Sinigang na Ulo Ng Tanguigue

I love eating sinigang but I was not good in cooking it. I remember my grandmother used to cook sinigang when were kids and I just love the way she cooked it. At that time, I didn't bother to ask her or observe her while she was cooking. All I was interested that time was to eat what she cooked. My grandma had already passed away many years ago and I didn't get her sinigang recipe so I can't cook sinigang the way she cooked it before. Her sinigang was not that sour unlike those in the restaurant that all you can taste is the sour tamarind powder that they added. It really turned me off. Until 2 years ago, my sister taught me how to cook sinigang the way our grandma used to cook. I was so glad to learn it and now I can cook good sinigang as my grandma did. I love to buy the head of the tanguigue fish because the soup really taste good and it's really perfect for sinigang.

Ingredients :

1 kilo fish head of tanguigue, split open and gills removed
1 large onion, peeled and finely sliced
2-3 tomatoes, diced
5 pcs of medium size kamias
a bunch of camote tops or chayote tops or kangkong tops
1 small piece of ginger, crushed
salt or patis

Cooking procedure:

Put the sliced fish head in the pot over low fire with salt or patis, sliced onion and crushed ginger. Simmer it for about 5 to 7 minutes stirring once in a while. Add 5 cups of water and bring to a boil then season with salt or patis. Add the tomatoes or camias and cook for another 10 minutes. Add the camote tops or chayote or kangkong tops. Simmer for 3 minutes. Serve at once.

Beef Caldereta

I love beef more than any other meat. I don't eat pork no more, I removed it from our diet almost 5 years ago. The meat that I eat are beef, chicken, turkey, goat and venison. Whenever there is an occasion in our house, most of the time we cook beef caldereta. I just love the taste of this recipe. My hubby and my siblings love it too.

Ingredients:

1 kilo beef, cut into chunks
1 big can (350g) liver spread or ground liver
5 onions, minced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup tomato sauce
3 green peppers, diced
3 red peppers, diced
4 pieces hot chili peppers, minced
3/4 cup grated cheese
2 cups beef stock or water
1/4 cup cooking or olive oil

Cooking Instructions:

In a casserole, sauté: garlic and onions in oil. Then add tomatoes, red & green pepper and chil peppers.

Add in the beef, tomato sauce, liver spread and water or stock. Salt to taste and let simmer for at least 1 hour or until the beef is tender.

Add cheese and olives (optional) and continue to simmer until the sauce thickens.

Serve with plain rice.

Fitness Business Cards

I'm so sleepy tonight. In a little while I will hit the bed but I have to make this post yet. Tomorrow, hubby and I need to wake up early and do our morning exercise which is of course walking. I haven't been into it the past couple of months since my li'l sister was sick. I had to stay with her most of the time and attended to her need. I've seen a newly opened fitness establishment. I wanted to take hubby there because he too had gained a lot of weight and he needs to shed off those unwanted fats in his belly. I just wonder if they have some fitness business cards so I can call their office and inquire how much they charge their new customers.

This morning before we went to church, hubby tried a few of his shirts and most of it are already tight to him. I told hubby that he need to shake off the unwanted weight. If not, he need to buy new set of clothes to wear on different occasions. Hubby just need to have a determination to go to the gym to exercise and lose weight.

Pusit Adobo

My hubby loves to eat pusit (squid). He likes it any way I cook it whether grilled, adobo, fried or stuffed. Before he met me he never ate pusit but after he got to eat the pusit adobo which I cooked after we got married, pusit adobo became one of his favorites seafood recipes.

Ingredients

• 1 pound medium-size squid
• 1/4 cup soy sauce or salt
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable or corn oil
• freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 head garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Wash and clean the squid thoroughly, removing the cattle. Put squid in a saucepan (not aluminum) with the vinegar, garlic, pepper, soy sauce or salt and water.
2. Cook over low heat until squid is tender, making sure it does not get overcooked and rubbery. Drain and set aside the squid broth.
3. Heat oil in another saucepan and stir fry the cooked garlic until brown and onion until transparent.
4. Add the squid and simmer for 3 minutes. Transfer squid broth over mixture and bring to a boil. Serve hot. Serves 4.

Taking Photos...

I love taking photos of just about anything like my cute, li'l niece when she's having fun and trying to show off her talents to us. I also love taking pics when hubby and I go somewhere especially to places that I've never been to. Scenic views, nature, parks, flowers, beaches, plants, trees and mountains captivates my attention. I love clicking my digicam whenever I see these interesting subjects. Of course I won't forget taking souvenir photos on special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, New Year, Thanksgiving, etc. The memory card of my camera is already full that's why I'm thinking of transferring the photos to a CD or have them developed.

I already have a bunch of photos printed out and I put them in photo albums and every time we have some visitors, I show it to them. Some of the photos were printed in the store like Wal Mart but then hubby got so lazy to drive and wait on me whenever we go to the store to have our photos printed so I asked him to buy a printer, ink and photo papers. Now, I am the one printing our photos. Cool isn't it? I just need to buy more photo albums for our photos.

Mixed Veggies

Once again, I cooked my favorite veggies which I love and I won't get tired eating. It's a combination of squash, okra and bitter gourd mixed with ground beef. I taught my American hubby to eat veggies. Before he met me, he told me he didn't like to eat veggies. All he ate were hamburger sandwiches, pizzas, potatoes, beans, chicken fried steak, etc. But after we got married, I always cooked veggies and I introduced it to him. He began to eat and like it. He told me that the veggies I cooked taste a lot better than the veggies being cooked in the US. I have to agree with that. Hubby and I went to eat many times to buffet restaurants in the US but the veggies they serve there don't taste that good. It has a so-so taste according to hubby unlike my cooking which is so yummy and delicious.

Celebrating Our Anniversary

Hubby and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary last September 11th. How time flies! It feels like it's only been yesterday when we said "I do". This is the 3nd time that we celebrated our anniversary here in my homeland. The first time was in the year 2004 and then 2009 and this year 2010. We planned to just go out and eat because I don't want to prepare and cook. It's so tiresome and I just want to eat and enjoy but then my sister needed my help. She's been sick and she needed to have a dextrose that day. Hubby understand so we ended up cooking in the house. I asked Jhun to cook goulash and my brother Celso fried the chicken wings and my 2 nephews grilled pork chops and my brother made dinakdakan. We ordered pancit and bought ice cream so that was it. We ate supper just us and my family. We didn't invite anybody.