Leche Flan (Milk Flan)

Milk and eggs combined makes a delicious dessert for the children. This leche flan recipe is really yummy!

Ingredients
10 egg yolks
1 can (390g) condensed milk
1 can (390g) evaporated milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or lemon essence

For the caramel:
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup water

Procedure
1. Cook the caramel first by combining the sugar & water. Bring to a boil for a few minutes until the sugar caramelize in a saucepan.
2. While still hot, dispense the caramelized sugar into aluminum molds or llanera (you can use any shape: oval, round or square). Spread the caramel on the bottom of the molds.
3. In a mixing bowl, blend well the following ingredients: evaporated milk, condensed milk, egg yolks and vanilla (or lemon extract) by hand or blender.
4. Soothingly dispense the mixture on top of the caramel on the aluminum molds. Load the molds or llanera to about 1 to 1 1/4 inch thick.
5. Cover molds individually with aluminum foil.
6. Steam for about 20 minutes.

OR

7. Bake for about 45 minutes. Before baking the Leche Flan, place the molds on a larger baking pan half filled with very hot water. Pre-heat oven to about 370 degrees before baking.
8. Let cool then refrigerate.
9. To serve, run a thin knife around the edges of the molds to loosen the Leche Flan. Place a platter on top of the molds and quickly turn upside down to position the golden brown caramel on top.

Cooking Tips

  • If you want a deliciously ” melts-in-the-mouth” leche flan, be sure to strain the mixture in a fine strainer or clean thin cloth once or twice.
  • For a successful steaming, put the molds or llanera with the mixture while water is boiling. Make sure the fire is in constant level while steaming the leche flan. Don’t attempt to lower the the heat while the steaming process is in progress. This will affect the consistency of the leche flan. If it’s overdone, it may appear whitish and lo! instead of a leche flan, it will taste like scrambled eggs in molds.
  • You can tell when the Leche Flan is cooked by inserting a toothpick or knife while steaming it. If it comes out clean, it is cooked.

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Estimated cooking time: 1 hour

Kare-kare

Kare-kare is a famous Filipino dish from the province of Pampanga. Kare-kare is a Philippine dish that is rich in with carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and protein. It is one of the dishes that are typically served at fiestas.

Ingredients

1 kilo oxtail, cut into serving pieces
2 eggplants, slice diagonally
5 pieces string beans, cut into 4 cm length
Small banana heart
Pechay
2 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
1 medium sized onion
3 tablespoons cooking oil
2 teaspoon salt or patis (fish sauce)
5 cups water
1/2 cup unsweetened peanut butter
achuete (optional)
1/4 cup rice flour dissolved in tap water
tablespoon sauteed shrimp paste (bagoong)

Cooking Procedure

  1. Put the meat, water, and salt in a casserole and simmer for less than 60 minutes or until tender. Then remove the meat from the casserole to a plate.
  2. On a separate casserole or saucepan, boil the banana heart until it’s done. Set aside.
  3. Saute garlic and onions on a saucepan until cooked. Put the string beans, eggplant in and boil until cooked. And then, to avoid overcooking the vegetables, remove the vegetables from the saucepan and put them into another plate.
  4. Put in the meat in the skillet and saute. Transfer the meat back into the casserole with the stew water and simmer for 10 minutes.
  5. Stir in the peanut butter and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add in the rice flour mixture to thicken the sauce. Simmer for another 5 minutes.
  6. Serve with the cooked vegetables and bagoong on the side.

Kare-kare Cooking Tips

  • If you want your kare-kare to appear more appetizing, saute achuete in oil to extract its color. Remove the achuete seeds before adding it to the dish.
  • If you don’t want your dish to be too salty, it is safer to use patis (fish sauce) because salt have sediments that are usually left at the bottom of the saucepan.
  • Fish paste (bagoong) can be bought in bottles or you can saute it yourself and serve in a separate saucer together with your delicious and healthy kare-kare dish.

Brazo de Mercedes (Creme-filled Log Cake)

Goldilocks’ is a household name when it comes to desserts, cakes and pastries. Whenever you think of something to bring home to your wife, kids, old folks and friends you’ll drop by at any Goldilocks’ outlet for some “pasalubong”. One of the favorite desserts you’ll pick is the Brazo de Mercedes. Now that’s Christmas is near and prices are up, why not whip up your own Brazo de Mercedes? When you have perfected the process, you can give it as a Christmas gift this yuletide season.

Ingredients
A. Filling
5 cups milk
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
8 egg yolks
1/4 cup toasted and finely ground
cashew nuts

B. Meringue
10 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Procedure
A. Cooking the Filling

  1. In a saucepan, simmer milk over low heat until reduced to 2 cups.
  2. Add sugar, butter and vanilla extract, stirring all the while. Remove from heat.
  3. Beat egg yolks in mixing bowl. To egg yolks, gradually add milk mixture by spoonfuls, beating all the while. Stir well to avoid curdling.
  4. Add cashew nuts and continue cooking entire mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture has consistency of a paste. Set aside.

B. Cooking the Meringue

  1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
  2. Beat egg whites until stiff.
  3. Gradually add 1 cup sugar, beating continuously. Stir in vanilla.
  4. Line large cookie sheet with parchment paper greased with butter and spread meringue on top.
  5. Bake until brown.
  6. Spread the filling evenly on top of meringue and roll into a log.
  7. Brush with butter and brown again in oven.

Caldereta

Whenever there’s a family gathering or a special occasion such as a fiesta, the Filipino dining table is never without caldereta. Do you want to serve caldereta that will make your guest come back to the table for more servings? If that’s what you want, then try our very own caldereta recipe.

Ingredients

1 kilo beef, for stewing, cut into chunk cubes
1/2 kilo beef liver, cut to almost the same size as the beef)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onions, diced
6 big tomatoes, quartered
3 big red peppers, diced
3 big green peppers, diced
1/2 cup pitted green olives
4 pieces chili pepper, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3/4 cup all purpose cream
3/4 cup grated cheese
A pinch of salt and pepper to taste
3 cups beef stock (or beef cubes dissolved in 2 cups hot water)
1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch in little tap water

Cooking Procedure

  1. In a casserole, saute garlic, onion, tomatoes and all the pepper.
  2. Add in the beef and the liver. Cook for a little while and take out the liver and set aside.
  3. Pour in the stock and tomato paste.
  4. Bring to a boil and lower the fire and let simmer until beef becomes tender.
  5. Season with salt and pepper.
  6. Add in olives and diluted cornstarch.
  7. Grate liver and add into the mixture.
  8. Allow sauce to thicken and add in cream and grated cheese.
  9. Serve hot.

Laing or Taro Leaves in Cocomilk (Bicol's Pride)

Bicolanos are known for the vegetable dish “laing”. There’s “something” in the way they cook the dish that makes it all the more appetizing, aside from the chili pepper of course. It isn’t “itchy”. Here’s the secret to this delicious and nutritious vegetable dish without the itch…take it from a laing expert. :)

Ingredients
dried taro leaves or gabi
3 big mature coconuts
1 onion
2 tbs crushed garlic
crushed ginger just enough for the recipe (Note: Too much ginger will make the dish bitter.)
250gm pork, diced
2 cups hot water
shrimp paste (bagoong)
chilli peppers as desired (siling labuyo)
salt to taste

Procedure

1. Have the coconuts grated. Using 1/2 cup of hot water, squeezed until the milk is well extracted. Strain the pulp out of the milk and set aside as the “kakang gata ” or first squeezed cocomilk. In three 1/2 cups, use the remaining hot water and add it to the pulp. Repeat the process three times. Put all the squeezed milk in the pan or wok.
2. Arrange all the ingredients on the pan except laing and the chili. Put the laing on top. Cover and bring to a boil. Do not stir until the taro leaves are cooked. Stirring the mixture will cause itching sensation on your tongue. When almost dry, add the kakang gata ,chili and salt to taste. Cook over low heat until coconut milk turned almost into oil.
3. Serve hot or cold with rice.

Tip: Before placing the pan on fire, check if the cocomilk is enough for the taro leaves. Press the mixture (with laing on top) submerged on the cocomilk. The level of the cocomilk should be equal to the taro leaves and other ingredients.

Oriental Rice Chicken Salad

Filipino palate is compatible with Oriental dishes. Here’s something different we can all try.

Ingredients

1/4 kg chicken breast deboned
1 can (439 g) DEL MONTE Fresh Cut Pineapple Tidbits,drained (reserve syrup)
1 pc medium red apple, diced and soaked in 1/4 cup pineapple syrup
2 cups cooked rice
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced diagonally
1/4 cup roasted peanuts or cashew nuts, coarsely chopped
50 g singkamas, diced
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 tsp iodized fine salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp curry powder (optional)

Procedure

1. Simmer chicken in remaining pineapple syrup with 1/4 tsp iodized finesalt (or 1/4 tbsp iodized rock salt) for 7 minutes. Drain and dice chicken.Set aside.
2. Drain apple.Combine with remaining ingredients. Mix well then chill.

Sweet Potato Salad

I remember how my grandma would cook boiled sweet potato or kamote. The sight of steaming hot kamote on the serving plate was so inviting! But kids nowadays wouldn’t even bother to eat kamote boiled or mashed with some milk on it ( Mothers, I hope where on the same planet/sphere!)

Anyway, toss some sweet potato salad for a change…

Ingredients
1 can (850 g) Fruit Cocktail, drained (reserve syrup)
350 g kamote (sweet potato), cooked, peeled and cut into cubes
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp sweetened condensed milk

Procedure
1. Soak kamote in reserved fruit cocktail syrup for 15 minutes. Drain. Combine with Fruit Cocktail. Set aside.
2. Combine mayonnaise and condensed milk. Mix thoroughly. Add the fruit-kamote mixture and blend well. Chill until ready to serve.

Easy, right? Tell me what you think about it. Here’s something for you to consider. I got this info from foodreference.com.

Sweet potato ranks number one in nutrition
According to nutritionists at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the most important dietary change for most people, including children, would be to replace fatty foods with foods rich in complex carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes.

CSPI has ranked the sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables. With a score of 184, the sweet potato outscored the largest of vegetables more than 100 points. Points were given for the content of dietary fibers, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium and iron. Points were deducted for fat (especially saturated fat), sodium, cholesterol, added refined sugars and caffeine. The higher the score, the higher the nutritional value of foods.

The reasons for the sweet potato took the first place? Dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium and iron. The sweet potato has received a score of 184 and vegetables ranked in second place was more than 100 points behind with a score of 83.

The figures for sweet potato nutritional speak for themselves: nearly twice the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 42 per cent of the recommendation of vitamin C, four times the RDA for beta-carotene, and when eaten with skin, sweet potatoes have more fiber than oatmeal. All these benefits with only about 130 to 160 calories!

Nutritional value of sweet potatoes (For a medium-sized sweet potato)
Calories 130
0.39 g fat
2.15 g protein
31.56 grams of net carbs
Dietary Fiber 3.9 g
Calcium 28.6 mg
16.9 mg sodium
265.2 mg potassium
18.2 mcg folic acid
29.51 mg vitamin C
IU vitamin A 26081.9
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture

Among root vegetables, sweet potatoes offer the lowest glycemic index. That’s because the sweet potato digests slowly, causing a gradual rise in blood sugar so you feel more satisfied. It is time for sweet potatoes to be on the “good” carb list.

Fruity Doughnut

I always wondered how to make delicious not just plain dougnuts. I like something that’s new and different…I’m glad I got this recipe from Del Monte. Maybe you can try this, too.

Ingredients (Filling)
1 can (439 g) DEL MONTE Fiesta Fruit Cocktail, well drained and coarsely chopped
1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbsp fruit cocktail syrup
1-1/2 tbsp sugar

Ingredients (Doughnut)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup fresh milk
1 pc egg
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp iodized fine salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
oil
confectioners’ sugar

 Procedure
1. Filling: Combine DEL MONTE Fiesta Fruit Cocktail with cornstarch and sugar. Mix well. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes or until dry. Cool. Set aside.
2. Mix half of flour with remaining ingredients (except oil and confectioners’ sugar). Beat at low speed until smooth, constantly scraping bowl. Stir in the remaining flour. Don’t rush, chill for 1 hour.
3. On the floured surface roll dough to form a log (adding more flour if needed). Divide into 25 grams dough (approximately 2 1/2 tbsp). Flatten each into 1/8 cm thick. Spread 3/4 tbsp filling on one end. Roll, then brush edges with filling. Gather both ends and press to close. Set aside.
4. Heat oil in 275 degrees F. Deep-fry doughnuts until light brown on one side then turn to brown the other side (for crustier doughnuts, fry to golden brown). Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. If desired, drizzle with chocolate syrup.

Crispy Fish Rolls (Crispy Fish Lumpia)

If you want to have a healthier version of “lumpia” or spring rolls, use fish instead of meat or chicken.I cooked this recipe one Sunday for lunch, and my eldest who doesn’t really like fish had the serving plate emptied in no time.

Ingredients
3/4 kg dalagang bukid (black tailed caesio), filleted
2 stalks kinchay (chinese celery), chopped
1/2 pc small carrot, chopped
150 g pork fat, chopped
2 squares tokwa (soybean curd), half-fried and chopped
1 pc egg, beaten
1 pc medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 pouch (115 g) Tomato Sauce
48 pc small round lumpia (spring roll) wrappers

Procedure
1. Scrape flesh of fish with a spoon. Remove bones. Mix with 1 tbsp calamansi juice, 1/2 tsp iodized rock salt and kinchay.
2. Combine with remaining ingredients except lumpia wrapper. Add 2 tbsp soy sauce and 1/4 tsp pepper. Mix thoroughly.
3. Wrap each tablespoon of mixture in lumpia wrapper. Fry until brown. Serve hot with ketchup. Kids like the sweeter ketchup of any brand; but Del Monte is most preferred.

Sprinkle enough patience and love as you wrap the mixture in lumpia wrappers. Serve with a sweet smile, too.

Homemade Peanut Butter Recipe

Kids always want to lick some peanut butter from the spoon. But when you open the peanut butter bottle, you’d see the peanut oil on top; how much calories do you think is in it? Anyway, I’d like peanut butter minus the oil, so I looked for a peanut butter recipe that my children will really like.

Ingredients
1 cup roasted, shelled peanuts
1 1/2 teaspoon butter or margarine
1 tablespoon sugar
a dash of salt (omit if using salted peanuts)

Procedure
For creamy peanut butter: Place ingredients in a blender. With the lid secured, blend until mixture becomes pastelike or spreadable (3 to 4 minutes). If necessary, stop the machine and use a rubber spatula to scrape mixture from the sides of the container back into contact with the blade. Continue blending until desired consistency is reached.

For crunchy peanut butter,stir in 1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts after the blending is complete.

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