Honey Ham Wrap

Ideal on the go food packed with vitamins, protein, and great flavor.

Ingredients

• wrap or flour tortilla toasted (I used Tofuyan found at IGA, near bacon)
• two leafs of lettuce
• 4 thin tomato slices
• mayo (or thousand island, ranch, or honey mustard)
• two slices salami
• 1 slice honey ham
• two slices green bell pepper
• cheddar cheese
• sprinkle ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Toast Tortilla.  Move to plate.
2.  assemble your way.  Wrap in foil is taking it to go.  Foil will also help keep it from falling apart.  I assembled everything in between the leafs of lettuce to prevent it from becoming soggy- depending on how busy the husband, he may eat it as late as dinner.
3.  Best served with chips! 

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary. 

Chicken Adobo (Filipino stewed soy sauce chicken)

I have yet to come across a person who doesn't like Chicken Adobo, the national dish of the Philippines.  Soy Sauce and Vinegar?  That's it?  Yes, this dish is comprised of just that, but you'll be surprised at how its taste turns out to be a thousand times better than its description.

Need I say more?  The funny thing about Filipinos and Adobo is that all of them will swear on their own lives that their Adobo is the best.  Am I one of them?  Luckily no hahaha... all the energy used that would have otherwise been used on Adobo Smack Talking is concentrated on my cooking.  All I know is that I love the way my Adobo tastes and so does my Husband.  Check and Check.  Hope you give it a try!

Back in the day in the Philippines, refrigerators were non existent.  Having foods that are susceptible to early spoilage were out of the question so Filipinos naturally made foods that were self preserving (with lots of fats and sugars).  Check out all of our recipes. I dare you to try and find a dish that spoils fast. 

You may be a little hesitant towards Adobo being categorized in the self preserving "fatty" category but don't get me wrong. It's not as bad as I make it out to be.  Me being somewhat health conscious, turned down the oil a notch or two so don't worry about a thing.  It's as healthy as it can be. hahaha.  My Adobo probably has 1/4 oil of that in the usual Adobo recipe.

In American, BBQ contests.  In the Philippines, Adobo beat-downs haaha.   

4-6 servings; 1-1.5hrs
Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion
• 1'' slice ginger
• 6 cloves garlic roughly minced
• 3lbs chicken drumetts
• 1/4tsp ground black pepper
• generous pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 dried bay leaves
• 1 cup water
• 5tbsp soy sauce
• 1tbsp fish sauce
• 5 tbsp white vinegar

1.  Heat up frying pan medium high heat. add oil. add garlic and onions together. stir fry until onions are translucent (~5min.).
2. add chicken, salt, black and red pepper. Stir fry until chicken is no longer pink and translucent (~5min).
3.  add water, ginger, and bay leaves.  Bring up to boil, then reduce back to medium low heat, cover, and cook for ~5min.
4. at this point chicken should be 3/4 cooked.  Combine soy sauce, fish sauce, and vinegar in a bowl. Mix. pour evenly on top of chicken.  DO NOT STIR.  cover and turn heat down to lowest flame.  cover and simmer ~25min.
5.  Open lid, carefully tong out chicken into a bowl leaving juices behind in pan.  Adjust to high heat and reduce sauce to 1/2 or until it becomes slightly thick.
6.  add chicken back into pan. boil high heat for 3min. Turn flame off.
7. Wait a bit for juices to settle in (adobo ages well. tastes better day after).
8. this dish is best served with white rice and fried over easy eggs.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary.

Cajun Ham and Cheese Omelete

I'm an egg lover (understatement), guilty as charged. 

Aside from being nutrient rich in brain healthy Omega-3 fatty acids, eggs are cheap, delicious, easy to prepare, and can be utilized in any category of food and in any course.  Here's one of infinite ways to prepare them for breakfast.

Don't have any time to eat this at home? Slap it in between two slices of bread or stuff it into a tortilla and take it to go!

~2servings; 10-15min

Ingredients:

• 1tbsp oil
• 1 clove garlic finely minced
• 1/2 small onion diced
• 1 small tomato diced
• 1/2 green bell pepper diced
• 2 slices deli ham sliced
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp cajun seasoning
• 2-3 large eggs
• salt and pepper to taste
• pinch dried parsley flakes
• shredded cheddar cheese
• sour cream, ketchup, hot sauce (optional)

Directions:
1.  Heat up a non stick pan. medium high heat.  Add oil. Add garlic, onion, and a sprinkle of salt (draw water out faster). stir frequently until onions are translucent.
2.  Add ham, bell peppers, tomato, red pepper flakes, Cajun seasoning. cook ~4min. or until veggies have somewhat shriveled up.
3.  In a separate bowl add eggs, salt, pepper, ad parsley.  Beat well just before adding to pan. Turn flame up to high heat.  While swishing the pan back and forth rigorously, add egg.  This will help prevent egg from sticking to pan. add cheese on uncooked top. as soon as bottom half of egg is cooked, flip into half and transfer to plate. Omelet will continue to cook on its own. 
4. add you favorite toppings- chopped green onion, sour cream, ketchup, hot sauce, etc.

*Tip: if you're looking to up the quantity of the dish, add in 1/2 medium sized white potato diced.  Add after onions/garlic and splash a generous amount of water.cover with lid to get them to cook faster. Once fork tender. continue with step 2.
*if you end up adding an extra egg and/or potato, make sure you splash in a little more oil to prevent egg from sticking to pan.
*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary.

Iced Coffee

What are the chances of a med student asking for a cup of coffee throughout their educational career?  100% chance.  Sad to say, sleep becomes a foreign concept to students and they end becoming dependent on coffee to get them through day and night.    Here's an easy iced coffee recipe that you can easily contour fit to anyone's liking.  If you know me, you'll know that I always try sneaking in ingredients in all of my recipes to make them healthier, even if just a bit.  With the amount of stress these students go through, they'll need all the nutrients they can get! 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup boiling water (you can use a microwave)
• 1tsp instant coffee (1/2tsp extra for extra strength)
• 1 heaping tbsp white sugar
• 1/4tsp cinnamon
• splash vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup regular milk (cream, evaporated, or condensed for a richer texture)
• 1 large glass of ice

Directions
1. Combine coffee, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla in a mug.  Add boiling water to dissolve.
2. Add coffee mixture to a tall glass of ice.
3. Add milk.
4. Stir till ice cold.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary. 

 Optional: top with whipped cream, add in your favorite syrup, top with caramel, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, or chocolate sauce.  Although adding too much sugar and fat can counter the wanted effects of caffeine.

Turon (deep fried banana roll)- A Popular Street Food Of The Philippines

Turon is one of the most popular desserts of the Philippines found at almost every street-side during both day and night.  While the average American child grows up with banana splits, the average Filipino child grows up with Turon, a crisp deep friend sugar coated piece of plantain wrapped in a spring roll wrapper.

Turon has definitely made my childhood quite memorable and tasty.  Back in the day when mom and grandma came home from grocery shopping, they would always give me their spare change and yes, without fail, I obediently saved that change with one goal in mind: buy Turon from the man with the bike and stove on the street.  Till this day, it still remains a dessert that I spend my change on.  I'm not one to eat many desserts to begin with, but this is one that I indulge in from time to time, no special occasions necessary. 

Simple, yet delicious, Turon will not disappoint you.  This dessert is cheap to make and easy to prepare.

Want to jazz it up a little bit more?  Slap some ice cream (coconut is the best) on top of these bad boys and drizzle a little honey on top (Thai Style). Or try vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.

If you scroll down, you'll find that this recipe calls for ten steps.  Don't be discouraged because they're mostly tips from personal experience.  Once you get the hang of it, making them will be a piece of cake and worth the effort.

*Click HERE for a cooking dictionary.

 Ingredients:

• Very Ripe Plantains (I get mine at MNIB mini market located at excel plaza in Grand Anse)- 1 plantain makes ~4 rolls (2.10EC/lb)
• Brown Sugar for coating
• water
• spring roll wrappers (found at Foodfair next to Scotia Bank) ~6EC
• Vegetable oil for frying 

1.  Separate the amount of  spring roll wrappers you intend on using.  Place them on a plate with a damp paper towel on top to prevent them from drying up.
2.  Pour a little sugar in a bowl big enough to fit one plantain slice.
3.  Pour a little water in a bowl for sealing wrapper.
4.  Pour a lot of water in a big bowl (for rinsing fingers). Or you can avoid getting fingers dirty and use two forks or a tong to coat pieces.
5.  Heat a non stick pan with oil enough to cover half of the roll.  Put on lowest flame while you're preparing plantains.
6.  Slice ends of plantains. Peel. Cut each of them 1st lengthwise in half. then cut each half into two pieces. Basically, you will make one plantain into 4 pieces.  I like to further cut the round edges off so that the roll will sit flat in the pan.  With round edges, it will rise higher in the pan and that means you will need more oil. (see picture below).
7.  Take one wrapper and lay on a flat surface.  Place it in front of you so that it looks like a diamond.  Take one slice of plantain, coat it thoroughly in sugar, and place towards the bottom corner of the wrapper.
8. lift bottom corner over slice.  fold in right corner. fold in left corner. make sure your edges are straight (to prevent little pieces from hanging out and burning).  Keep rolling until you reach the last corner.  Before sealing, dip your fingers in a little water and rub on last corner. Repeat.
9. With my stove and pan, the best flame to cook under is the lowest flame.  Your stove and pan can drastically be different from mine so it's best to watch your cooking carefully.  The oil shouldn't smoke at all. To check if the flame is hot enough to cook in, dip one corner of a roll in and if it sizzles, then it's ready.
10. Place as many rolls in the pan carefully.  Cook  one side until light brown.  Flip over and cook other side until light brown.  Place a thin layer of sugar on top of each roll. Immediately flip over and cook until golden brown.  Flip over a couple of times to get a good coating of sugar on both sides.  Make sure your rolls don't burn (bitter).  With tongs, take each out and shake excess oil away.  Place upright in a container (don't line with napkins as rolls will stick).

*Tip: Initially fry with corner facing down to prevent roll from opening.
*Tip: loosely wrap your rolls, leaving 1/8 inch on each side away from wrapper.  This will allow for the whole wrapper to cook evenly (it is important to first finish wrapping everything before frying so you can watch over the rolls).
*Tip: Keep your oil from overheating by not using high heat (to do so will cause sugars to burn before roll is able to cook. if this happens, you will end up having to start over)
*try cooking rolls in 1-2 batches.  After two batches, residual sugars will burn and you will no longer be able to use the oil.  Try scooping out floating leftover sugars in between batches with a spoon.
*You can prepare them ahead of time and freeze them.  To freeze, lay them out in one layer on a sheet, place plastic wrap on top and repeat making more layers on top. When ready to cook, fry them straight out of the freezer.
*click on pictures to enlarge

The Case of the Missing Scrub Pants

I did the laundry today and pointed out to Brian that his baby blue scrub pants were missing.  "Oh, so that's where they went," he immediately replied.  The pants that he's been seeing for the past 4 days, right next to his usual seat in one of his classes turned out to be his own. hahahaha.  With a confused face he says, "I thought to myself, same color and same size, but I didn't think it was mine." How in the world did he lose his pants and later not notice them right in front of his face? hahahha.

First Midterm Chaos- Biochem

All within 10 minutes before departure to SGU from Grand Anse:
1. Brian stuffs 1 big bowl of oatmeal in his mouth all at one time saying aloud,  "I need this in my stomach... I need this in my stomach, I can't miss the bus... Come on Brian, Come on!"  I think it took him a total of 2 min. to eat the whole bowl.  Maybe he should be a professional contest eating dude instead?  Or maybe a magician (to have made that thick slop disappear in such a short time).  LOL
2. Brian somehow locks himself out of the bathroom (yay for me).
3. Immediately after, he finds that he has to switch out his contact lens due to a piece of lint bothering him.  He needs the solution, but it's in the bathroom.  He's beyond frantic at this point and I can see it getting worse, yes, it is possible believe me.  He attempts to open the door using the key to the front door (disillusion) thinking that somehow it will magically open the restroom door.  That doesn't work so next he tries slamming his whole body against the door.  I'm on the sidelines laughing but at the same time, I don't want to blow money on a new door so I discourage him from doing so.  He remembers ah!, I have backup solution in the closet, so he opens one up.  He looks around and starts freaking out because there's no water supply to sanitize his fingers hahaha. He licks them instead while yelling out "I hate these damn contacts... WHY ME?!... Why today?! Why is this happening to me today!?!"

Now for the exciting part... (at school taking his midterm for biochem)

Brian decides to bubble in his answer sheet after answering all the questions to keep distractions to a minimum and flow of thought its maximum.  He underestimates his allotted time by a long shot (I think he wasn't in the right state of mind due to the unforeseen events that happened in the morning), and at question 50 (there are 80 in total), he hears "Okay, put your pencils down. Time is up." hahahahhaha. Although there were clearly many proctors nearby, he decided to go for the kill.  At ~120-125 bpm, Brian frantically bubbled in the last 30 answers not caring about the consequences.  "I never worked with tunnel vision before... I felt as if my heart was going to pop out of my chest." hahahha. As funny as this sounds, it's scary at the same time.  With the amount of stress he's under, I wouldn't be surprised if his heart really wanted out. Rest assured, he was able to bubble all of them in appropriately.  Yeah, I had the same reaction... what were you thinking Brian? hahahah. He's gone mad and it's only the first term.