I was in the ‘baking’ mood yesterday and asked J to watch over Erin while I whipped up a batch of banana bread muffins. I got the recipe from Chef Reggie Aspiras’ book, which was a compilation of her articles in the Philippine Daily Inquirer. It was a going-away gift given to me by my mom before I left the Philippines in 2006.

The recipe was quick and easy, which was why I decided to do it. Anything more complicated than that would have made me looking in a different direction instantly.

I did not have any loaf pans, which was why we had muffins instead. There weren’t any walnuts in our pantry, so it was nut-free. I baked it for 50 minutes (180 degrees C) to achieve that golden brown color. It was not as moist though as I’d hoped it to be. But since the recipe called for Banana Bread and not Banana Cake, I think that answers our question. Having said that though, it turned out to be real yummy for a bread.

Here’s the original recipe:

Banana Bread

5 Tbsp sour cream
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 c softened butter
1 c sugar
3 eggs
1 c mashed ripe bananas
2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 c chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and line a 9×5-inch loaf pan.

In a mixer, cream butter and sugar in a large bowl for about 10 minutes. Beat in eggs, bananas, sour cream, and baking soda. Add in sifted flour and baking powder. Fold in nuts.

Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Popularity: 79% [?]

I have missed cooking a lot. Ever since Erin was born, I have taken a break from the kitchen because I hardly have any time anymore to prepare food. These days, J does most of the kitchen work but with me supervising.

But last weekend, I just needed to get back into it once again. For one, there were two bars of Philly cream cheeses waiting for me to bake them into my long-time craving of blueberry cheesecake. Last time I made one was probably five years ago. It’s definitely time to do a repeat!

So, I entrusted Erin to J for the entire Sunday afternoon to get things done. After months of researching/studying of recipes, I decided Mik’s was the easiest one to make. Since it has been +/- five years since I last baked one, I lost the recipe my tita gave me so I needed to find another one fast.

I followed Mik’s recipe for the crust and the filling except I used just plain thickened cream (250 ml) in place of the mascarpone cheese. Also, instead of the sour cream topping, I made a blueberry glaze. Recipe of which is as follows:

Blueberry Glaze

1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, divided

In a 1-quart saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in water. Crush 1/2 cup blueberries; add to sugar and water mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened and begins to bubble. Continue to boil gently for about 2 minutes, or until blueberry glaze mixture is clear. Cool completely. Arrange remaining blueberries over the top of the cheesecake. Pour cooled blueberry glaze over berries. Keep blueberry cheesecake tightly covered in refrigerator.

It was perfect! At least to our standards.

Popularity: 79% [?]

J and I have been yearning for some of mom’s pasta that I just had to email and ask her for the recipe. The sauce is pesto with sundried tomatoes and shrimp. Sounds complicated right? But I found out it was surprisingly easy to do. Thanks to this…

Leggo’s Sundried Tomato Pesto Sauce

The secret is to saute first a whole head of chopped garlic in lots of olive oil until they’re golden. Add the peeled shrimps. Once the shrimp is cooked, pour in one bottle (190 g) of the pesto sauce. Season with salt and pepper then mix it with your preferred pasta which has been previously cooked. Serve with a sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese and some toasted garlic bread on the side. Voila!

It was so delicious, I ate two platefuls of the dish! Yummy!

Popularity: 85% [?]

Yes, I know donuts aren’t exactly healthy, especially for pregnant mothers like me. But, hey, you got to cut me some slack! The line at their branch in Woden was short and it’s been weeks since I have been craving for these fellows. I begged J to allow me to buy just a tiny bit to satisfy my craving. Fortunately, he gave in and let me buy those sought-after goodies.

I ordered only half a dozen — two pieces per variety. I chose their famous original glazed, chocolate iced with creme filling and blueberry flavored. Their original glazed was apparently a crowd favorite as they had to get their stock directly from the kitchen. And since it did came fresh from the oven, the donut just melted in our mouths just as soon as we bit into the piece. Ahhh… heaven!

Popularity: 80% [?]

You’ll Need: 
1  pc small onion, chopped
1/4 kg ground beef
1 pc large carrot, diced
100 grams Elbow Macaroni
1 pouch (200 g) Tomato Sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbsp water
4 stalks green onions, chopped
 
Here’s How:
1. Sauté onion and beef in oil. Add 4 cups of water and simmer until meat is tender. Add carrot and Elbow Macaroni. Cook for 8 minutes.

2. Add Tomato Sauce, salt, pepper and sugar to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in dissolved cornstarch. Cook until thick. Top with green onions  just before serving.

This is the original recipe I got from Kitchenomics. But I changed a few things:
- Since I did not have tomato sauce at the time I was cooking, I used tomato paste (50 grams) instead.
- After seasoning and tasting the soup, I found out it did not have the ’kick’ I wanted. So apart from salt, sugar and pepper, I added 2 ladlesful of fish sauce (patis).
- Next time I cook this, I’m thinking of adding the seasoning while I’m sauteeing the beef, before putting in the water. This might add more flavor to the meat and soup.

Popularity: 80% [?]