Stuffed Baked Peppers

Ingredients:
1 can tuna
1 small white onion chopped
1/2 cup cooked white rice
bell peppers
spaghetti sauce
salt and pepper to taste
grated quickmelt cheese
breadcrumbs (optional)

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.ees C).
In a skillet over medium heat, saute onions and tuna. Set aside.
Remove and discard the tops, seeds, and membranes of the bell peppers.
Arrange peppers in a baking dish with the hollowed sides facing upward.
In a bowl, mix the tuna, cooked rice, spaghetti sauce, salt, and pepper.
Spoon an equal amount of the mixture into each hollowed pepper. Top with grated cheese and breadcrumbs.
Bake until the peppers are tender.

Cheesy Baked Stuffed Eggplant

Ingredients:

For Eggplants
1 very large eggplant
2 tsp olive oil
salt & pepper

For Filling
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes in can or spaghetti sauce if you want it sweeter
1 clove garlic crushed
3/4 cups Magnolia Quickmelt cheese
salt & pepper

Topping:
italian breadcrumbs

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil.
Cut the eggplants in half. Scoop the meat of the eggplant leaving about half centimeter from the skin. Careful not to cut through the skin. Add olive oil, salt, and pepper
Roast the eggplant in the oven covered with foil til soft but firm. Remove from oven and let them cool.

Chop the filling and place it in a bowl. Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper and garlic.
In a baking dish, place the eggplants on top. Stuff them with the filling
Place the cheese on top and sprinkle with Italian bread crumbs. Bake for 20-15 minutes or until the cheese has completely melted. Enjoy!

Ginisang Sitaw

This is an easy and nutritious vegetable dish to make.

Ingredients:
2 cups of cut sitaw (long beans)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium onion, sliced

1medium tomato,sliced
3 tbsps soy sauce
half a glass of water
100 grams of ground pork or sliced pork cubes (optional)
salt and pepper

Procedure:
In a saucepan fry your garlic and onions in oil.  Add ground pork/sliced pork and saute until browned. Then add sitaw and stir. Add soy sauce, vinegar and water.  Cook until the sitaw are tender.

Adobong Kangkong Con Crispy Liempo

Adobong Kangkong is a healthy vegetable dish simmered in garlic, vinegar, soy sauce where kangkong/water spinach is the main ingredient. To make it special topped it with crispy liempo.

Ingredients:  

1 bundle of kangkong, cut stems 1” length

1/4 cup vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tbsp garlic, minced

crispy liempo

Procedure:

Saute garlic. When golden brown, add all other ingredients. Cover and simmer until done.

Don’t overcook the kangkong. Topped with crispy liempo. Serve!

Stir Fry Vegetables

Ingredients:

2 carrots, sliced

1 head broccoli, cut into florets, stems chopped

1 can young corn, sliced

1 small can green peas

6 garlic cloves, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

200 grams pork sliced

1 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tbsps oyster sauce

1 tbsp light soya sauce

1 tbsp sugar

salt and pepper

cornstarch and water

Procedure:

Marinate pork in pepper and soy sauce for 30 minutes. Add in a pot with water and coil until tender and soft.

Blanch carrot and broccoli in water.

Heat oil. Add garlic and stir fry a minute. Add onions and fry for another minute. Add all vegetables and add the oyster sauce.

Add the boiled pork slices and broth. Stir to mix well for another 2-3 minutes.

Check the seasonings add more if required. Mix cornstarch with add enough to the thickness of sauce you want. Serve.

Shrimp Chopsuey

Ingredients:
water
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced on a bias into ¼-inch thick
½ cauliflower, cut into florets, parboiled
¼ small cabbage, cut into 1-inch thick strips
½ small red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
handful of green beans, sliced parboiled
1 tablespoon oil
1 small onion, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup shrimps, shelled
12 pieces squid balls, sliced and fried
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1-1/2 teaspoons corn starch
dash of sugar
salt and pepper to taste
baby corn and quail eggs, optional

Procedure:
In a wok or wide skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add shrimps and cook, stirring regularly, until color changes. Remove and set aside.
Add parboiled vegetables, bell pepper, baby corn and quail eggs, stirring gently to combine, and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes. Add squid balls.

In a bowl, combine ¼ cup of cold water and corn starch and stir until corn starch is dissolved. Add corn starch mixture to pan, stirring gently. Add cabbage and oyster sauce. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes or until baby corn and eggs are heated through, vegetables are tender crisp and sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add dash of sugar. Serve hot.

Stuffed Bell Peppers with Potato-Cheese Topping

Ingredients:

For the potato and cheese topping

1 cup cooked potatoes

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon milk

salt and pepper to taste

1/3 cup grated cheese

½ block cream cheese (softened)

1/4 kilo store-bought lumpiang Shanghai mix

4 large green bell peppers

Procedure:

Cut tops from green peppers; discard seeds and membranes. Cook the whole green peppers, uncovered in boiling water for about 5 minutes; invert to drain well. Sprinkle insides of peppers lightly with salt.

Mash potatoes and add butter, milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Add cream cheese. Mix well. Set aside.

Sauté the lumpia shanghai mix until meat is cooked.

Stuff peppers with the cooked Lumpia Shanghai mix until three-fourths full. Top each pepper with potato-cheese topping until filled. Add grated cheese on top and bake in a preheated 350˚F oven for 20 minutes.

Vegetarian Kare-Kare

Kare-Kare is a classic Filipino stew made of meat and vegetables in thick and creamy peanut sauce. This is the vegan version using snow fungus which is also called the tremella, natural mushroom, good for health. It can mostly be found in Chinese grocery stores.

Ingredients:
3 tbsp oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium white onion, chopped
6 cups water
2 eggplants, cut into one-inch slices
1 piece beef or chicken bouillon cube
2½ tablespoons achuete, fried in oil to gather the color
1 small bottle peanut butter (I use the whole bottle but you can lessen it if you do not want it to be too much sweet peanut in taste)
1/3 cup ground white rice or more depending how thick you want it to be like
1 small bunch long beans, cut to 2-inch slices, ends removed
2 pieces dried snow fungus, soaked in warm water for 1-3 minutes, base removed, cut into big chunks
1 bundle pechay, bottom stalk cut off, thoroughly washed
salt to taste

Note : Banana blossoms can be added but I prefer it without for vegan version

Procedure:
In a large pot, saute garlic and onions. Add few pinches of salt. Saute until onions are translucent.
Add eggplant, water, bouillon cube, and achuete. Mix and cover pot. Simmer until eggplant  are tender. Add peanut butter and ground rice. Keep mixing until sauce gets smooth and creamy. If sauce gets too thick, add more water to adjust the consistency.
Add long beans, snow fungus, and pechay. Put to a boil and turn off heat.

Serve over rice and vegan bagoong on the side.

Kangkong and Tokwa in Oyster Sauce

Kangkong and Tokwa in Oyster Sauce is a quick and budget easy to make healthy vegetable recipe.

Ingredients:

Kangkong leaves and stems, blanched

firm tokwa or tofu, cut into cubes

minced garlic

MAGGI® Oyster Sauce

soy sauce

water

ground pepper

2 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 3 tbsp water

Procedure:

Heat oil in pan and fry tokwa for 2-3 minutes. Transfer into a rack to drain excess oil. Sauté garlic for 2 minutes. Add soy sauce, MAGGI Oyster Sauce, water and pepper according to taste. Stir in cornstarch and water mixture to thicken the sauce.Add tokwa and kangkong. Cook for another minute. Transfer into a serving plate.

#AllWeNeedIsMagic

Seven Kinds

Seven Kinds is mixed vegetable dish composed of seven kinds of vegetables.

Ingredients:

1/4 kilo chicken breast, cut into small pieces

2 medium carrots, peeled (cut into cubes)

2 large turnips, peeled (cut into cubes)

1 cup green peas

1 can young corn, sliced

1 can whole mushroom, sliced

1/2 cup cashew nuts, plain

25 pieces quail egg, hard-boiled

1 small head garlic, minced

1 small white onion, sliced

1 pack or can of Cream of Mushroom Soup

2 tbsp cooking oil

2 tbsp butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

In a pan, heat oil and butter. Saute' garlic and onion. Add chicken breasts cubes and saute until cook.  Add carrots and turnips. Let it cover and stir occasionally until half cook. Add young corn, mushroom and green peas. Add little water and let simmer. Gradually add cream of mushroom then stir well.    Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add quail eggs, cook until sauce are thicken. Removed from fire and sti in cashew nuts.

Ginisang Bitsuelas

Ginisang Bitsuelas is a healthy dish of sauteed greens beans with  ground pork.

Ingredients:

250 grams snap beans (bitsuelas), remove ends, sliced thinly at an angle

2 tbsps vegetable oil

1/3 cup lean ground pork

3 cloves garlic, pounded

1 medium onion,chopped

salt and pepper

Procedure:

Heat oil in a pan. Saute garlic until light brown then add on ion. Add ground pork and fry until light brown. Add the veggies. Stir-fry for a minute. Pour water. Cook until veggies are crisp-tender. Serve.

Ginisang Pechay

Ginisang Pechay is a healthy with vegetable dish of chopped pechay with ground pork.

Ingredients:

1/4 kilo ground pork

bundles of pechay, washed and chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 small sized tomatoes, chopped

1 cup chicken or pork stock

1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce 

3 tbsp oil

salt and pepper

Procedure:

In a pan over medium heat, saute garlic in oil until light brown. Add tomatoes and saute. Add ground pork. Saute until juice starts to come out. Add stock and fish sauce. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes or until pork is tender. Season with salt and pepper. Add pechay and oyster sauce. Simmer for a few more minutes.Serve.

Pinakbet

Pinakbet or Pakbet is a popular vegetable dish made-up of different fresh vegetables, pork, and shrimp paste

  Ingredients:    
    2 medium size Ampalaya (sliced)
    2 medium size eggplants (sliced)
    1 small size kalabasa, (sliced into big cubes)
    6-8 pieces okra (sliced)
    5 pieces tomatoes (quartered)
    1 small garlic head (minced)
    1 small onions (diced)
    1 small ginger (sliced)
    4 tbsps bagoong
    1/4 kilo pork with fat (cut into very small pieces) or chicharon
    3 tbsps oil
    1 1/2 cup water
    pinch of pepper

Procedure:

In a pan, fry pork until lightly crispy, set aside. Saute garlic, onion, tomatoes, and ginger in the pork fat and mix in pork. In a pot, boil water with bagoong. Add in the pork and spices. Add all the vegetables and cook. Serve hot.

Lumpiang Ubod

Lumpiang Ubod is a thin crepe wrapper filled with strips of ubod (the heart of a coconut palm) stir-fried with shrimp or pork or chicken. Served with a sweet garlic-flavored brown sauce and ground peanuts.

Ingredients:
1/2 kilo ubod (bamboo shoots), cut into thin strips
1 medium site carrots, cut into thin strips(optional)
1 cup ground chicken
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper
oil for sautèing
crepe wrappers (CLICK RECIPE)

For sauce:

1 cup water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in water

For toppings:
minced peanuts
lettuce leaves
minced garlic

Procedure:
Sautè garlic and onion in oil. Add chicken and cooked until done. Add ubod and carrots. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a separate container. Allow to cool. Drain excess broth and set aside.

To prepare sauce: Combine sugar, soy sauce and salt. Allow to boil. To thicken, pour in cornstarch dissolved in water. Add minced garlic.

Place a lettuce leaf in a wrapper then about 2 tablespoon filling. Wrap and pur sauce. Topped with peanuts and minced garlic. 

Langka sa Gata

Langka sa Gata or Ginataang Langka is made with young jackfruit cooked in coconut milk and added with pork or seafoods.

Ingredients:

2 cups jackfruit; cut in cubes

1 1/2 cup coconut milk

green peppers (siling haba)

2 cloves garlic

Salt to taste

Optional: 12 pcs talangka (small crabs) or 6 pcs alimasag (sliced in half)

Procedure:

Brown garlic, then add the talangka/alimasag. Cover and season with salt. When talangka/alimasag is turning red, add coconut milk and jackfruit. Bring to a boil, then drop the green peppers. Salt to taste. Cook until done.

Ginataang Sitaw Kalabasa

Ginataang Sitaw Kalabasa is a dish made of shrimp, string beans and squash cooked in coconut milk.


Ingredients:
1/2 kilo squash, cut into cubes
1/4 cup shrimp, shelled and deveined
2 onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp cooking oil
2 pieces long chili peppers
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup coconut cream
1 chicken bouillon cube dissolve in 1 cup water
2 tablespoons of fish sauce (patis)

Procedures:

Sauté garlic, onions until translucent in oil. Add the squash, chicken stock, and the coconut milk. Let boil then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the liquid has reduced and the squash becomes tender. Add the coconut cream, long chili peppers and shrimps. Bring again to a boil and simmer for a few more minutes.

Serve hot with plain rice.

Tortang Talong with Giniling

Tortang Talong with Giniling is a more complicated but yummier version of eggplant omelette.



Ingredients:
1/4 kilo ground pork
6 medium size eggplant, roasted, skins removed and flattened
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 tbsp cooking oil
3 eggs
4 tsp cornstarch
Salt & pepper to taste

Procedure:
In a pan, place over medium-high heat. Sauté garlic until golden brown. Add onion, sauté until translucent. Add ground pork. Sauté and stir occasionally until no longer pink. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
On medium heat, put ¼ of a beaten egg in the pan and then put the flattened eggplant on top that is drenched in little cornstarch. Add the ground beef mixture on top, flatten so it will bind and pour another ¼ of a beaten egg.
After 2-3 mins, using a spatula on one hand and holding the end of the eggplant on the other hand, flip the eggplant. Fry for another 2-3 mins. Serve.

Okoy

Okoy, ukoy or ukuy are shrimp fritters or omelette.This is the Caviteñean version with shrimp togue and tokwa.



Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup achuete water
1 1/2 cups shrimp broth
1 egg, well beaten
cooking oil

Toppings:

2 cups togue(mongo sprouts)
2 pieces tokwa, cut into small cubes or thin strips
1/2 lb small shrimp, cleaned

Procedure:

Sift the first five batter ingredients together in a bowl.
Blend in the achuete water, broth and egg. Beat until smooth.
Heat oil.
Arrange a bed of bean sprouts in a saucer.
Top with tofu strips and shrimps.
Add about 1/3 cup of batter.
Slide the mixture carefully into the hot oil.
Fry until crisp and brown.
Drain on paper towels.


Dipping Sauce: Mix vinegar with crushed garlic seasoned with salt and pepper

Laing

I only learned to appreciate laing last year and today I am sharing my own recipe version.

Laing is not a Caviteñean dish but a popular spicy dish in Bicol province. Rich and creamy, it's made from dried taro or gabi leaves and coconut milk.

Ingredients:
1 pack dried taro leaves (about 6 cups)
2 cans coconut milk, (fresh or canned)
4-5 cups water
1 small pack hibe(dried shrimps)
3 cloves of garlic, minced (optional)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 thumbsize ginger, cut in strips
1 chicken bouillon cube (instead of the normal bagoong)
dash of sugar
red or green chilis or chili pepper flakes

Procedure:
Add taro leaves in a large pot and the rest of the ingredients.
Simmer for 15 - 20 minutes, stirring from time to time.
Cook until the taro leaves have fully absorbed the coconut milk and almost rendering fat.
Serve with rice.

Lumpiang Prito

Lumpiang Prito is a spring roll made with vegetables. In Cavite City it is basically paired with Sinigang na Baboy and served traditionally every Saturday.

Ingredients:
3 large camote, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 small head of cabbage, shredded
500g of bean sprouts
1 white onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
salt and pepper
30 large egg roll (wonton) wrappers, thawed
Oil for frying
1 lb of ground pork

Procedure:

In a large wok, fry garlic and onions over low heat until fragrant.

Increase head to medium-high and sauté ground pork until meat is no longer pink. Add soy sauce to taste. Toss in camote until cooked. Add shredded cabbage and stir-fry for a few minutes. Rinse and drain bean sprouts and add to wok, stir.

Season with salt and pepper. Drain and cool mixture.

Wrap a tablespoon of filling in each egg roll wrapper. Heat oil and drop one by one each rolled lumpia. Cook until lightly golden brown. Drain on a plate with paper towel and serve promptly with vinegar dip.

Note: Unfried rolled lumpia can be stored in a locked plastic container in the freezer.