FATHER'S DAY COOKING

Hi again! Here's what I prepared for all of you fathers celebrating today. A hearty pasta & salad recipe. This recipe takes about 5 minutes to prepare the ingridients plus 15 minutes cooking time. Serves 6-10 persons.

TUNA & TOMATO PASTA w/ CUCUMBER SALAD IN GARLIC VINAIGRETTE

The Ingredients (Tomato & Tuna Pasta):

Pasta:

1 pack 500 g. Spaghetti

1 tbsp. vegetable oil or olive oil

a pinch of Salt

10 cups water

Sauce:

2 cans Century Tuna fillet in brine (you may use the Lite variant)

2 cans stewed tomato (or tomato chunks, whichever is available)

1 cup sliced black olives (optional)

1 tbsp. olive oil or a regular vegetable oil (if you're not that health conscious)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

a handful of basil leaves, sliced into strips

1 tsp. chili flakes

a dash of pepper

salt to taste

Parmesan or grated cheese (optional)

Procedure:

Prepare the ingredients. In a pot, pour 10 cups water. Bring to a boil. Add the salt & oil. Then add the spaghetti and cook according to package instructions. Meanwhile, heat a pan over medium fire. Add the oil and saute onion and garlic till translucent. Add the olives, chili flakes & stewed tomatoes. Simmer for 2 minutes and add the basil leaves. Simmer for another 2 minutes and remove from heat. Set aside. Check the pasta. If tender to bite, remove from heat and drain excess water. Place on a large serving dish. Pour the sauce & tuna flakes over the spaghetti. Sprinkle with Parmesan or grated cheese & serve.

The Ingredients (Cucumber Salad in Garlic Vinaigrette):

2 medium cucumbers

1 clove garlic, chopped finely

a pinch of pepper

1 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. sugar

1/2 cup cane vinegar

Procedure (Salad):

Prepare the ingredients. Slice the cucumbers in half lengthwise. The slice thinly crosswise. Place on a plastic food keeper. Meanwhile, prepare the dressing. In a small bowl, combine vinegar, pepper, salt & sugar. Stir slowly until the sugar dissolves. Add the garlic. Stir and pour over the sliced cucumbers. Chill and serve.

Hope you liked it!

ELECTIONS AND MY CHICKEN ADOBO

Yesterday was the Barangay and SK elections. At around 4 am that day, mother was trying to wake me up. Half awake, half asleep, I head her saying something like "...lunch, ...drop it to my voting precint...", with subconsciousness, I replied, "ok". Then, I heard a car engine start then drove away. It's when I went back to sleep.

I woke up at about 9 am and had a quick breakfast. After that, I curled again in bed and read True Colors. I am almost 6 chapters away from finishing it. It was 10:40 and I got up to prepare my mom's lunch. I planned to cook the chicken I bought on Sunday. Chicken Adobo sounded tempting. I thought, this dish wouldn't take much time to cook. So, with all the ingredients ready, grabbed my apron and started cooking.

What I had:

• 1 kilo dressed chicken, washed and cut into parts & pieces;
• 1 cup soy sauce;
• 1 tbsp. brown sugar;
• 3 cups water;
• 1 tbsp whole black pepper;
• 3 cloves garlic; crushed
• laurel leaves and salt to taste.

How I did it:

• In a pot, combined all the ingredients (except water) & cook it over medium fire. Let it simmer while tossing the chicken for about 3 minutes. Then add the water. Bring to a boil while occasionally stirring for about 15 minutes. Turn to medium heat. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes & once oil comes up to the surface of the sauce, it's done.

Then I scooped some rice from the rice cooker in a food keeper and so with the chicken adobo. It was a quarter before 12 and I was already hungry so I ate whatever was left.  Took a quick shower, slipped into a comfortable jeans and a white tee. Then went to the voting area.

There were less people in the voting precints than what I expected. Probably because it's already lunch time. I searched for my mom in the rooms then I found her. She was with two other teachers who are in charge of the precint. They looked exhausted. Who wouldn't? It was hot in the room with only 2 electric air fans. And as I saw, they haven't had a worthy snack since they left at 4 early this morning, except for the tempura crackers in one of their tables.

I called her and handed her the lunch box. Then we headed to the my voting place. Like where my mom was, our voting precint looked less of a voting precint itself. I found no other voter inside the room, except for the committee in-charge and one poll watcher. After signing and placing my thumb mark, I took a seat and started filling out my ballot. Earlier, I was expecting to see the PCOS machines. But I was wrong. We are having the manual elections again. Poor. When I was done, I slipped my ballot into the old ballot box, which seemed too old to be a ballot box. Even with several repaints you could imagine how it would look like in its original paint, rusty and crooked. Then I had my right index finger stained with this ink which I didn't like that much. It left a disgusting look on my finger.

Elections here in the Philippines had always controversial. Starting from the campaigns, to the vote-buying , to the tedious counting. Year after year the government promises to work out on it. But here it is, almost the same as before. And we have to live with it.

And just as I am about to end this post, may I salute all  the teachers and everyone who took part in the election and in all the previous elections we had. Their sacrifices and efforts are more worthy that just the thousand peso the government is giving them as a remuneration. And I feel even more sorry for the teachers who lost their lives in the name of their duty. Some people just don't know how hard it is to serve in the elections. Probably, you might ask, "Do you even know?"

I would answer you a big "YES!" Coz my mom has been through it all.

CHICKEN SOUP FOR A SWOLLEN EYELID? =)

Chicken Soup. I have done this recipe over the last 10 years and I am overwhelmed with the flexibility of this recipe, from the ingredients, to the procedure.

Here's what I got: 

• 1 pack (about 1/4 kilo) pasta shell or elbow macaroni, whichever you prefer, 
• 1/2 k. cooked chicken breast, cut into strips, 
• 1 medium carrot diced into small cubes, 
• 1 small cabbage, julienned, 
• 1 large white onion, chopped, 
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped, 
• 1/4 cup butter, 
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• chicken broth,  
• salt and pepper to taste. 

How I did it:

• In a pan over low fire, melt the butter, saute garlic and onion till translucent in color. Then add the chicken strips and the carrots occasionally tossing for 2 minutes. Set aside. Meanwhile, heat a large pot, pour the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Transferred the sauteed ingredients into it and let it simmer for 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then added the shell and let it simmer while continually stirring to prevent the shells from sticking to each other. This usually takes about 10-15 minutes or until shells are tender to bit. Halfway through, add the evaporated milk. Then add the cabbage, simmer for 1 minute and serve.

That's my own tested procedure of preparing this recipe. I have tried other methods but this one suits me best. Some recipes also use cheese instead of the milk, or use both.

Anyway, this recipe has always been my comfort food.

I took out the soup bowls and called everyone. We shared the good food over some jokes and stories. Even my boyfriend has somehow forgot all about his swollen eye and told me he felt better. What a compliment.