Food & Recipes

One Last Second Grade Baon Week

March 20, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 1 Comment

Home stretch is finally here!!! We’ve officially got only one week left for this school year, and I am so proud of Little MrC and I for surviving our first year of school lunches. I never thought we could do it, but we did. I feel so happy.

I originally thought that because this would be the last baon week for the year, it would be more special. I’m sorry, I was wrong. I honestly just want to be done, I want summer to be here already, and so my final baon week is simply ordinary. Also, after giving it a lot of though, I have decided to put a pause on the baon planning over summer, first so that I can build some excitement for the coming year, and second, because I don’t always pack lunch for MrC. I will still be sharing a featured recipe on each Thursday of the week, though, so there still is something that you can look forward to each week.

If you’ll notice, my grocery list and menu plan has specific brands of food, particularly in the snack portion. That’s because I’m finishing up whatever I still have on hand here at home. Also, I’ve decided to make use of some kitchen friendly friends to make life simpler. For the breaded pork chops, I’m using McCormick Season’n Fry. For the chicken teriyaki, I bought bottled Kikkoman roasted garlic marinade and used that instead of making my own from scratch. Twice I’ve placed ready to fry options into the menu – Bounty Fresh Top Torikatsu and Century Smoked bangus belly.

My recipe for this week is a typical Filipino dish, pork steak, that our old helper used to make with a twist. The twist is that the dish is a little sweeter than your normal pork steak, and the soy sauce is watered down, resulting in really pale meat. Honestly, not everyone likes it. My dad thinks it tastes like soap. My brother and I love it though, and we would have this for our packed lunch many times when we were little. So, I figured it would be a great packed meal to use for my little boy’s last lunch in school as a second grader.

Manang's Lomo

2014-03-20 03:24:05

Not your ordinary pork steam

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Ingredients

1/4 kilo pork tenderloin (lomo) cut into medallions
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
The juice of 1 calamansi
1/4 cup water
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil or butter for frying

Instructions

Combine all ingredients and marinade the pork overnight in the refrigerator. Yes, even the water.
Fry the pork medallions in butter or olive oil.
Pour the marinade over the meat and let it simmer. Reduce the sauce to your desired thickness, and you're done.
Serve with hot rice.

Notes

You can totally adjust the amount of sugar in this if you find the dish too sweet.

By MrsC

At Home With MrsC https://blissbysam.com/

I think that this is a pretty kid-friendly dish, but still, let me know if you get to try it and if it works for you. Here are this week’s downloads:

Baon Plan for March 21-27

Grocery List for March 21-27

So excited to be taking a break from my 5AM kitchen routine! Hooray for summer vacation!!!

Starting The Day Right at Acacia Hotel Manila

March 18, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 19 Comments

If you follow me on Twitter, you would know that I rarely wake up early on weekends. The boys usually allow me to sleep in on Saturdays, and on Sundays especially, since I’m up real early on school/work days to prepare breakfast and packed lunches for them. I only get up early on weekends when I have work, or for something very special, which was exactly the case last Saturday when I got together for breakfast with my amazing mommy blogger friends, Janice and Millie. This breakfast date was several weeks in the making, and I’m super happy that we finally pushed through. Making it even more special, my wonderful friends at Acacia Hotel Manila hosted us on that fine morning, and I was so happy to once again experience the incomparable warm hospitality that this hotel offers.

The girls and I got together at 8am, and we were seated at a nice and bright table by the window. Angie from the hotel’s F&B team was there to welcome us, and to make sure that we all had our much-needed cups of coffee. After a few minutes of chatting, we went off to the buffet tables to get plates and plates of yummy food. I let the two ladies go ahead and explore the breakfast selections while I had a second cup of coffee and read the hotel’s March to May newsletter, which they were kind enough to furnish us with. These actually get mailed to me at home, too, but I don’t think I’ve seen this latest one yet. I was excited to read about the new bar that just opened at the topmost floor of the hotel called Tree Top. I’m definitely adding this to my list of date night options.

Saw this, too, on our table! Super well-deserved!

A great activity that’s happening soon at Acacia Hotel is the Acacia Junior Chefs summer program for kids. These are a series of cooking classes for kids aged 6 to 12 years old, taught by the hotel’s culinary team. Oh what I wouldn’t give to have my little boy prepare food like this for me every day! The fee is Php6,000 for 10 cooking sessions, and enrollment is ongoing until March 21. To register or for more information, you can call the hotel’s Marketing Department at 720-2000.

Here is the list of classes for the Acacia Junior Chef Summer Program

So finally, my turn came to go and see what was available for breakfast. Compared to my last breakfast experience at Acaci, this one was a bit more limited for me because, as you know, I’m skipping meat with feet for Lent. But let me tell you, the ham and bacon were really calling out to me. It took a ton of self-control for me to say no. Instead, I went straight for the fruit table and loaded up my plate with the sweetest melons ever, some yogurt, a couple of pastries, a breakfast roll and some cheese to go with my fruit. I also picked up a super yummy zucchini and mushroom omelette, which I have been craving for since! To wash everything down, I had a glass of kiwi juice, which was super yummy and refreshing.

Apparently my appetite has gotten smaller since I started on this Lenten diet of mine. While this is a good thing in general, it also meant that I was already full after my first round at the buffet! I wasn’t going to leave without having some danggit soaked in vinegar, though. So when Angie informed us that the buffet would be closing soon, I really got up and got a plate of dried fish for myself. Without rice, mind you.

It was already a perfect morning, when suddenly the Acaci staff made it even more memorable by surprising me with a belated birthday cake with matching song number! Oh my gosh! I was not expecting this, and I found the gesture to be super duper sweet. This isn’t the first time that they so generously became part of an important celebration in my life. Remember when they surprised MrC and I with a cake during our first wedding anniversary? Seriously, Marla, Angie and the rest of the Marketing, Guest Services and F&B Teams, you guys never fail to make me feel special. This is why I keep coming back to Acacia.

Thank you, Millie and Mike of Lightworkz Photography for this photo!

Thank you, Angie and the rest of the F&B staff! You guys are all so nice!

I had a fabulous time with Janice and Millie, and I am so happy that they got to try one of my favorite places in the south. I am actually already planning to do this again soon with other mommy blogger friends and readers. I would totally love to treat you all to a taste of the south, and of course I am excited for fun bonding moments and lots of chikahan. I really hope we get to do this, and I will keep you all posted in case this blogger dream of mine comes true! I’d like to know, though, are any of you up for a date sometime soon? Please say yes!

Disclosure: We were generously treated to this breakfast buffet experience by the wonderful people of Acacia Hotel Manila. However, all opinions expressed in this post are mine and mine alone, and not influenced by anyone or anything. The Acaci Restaurant at Acacia Hotel offers an Asian and International Buffet daily for breakfast (6AM – 10AM), lunch (12NN – 2PM) and dinner (6PM-10PM). For reservations, you may call 720-2000 or 588-8888 loc1911 or email enquiry@acaciahotelsmanila.com. For the latest promos and updates about the hotel, follow them on Twitter and on Facebook.

Also, please check out Janice’s post about our morning here, and Millie’s post as well, here.

A Week Without A Plan + A Recipe for Glazed Tuna Steaks

March 13, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 15 Comments

My mom and I spent nearly 3 hours walking around S&R today, checking out what was already marked down, pre-Member’s Sale. What we found to be a real bargain were giant cans of diced tomatoes and whole peeled tomatoes that we got for making pasta and other tomato sauce based dishes. We purchased a few other random things, plus some pizza and chowder to eat, and then we went home, tired but happy.

I was supposed to go to the supermarket today to figure out what to prepare for the boys’ lunch boxes next week, but instead I decided to spend leisure time with my mom in one of our favorite places. Because of this, it looks like next week is going to be a week without a plan, a meal plan, that is. Now, I figured, this happens to everyone, and it’s a good exercise in thinking on your feet in the kitchen. Right? I do have a security blanket of smoked fish, tocino, enough ingredients for a pot of adobo, and a bunch of other things in the freezer and pantry. We will survive. It’s just that I don’t have a meal plan or grocery list to share with you this week.

I do have a recipe though, and a really good one too. It’s Lent-friendly, pretty healthy, and super easy to prepare. Ready?

MrsC's Honey Balsamic Glazed Tuna

2014-03-13 03:58:39

Baked tuna steaks with a sweet and tangy glaze

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Ingredients

2 large tuna steaks
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tbsp yellow mustard
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp dried rosemary, or 2 sprigs fresh
Olive oil

Instructions

Wash the tuna steaks well, and pat dry with paper towels. Rub with salt and pepper on all sides.
Grease the bottom of an aluminum or glass baking pan with olive oil. Place the tuna steaks onto the pan.
Mix together the mustard, honey, balsamic vinegar and rosemary, and pour over the tuna. Make sure that all surfaces of the fish are coated, and let the whole thing marinade for about an hour, refrigerated.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake the fish for 25-30 minutes, or until cooked through. The sauce should end up thick and syrupy.
Enjoy!

Notes

When using frozen fish, defrost the steaks in the refrigerator first before marinading.
Dried rosemary can be a hassle to chew on, so try to brush these herbs off of the fish before serving.
For extra yum, brush the thickened glaze onto the cooked fish right when you serve this dish.
Best eaten with cauliflower or broccoli salad, or even just steamed vegetables.

By MrsC

At Home With MrsC https://blissbysam.com/

This fish is obviously a Friday dish. To find out what I’ll be packing for the rest of the week’s lunches, please follow me on Instagram. I’m sure to post there. I’m thinking I’ll cook chicken adobo over the weekend and that can be for Monday. I’ll save some of the chicken to use for fried chicken on Tuesday. Wednesday can be the smoked fish, and Thursday tocino. Then somewhere between then and now, I should get my butt to the grocery store and prepare for the following week. Sounds good?

In these last two weeks of school that are coming up, it’s obviously going to be a struggle for me to stay organized and focused. Seriously, I can taste summer already. Or maybe it’s more like I can feel summer already. My rashes from the heat are proof! Argh.

Let me know if you try this fish recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do!

My Favorite Restaurants in Alabang

March 9, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 10 Comments

I have lived in Alabang for the last 25 years, and I absolutely love it here. It may be a lot more “chill” here than in Makati or QC, but that’s what I like about the south. So anyway, over the last few weeks, as I’ve been blog-hopping, I’ve noticed a lot of great restaurants that people have been writing about, and of course most of them are in (you guessed it) QC and Makati. There are a few establishments from those blogs that I’ve already marked as places to visit when I head up north. But apart from giving me new places to discover, those posts also made me think about my favorites from around here.

I am a self-proclaimed real housewife of Alabang, and so I figured that I should start writing about this amazing place in the south more often. I’ve tried living further up north before, and I have always came back. It has changed so much over the years, but it remains to be home to me. I’ve seen many old favorites come and go, and new stores and restaurants open up and become favorites too. There are places here that I never learned to love, and those that eventually grew on me. I still mourn the loss of Okasan and Dulcinea, which were both located in the Alabang Town Center of the 90’s. For this Sunday Seven, though, I don’t want to think about old favorites. This is my current list of favorite Alabang restaurants.

1. Cafe d’Asie at The Bellevue Manila

I have always loved The Bellevue. It remains to be one of my favorite hotels in the south, even though it has literally been years since I was there last. Cafe d’Asie serves one of my favorite breakfast spreads. Their burgers are amazing too. I’m making myself hungry just thinking about their buffet. I think it’s time to schedule another visit!

2. Kessaku

I recently wrote about the first time we tried Kessaku. It has quickly become one of our family’s favorite Japanese restaurants in Alabang. I had lunch here with my parents just last week, and the food quality was consistent with our first time. Their sushi and sashimi selections are superb. Must-try dishes are the Tori Kuwayaki and Angus Rice.

3. Hermanos Taco Shop

I love Mexican food, and so I was extremely happy when Hermanos opened in Molito. The servings here are big, and definitely good for sharing. The best part about this place is that they close late, so it’s a great stopover for a late dinner or midnight snacks after a long day. I’ve already asked MrC to stop there for quesadillas after he picked me up from an evening event. I was tired and hungry, and the cheesy goodness really made my night.

Quesadillas. Great any time of the day or night.

4. Barcino

This one’s a recent discovery. MrC and I had dinner at Barcino for Valentine’s day, and we really enjoyed it. If you love wine, this is a place that you will enjoy for sure. At the same time, if choosing wine intimidates you a little, you can always ask your server for a little help. We order red wine more often than white, and so we asked for a recommendation for what would go well with our gambas and paella negra. The wine that our server suggested was absolutely perfect, and we went home with huge, black smiles.

5. Whistlestop

We would eat at Whistlestop a lot when I was still working for Filinvest. It was one of our favorite places to have dinner after a show or event at Westgate. It’s still one of those places we like to go to for comfort-food that we don’t have to prepare on our own. They have really fast WiFi too, and they’re open 24 hours. This one’s another great option for late night munchies, or for a nightcap involving a few bottles of San Miguel beer.

My default order: Boneless Buffalo Wings + Bleu Cheese Dressing

6. Chili’s

Chili’s is on this list simply because the food there is unbelievably good. That is all.

There’s always room for dessert at Chili’s!

7. Cafe Breton

I was so happy when Cafe Breton opened in Westgate, after disappearing from Alabang for a while. This was a favorite hangout of my circle of friends from way back in our high school days. It still remains on top of our list of options for get-togethers now that we have our own families already. Bonus: The kids love it here, too!

My friends and I, plus our families, at Cafe Breton

What are your favorite places to eat in your neighborhood? Do share, so I can remember to check them out if I’m ever in your side of the world.

PS Check out my other Sunday Seven posts here.

New Babies Are On Their Way + Our Lunch Box Menu for March 7-13

March 6, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 7 Comments

Two very good friends announced this week that they are expecting! I am so, so very excited for them. These are moms who were pregnant around the same time I was carrying Little MrC. Our older kids are batch 1 of our barkada babies. Now, with the recent delivery of another good friend to her first baby boy, plus those two new ones on the way, batch 2 is officially here!

Part of me is starting to wonder if it’s time for us to have another kid. Believe me when I tell you that a lot of people have been telling us to go for it already, with my grandfather being the most persistent of all. I’m honestly not sure I’m ready for another baby just yet. I can barely make it through the day, drama-free, with my one little boy. Oh my gosh, the thought of having to get up at 5am to cook breakfast and baon while pregnant sounds a little wacko to me. But anyway, I am setting these baby thoughts aside for now to focus on baon, which is what this post is about, anyway.

Do you like this featured image? I’m not too sure about it just yet.

First, a few adjustments.

I never realized that I could use a WordPress plugin for my recipes until a couple of hours ago. Oh my gosh it makes life so much simpler! So instead of the downloadable PDF recipe, I will now have recipe cards in these cooking at home posts. Super bonus, there is a template that matches my blog look perfectly. It is so meant to be.

Also, last week I said I’d share more seafood recipes, with it being Lent and all. But alas, I realized yesterday that I rarely cook seafood, and already I shared the one fish dish I am confident about last week. So, sorry but this week’s featured recipe is a beef dish. And I promise to prepare more dishes that don’t contain any meat with feet in the coming days so that I will have something to share next week. Anyway for Lent, I am abstaining from meat with feet, so I really do have to figure out what I can cook anyway.

This week’s recipe.

On we go, here is my featured recipe for the week. It’s a beef tapa recipe that was sorta kinda based on my grandmother’s tapa. We can never get it exactly right though, because she buys a certain portion from a certain cut of meat from her one and only supplier, and that’s what makes all the difference. Me, though, I’m happy with any cut of good beef. Just make sure it’s sliced real thin, and there’s a little bit of fat in there.

This is a dry, sweet-salty tapa. I have yet to try making one that’s a little saucy, kinda like Tapa King. If you have a recipe for that kind of tapa, please share! I chose this recipe for the week coz my friend, Jane, requested for it. So yes, I do accept requests! Though it might be a wee bit ambitious right now, but I will definitely try to make whatever it is that you ask for.

Beef Tapa ala Mama

2014-03-05 18:18:32

A dry, salty beef tapa with a tiny hint of sweetness.

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Ingredients

1/2 kilo Top round beef, sliced super thin
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 tablespoon iodized salt
1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
Cooking oil for frying

Instructions

Wash the beef slices well to remove majority of the blood.
Combine the sugar and the salt and massage the mixture into the beef.
Add soy sauce for colour.
Marinade for at least an hour, but best if you could do this overnight
Fry each strip of beef until it is dark brown. Be careful not to burn this!

Notes

When choosing your beef, try to find a portion that has a strip of fat on one side.
Since the marinade used for this tapa is very basic, you will really need to find good beef, otherwise it won’t taste as good.
If you can’t find top round, tenderloin will do. Just make sure that it’s sliced thinly.

By MrsC

At Home With MrsC https://blissbysam.com/

Oh my gosh, isn’t that recipe card just PERFECT?!

Download time!

I don’t know if there’s a plugin for a downloadable menu plan or grocery list, but I don’t think I’ll go that far. So this week, you still get my boring old PDFs, but that’s okay, right?

Lunch Box Meal Plan for March 7-13

Grocery List for March 7-13

So, I just want to know if you’ve been able to try any of the recipes I’ve posted so far. I’d love feedback. My boys seem to think that everything I cook is delicious. A second opinion is definitely in order!

Lunch Box Menu for February 28 – March 6

February 27, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 12 Comments

I can’t believe that we are officially entering the last month of the school year! I just realized though that my baon packing days are continuing on til the summer because MrC will be needing sustenance at work. It’s easier with him, though, because I can pack him frozen meals that he can microwave at the office when lunch time rolls around. Anyway, I think I’m getting ahead of myself. Time to deal with the upcoming week first.

Lent is fast approaching and that means I am going to do my annual “no walking meat” panata (promise/commitment). So expect to see more Lent-friendly seafood recipes over the next few weeks. I’ll still be plotting meaty dishes into the meal plan for the boys, though, so those of you with carnivorous taste buds need not worry.

This week’s recipes

This week, I am featuring an easy Baked Fish in Garlic Butter with Dill recipe, which I’ve never posted before, and my super winner Chicken Adobo in it’s new downloadable PDF format. I’m also adding my ever-so reliable Banana Bread recipe, which isn’t exactly mine because I found it in a library book, but I can’t remember what book it was. Yes, I decided to share 3 recipes again this week. And I made sure to make them downloadable. Oh, I also added “branding” on my downloadable content heehee! I forgot to do that last week.

I also am doing a repeat performance of the Beef Salpicao I made last week. Like I said in my previous baon post, each batch of marinade and freeze meals that I do are good for two separate meals. If I don’t get to use them up, I’ll have a rerun week where I clean out the freezer and cook whatever’s there. So I’d rather mix one or two of last week’s dishes in with new stuff for the coming week. I think it’s more fun that way.

Since the baked fish isn’t something you can prepare ahead and freeze, I’m using an old photo of a batch I prepared for a Christmas gathering with friends last December. Sorry it’s kinda blurry. I’ve already put “A phone with a better camera for Instagramming” on my wishlist.

Here’s a tip. If you’re packing this for someone who has no access to a microwave, don’t the butter sauce into the lunchbox. The butter tends to solidify when cold, and unless your kid or spouse (or you) like chewing on butter chunks, it won’t be good. Trust me. The cooked fish will be flavorful even without the additional butter.

Grocery notes

The grocery list has everything you need for this week, but if like me, you still have things like sandwich crackers or cooking oil in stock, then you obviously don’t need to buy more. Also, I didn’t put any quantities per item coz it will really depend on how much food you need to prepare, and how many people you are cooking for. There are quantities for ingredients in the recipes, though, so you can do the necessary adjustments. I’m bad at math, so you might wanna just do the multiplying and dividing yourself.

Download away!

Here’s the menu plan for February 28 to March 6 . And here’s the matching grocery list . The recipe links are below:

Happy cooking and happy eating! Let me know which recipes you’ve tried, and which ones you like best.