter and pour the sauce over the veggies. Top with toasted garlic.
*To make garlic oil, heat ¼ cup of oil and toast about 1 TBSP of chopped garlic until it is golden brown. Turn off the heat. Separate the garlic and oil using the strainer. You may put the garlic in a paper towel to remove excess oil and store it in an airtight container for future use.
Easy Bacon-Wrapped Cherry Tomatoes
These are cherry tomatoes that my MIL gave me when they arrived from Baguio.
I know that there are various ways of cooking tomatoes, but I haven’t tried cooking cherry tomatoes. So I searched the internet and found this very easy-to-prepare yet delectable recipe that you can serve as an appetizer this Holiday Season.
Here’s the recipe for my easy bacon-wrapped cherry tomatoes: You will need honey-cured bacon, cherry tomatoes, paprika, ground pepper, and toothpicks. Wash the tomatoes. Wrap the tomatoes with bacon and secure it with toothpick, then sprinkle it with paprika and pepper. You can grill them or even pan-fry them for about 2-3 minutes. Arrange them on a platter and serve.
Voila! Now you have a delectable appetizer. Enjoy!
Cooking with Andre: Pinoy-Style Spaghetti with Meatballs
I have noticed that Andre shows interest in cooking. He sometimes imitates what I’m doing in the kitchen. One time, while I am in the market, his dad saw him beating an egg using a bowl and a wire whip. The funny thing is that he put the whole egg in the bowl with the shell on and mixed them together. So, I decided to let him participate on my cooking occasionally. I will share with you our first time to cook together.
A few weeks ago, I decided to cook Spahetti for dinner. But, this time, I decided to cook Spaghetti with meatballs the Filipino style. Why the Filipino-style? It is because we don’t like our spaghetti to be too sour like those sold in the restaurant. Also, instead of using parsley, I used kinchay. I asked Andre to help me with my cooking and he agreed willingly. I asked him to form the ground meat into balls just like the clays he used to play in school. Andre said, “Parang clay mommy! (Sabay tawa)”. He enjoyed it as well as I did because it’s a great time for bonding and it kept him busy.
Here are the ingredients:
MEATBALLS
500 grams ground beef
fresh bread crumbs from 6 tasty bread
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup water
1 large onion, minced
2 tbsp garlic, minced
1/4 cup kinchay, minced
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 pcs eggs, beaten
TOMATO SAUCE
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 small onion, minced
1 can crushed tomatoes, 28 oz. can
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 beef cubes
¼ cup sugar
500 g UFC sweet style Spaghetti Sauce
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, combine bread crumbs, milk, and water. Allow to steep for 3 minutes.
2. Add the ground meats, onion, garlic, kinchay, basil, oregano, salt and pepper.
3. Mix until just combined.
4. Add the eggs and mix until blended.
5. Cover bowl with a cling wrap and allow mixture to rest for at least an hour.
6. Roll into balls and fry meatballs over medium heat in oil until browned and finish off cooking in the tomato sauce for another 5-7 minutes.
8. For the tomato sauce, sauté the onion and garlic in large sauce pan.
9. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and spaghetti sauce.
10. Add the beef cubes, sugar, salt, and pepper.
11. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer and cook until thickened approximately 30 minutes.
12. Put the meatballs and let it simmer for another 2 minutes.
13. Mix the sauce with cooked pasta and top them with cheese and fresh parsley.
Here are some of the photos during the preparation. 
Clam with patola and miswa soup
With a mother who has a thyroid problem, we grew up eating seafoods, such as clams because they are a good source of iodine. My mom cooks them by sautéing them in oil, ginger, garlic, and onion. She lets the clams simmer in a few minutes until the shells are slightly opened to avoid over-cooking.
As promised, here’s the recipe for my previous entry, a nutritious, simple, and budget-friendly dish.
Here’s my version of cooking clams: Clams with patola and miswa soup
Ingredients:
- 1 kilo of fresh clams
- A thumb-sized ginger, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 medium patola, chopped
- 2 cups water
- A bunch of miswa
- Salt and pepper
Procedure:
Sauté ginger, garlic, and onion in oil. Add in the clams and water. Let them simmer and add miswa. Season with salt and pepper. Turn off fire. Serve hot.
Cost: less than P100