Super Bowl Grub: Crispy Chicken Bites with Wasabi Mayo

Are you ready for your gameday grub?  Yeah it's Super Bowl Sunday this weekend, I'm sure you already know that.  I bet you are ready for a nice thick and sticky glazed hot buffalo wings. Or those platters of chips and salsa maybe?   How about those thick and creamy, cheesy dip... yum!

But if you are tired of the usual spread and you are looking for something new to add to your Super Bowl Sunday repertoire, honey you're in the right place.  I am  so excited to share with you something new and refreshing, my Asian inspired  : Crispy Chicken Bites with Wasabi Mayo ta-dah!

Crispy  Chicken  Bites with Wasabi Mayo

(note: you have two options on how to make the crispy chicken: bake or fry)

Ingredients:

4 pcs. chichen breasts (or you could have boneless chicken thighs too)

2 pc Cucumber 

For the breading

1/2 c flour

1/2 c cornstarch

4 tbsp five spice

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

Fill a large skillet (cast iron is best) about half full with cooking oil.  Heat until very hot.  Meanwhile roll the chicken pieces into the breading. Shake off excess flour.  Drop the pieces into the hot oil.  Make sure there is enough space to stir the chicken pieces.  Deep fry until golden brown.  Drain the fried chicken and let it rest.  Slice them into bite sizes.  

Now if you  prefer to bake.  Place the breaded chicken on a greased pan.  Bake uncovered at 400 degrees.  Bake until the chicken is golden brown and until the liquid from the chicken runs clear.  Slice them into bite sizes.

Wasabi Mayo

1/2 cup mayo

2 tbsp wasabi paste

Mix wasabi paste with mayo.  You could add more wasabi paste if you want a bolder kick.

Arrange chicken slices on cucumber and add a dollop of wasabi paste.    

So are you ready for some football?   I am... GO GIANTS!  (in case my son reads this haha!)

This post is on Top 9 Super Bowl Eats at Daily Buzz Moms.  Thank you DBM for the feasture!

All Good Things St. Louis: RUE LAFAYETTE

Back from the holidays, the months of November and December just flew by.  Both months greeted me with a lot of warm hugs and hellos with family reunions and celebrations, kids coming home from college and out of town vacations. I felt like I danced with different rhythms of life and loved it.  

January is almost over and all of a sudden the music changed into a slower rhythm.  Slow mornings like today made me realize that adjusting to life in St. Louis took a back seat.  The past two months were all things holiday and family fun.  As I go back to the "normal" rhythm of life I would also like to bring back a feature I started when I just moved here to STL: All Good Things St. Louis. Today I will take you to Rue Lafayette.

I still had a few more boxes to unpack when my kids from college and my brother from the Philippines came to visit in time for Thanksgiving.  So while I was showing them around our new neighborhood, we came across this French Cafe, which was a few steps away from where we live.  Guess what prompted us to stop by.... Was it the quaint facade?  Maybe... 

OK, it was because of these signs! What with my brother who just came from a tropical country and my girls from California, the cold temperature begged for a cup of hot chocolate... and boy did these signs call our names. 

We were greeted with an ecclectic entry way... and my heart skipped a beat as I loved the vibe of the cafe. The cafe is within a boutique where you find antiques, jewelry and even French soap.  A kindred spirit enclave, and I felt right at home.  In retrospect it was not the ambience that made me fall in love with the place, it was the friendly staff and owner, Araceli. She came up to us and figured we were new in town.  And our conversation flowed like we've met before.  Being a transplant herself she knew how it was to be in a totally new place so she made us comfortable.  She even gave us tickets to take my visitors around.  Her gesture was like a warm hug that said we got the right place in the right neighborhood.

Our firsr order?  You bet it had to be "the best hot chocolate in the world", and boy did it really delight us.  With temperatures in the mid-40's (Farenheit), a warm frothy mug of chocolate hit the spot.

The croissant is also highly recommended.  It's flaky, buttery and fresh.  And the macarons, those delicate French macarons, transported us to Paris.

Ok we might have indulged a little bit... and to think that it's breakfast.  But for my girls who were just fresh from a red-eye flight from Cali, and for my brother who was still jet-lagged from his 30 hour flight from Manila, they needed the sugar... and it was a sure way to welcome them in my new city, and my new neighborhood.

I was glad we made the un-planned pit stop... Rue Lafayette showed the best of my new neighborhood... And as I saw the now empty plates, and the smiles from my brother and my girls, all are good signs to know that I am home...

P.S.

Guess who was at the Rue today?  It's Mayor Slay! Here are some snapshots we took.

Araceli (the owner) is the lady on the left and Mayor Slay is the gentleman on my right.

with Vicky Destre of Victoria Destre Designs and Richard Flemings

A plate for Joey: pan seared salmon with green tea and lemongrass sauce

The sound of him playing the guitar resonates through the whole house.  Never mind if the projects that we had planned, which included hanging picture frames on the wall, were left undone.  The music coming from the frets of the guitar was so soothing and beautiful, but I sensed that it would stop soon.

When his luggage was all packed, I knew that I had little time left with him.  Soon he will be back in college, soaked with school work and surrounded by his friends.  His time with me could wait... well at least until the next school break.

I cherished the extra two weeks my son Joey spent here at home while his sisters had all returned to California after the holidays.  His stay was highlighted by the good times we had, the silly giggles, the games and the great food.  Sometimes our games sounded moronic, but it is very touching for me to know he is still my unica hijo.  

The dish I made for him for his last lunch home before he heads back to Cornell was pan seared salmon with green tea.  I spiked it with lemongrass, ginger and honey sauce.  This salmon recipe was inspired by his healthy eating options and the tea time we had every night (started by my eldest daughter during the winter break).  This is the perfect way for me to express how much I treasured the time he spent here at home - by preparing this special plated dish for him.

Pan Seared Salmon with Green Tea-Lemongrass- Ginger sauce


Salmon slices
salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil

Season both sides with salt and pepper.  Drizzle some olive oil on both sides as well.  Let it stand for 5 minutes.

On a hot skillet (use a non stick pan) sear the salmon slices on both sides.  It took me 3 minutes each side since my salmon slices are thin, if it's thicker allow 5 minutes of cooking time each side.

Sauce
brew 1/2 cup of tea together with lemon grass
1 tbsp agave or honey
freshly grated ginger root
2 cloves garlic, minced
soy sauce
salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients together.  Season with soy sauce and pepper.  Adjust the taste according to your preference.  Sprinkle sesame seeds and enjoy!

Before you leave,  I'd like to share with you 2 great news.  Last Monday,  Foodbuzz picked my Monay post as one of the top blogs featured in their baking buzz for a week. And if you notice a new badge on the right, that's because Foodista picked my post It warms my heart: Turkey ala Pho as the blog of the day,  Also my Steamed Tamarind Chicken  was featured as Featured blog. on Foodbuzz FB page I could have not done it without your constant support.  Maraming Salamat! (Thank you very much!)

xoxo,
Malou

Fresh Start: Steamed Tamarind Chicken

I really haven't been following Oprah.  I mean the Oprah episodes that I've seen are far and few between.  So I was surprised to see a magazine subscription sent to me a couple of weeks ago.  I found out later that  a close friend of mine, Cathy, had given me a full year subscription of the magazine O as a gift.

A Fresh Start is the theme for January.  And you know it's January when the gym is packed and the park is full of people running, walking and roller blading. Magazines and blogs talk about resolutions:  to spend more time with the family, to start getting organized, to lose 20 lbs., etc.  Sorry I digress.  But the magazine offers fresh strategies on how to better oneself with the start of the new year, and boy I am so inspired.

With O magazine and my friend Cathy on my side (she calls me and emails me regularly to check on my diet and organizing projects) I can't fail.  I am set to clean my pantry and make a conscious effort to make our food healthier.

So just like my previous Kulinarya post, I am making a healthy version of another Filipino dish called sinampalukan manok (chicken with tamarind).  Instead of doing the traditional soup with chicken version, I steamed the chicken and used the same sinampalukan manok ingredients as a dry rub... 

Pinasingaw na Sinampalukang Manok (Steamed Tamarind Chicken)

This recipe is under the category I can't believe it's that easy recipe.  You can also prepare chicken soup stock with tamarind and serve it on the side (making this a deconstructed version of sinampalukang manok).

Ingredients:

Chicken cut ups or whole chicken
Sinigang mix
4 cloves garlic, minced
freshly grated ginger
lemon hedges

Procedure:
Clean the chicken pieces and pat dry.  Make a rub by mixing the 3 ingredients:  sinigang mix, garlic and ginger.  Rub the chicken with the tamarind rub.   If you are doing the whole chicken, rub inside the cavity and inside the skin.  Throw in lemon hedges in the cavity.

Steam the chicken for 45 minutes to an hour or until the chicken is fully cooked.

Best served with rice (I used brown rice), cooked with the drippings from the steamed chicken.  But please note, remove the visible fat and just add the liquid used to steam the chicken...

Enjoy!

Kulinarya: Gluten Free Yema Cake

I. AM. NOT. MARTHA. STEWART. 

I mumbled to myself while I was putting the frosting on my chiffon cake.  You see I'm a novice baker but I stepped up to the Kulinarya cooking club's challenge this month. The challenge was:  come up with a dish or dessert that you want for your birthday.  But the hosts, Pearl of Sassy Chef and Thea of Words and Nosh, added a fun twist, which is to make it healthy.

I took the challenge literally.  I mean what symbolizes a birthday more than a cake... You know the drill: blowing the candles while everyone sings, making a wish and just enjoying the celebration. So I made myself a cake... and I chose to make Yema cake. Yema is a popular dessert in the Philippines; a sweet concoction of eggs and condensed milk.   For the healthy option I made a gluten free chiffon cake and for the frosting I used egg substitute and sugar free condensed milk and soy milk.

With all the substitutions, the cake still came out delightful.  Let's take the candles out.  When you are over 40 you want to keep the candles out, instead I added sugar free candy pearls just to jazz it up a bit.

For the chiffon cake recipe, hop on to Feel Good Recipes  to get the gluten free recipe.

For the yema frosting:

1 can sugar free condensed milk

3 tbsp egg substitute

1 cup soy milk

1 tbsp canola oil

Procedure:

Mix the condensed milk, egg substitute and soy milk in a bowl.  Stir and mix them together nice and well.  Pour the mixture in a double broiler and cook over medium heat until it thickens.   When it thickens, add the oil until you have achieved a spreadable frosting...

You see, you could have your cake and eat it too...LOL!  Enjoy!

The Ibanag Longanisa Experiment

I can't tell you how gratified I was when Nami of Just One Cookbook blog fame featured my Arroz Ala Cubana. One of the goals of my blog is to promote Filipino food, and I'm glad I have been able to do so. Nami, who has a Japanese background, sharing that her family loved my Filipino dish is just one example of my goal.

I also appreciate readers who email me to share how my blog has inspired them to cook. Recently, I received emails from two of my readers. These two emails have made me doubly excited because the readers who sent them are from my hometown. Mae, who balances her time working at DENR and being a mom wrote:

I enjoy reading your blogs which I find heartwarming and inspiring. Like you, I love going to the kitchen, too. I'd like to believe that it is in the kitchen where we, moms, put our magic wands to good use. Isn't it that the best ingredient that we sprinkle in every dish is LOVE?:-)

She further shared that when she tried one of my recipes, she was so pleased with the finished product. More than that, her kids showed their approval by overwhelming her with hugs and kisses.

Melisande describes herself as a novice in the kitchen and she emailed me saying:

I used to hate cooking but not anymore... and that's because I find a lot of inspiration in your blog... I don't think I'll ever become as good as you are in cooking but I hope I become a good mom like you.. God Bless!

I share my stories and recipes to inspire home cooks like me to be creative in the kitchen and to celebrate family life around their dining tables. Nothing thrills me more than knowing that some readers try the recipes and appreciate the family stories I share. I thrive on feedback, so all these emails do me a great favor.

So with Mae and Melisande in mind, I was inspired to make this dish using ingredients that are readily available in my hometown of Tuguegarao. I took a breakfast staple, Ybanag Longanisa,which I shared a few posts ago, and mixed it with an unexpected partner: tahong (mussels). An easy and inexpensive fix; yet I'm sure it will bring forth love and warmth around the dining table.

Tahong con Longanisa (Mussels with Sausage)

Ingredients:

6 pcs. Longanisa

2 lbs. mussels 

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium tomato sliced

maggi seasoning

3/4 cup white wine

Procedure

Cook the longanisa in a large sauté pan with 3/4 cup water over medium heat until they turn golden brown on all sides. Set aside. Using the same pan (but pour out excess fat, use only about 2 tbsp) saute garlic, onions and tomatoes.

Toss the mussels into the pan, and increase the heat to high. Cover lightly with a lid and cook over medium heat for 2-3  minutes or until the shells have opened.  

Meanwhile slice the longanisa into halves.  Add it back to the pan.  Toss and cook a little more.  

Pour in the white wine,  to deglaze the pan.  Scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Stir until the wine reduces by half.  Season with maggi seasoning, salt and pepper.

Garnish with toasted garlic and cherry tomatoes.

Enjoy

it warms my heart (turkey soup ala Pho)

I woke up early one morning and wondered why it seemed brighter than usual. It was chilly so I tiptoed to my kitchen to make myself a cup of hot tea. A few minutes later, I received a call from my husband, who was out of town, and he asked me if it was snowing.

"There's a chance of snow today," he said. And as soon as I heard those words, I ran towards my window and realized that that was the reason the morning looked brighter: the immaculate white snow glistened as it  blanketed the area around my home. Of course it was cold... but that could not stop my excitement. I immediately grabbed my camera and ran out to my porch to take snapshots of the beautiful white morning. I watched as the snowflakes descended from the grey skies like tiny angels twirling with each gust of wind. It warmed my heart as I raised my face towards the sky and one of the snowflakes gently landed on my tongue. It was indescribably soothing and uplifting.

Inspired by the morning's miracle, I instinctively made a pot of soup; something that would simmer for hours, but also something that I haven't cooked before. And sure enough, I surprised even myself to make a pot of turkey soup ala Pho.  I put "ala Pho" as a disclaimer because I only used the spices I had available in my pantry. Also, I don't like putting mint and other vegetables in my Pho, so this is just my take on the Vietnamese dish. Nevertheless, the long hours of simmering lent a comforting feeling, and it certainly hits the spot like an authentic bowl of Pho would.

Turkey Soup ala Pho

Ingredients:

bone-in whole turkey breast (4 1/2 to 5 pounds), thawed if frozen 
1 medium onion   quartered
1 2 inch unpeeled ginger, smashed or pound to release the flavor
3 cloves of garlic minced
3/4 tsp five star spice
2 pcs star anise
1 tbsp annatto seeds
1/3 tsp red bell pepper flakes
3/4 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tbsp peppercorn
8-10 cloves
3 stalk celery
1 package of sotanghon noodles (vermicelli)

Roast  all spices together except celery,garlic and onions.  Put the spices in a pouch.
Fill the stockpot with water.  Put the pouch and celery, garlic, and onions and let it boil.  Now put the left over turkey in the boiling pot.  Let it boil for two hours.  Remove turkey and shred the turkey breasts and the rest of the meaty section.   Strain the soup.  Add sotanghon noodles and let it simmer for a few minutes until the noodles are soft... and you will be slurping the soup in no time... enjoy!

Here are some snapshots i took from my window