The Best Bread Pudding Ever! (wink, wink)

So, here's the thing. I made Pan de Sal Pudding with Langka the other day and wanted to take some pictures for this post. It was a nice afternoon, not too hot so decided to take the photo session outside.
This one was taken in front of my garage door; This one on top of my patio table at our back porch;
and this one was taken off the deck.
Little did I know, my youngest son was watching me do all this. He's probably wondering I've gone mad running around our backyard with a plate on one hand and a camera on another. So after following me around for a few minutes, I had him hold the plate while I move the patio furniture. Then he started to wink! The result was the first picture above.
He recently learned how to wink so he would always wink at me when he calls for me. He'd go "Mom, check this out!" and as I turn to see what he wants, he'll start winking at me.
Anyway, before I forget, here's the recipe:

Pan de Sal Pudding with Langka

8-10 pandesal, cut up to 1-inch cubes
6 eggs
pinch of salt
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 12-oz. jar Langka (Jackfruit) in syrup, drained and finely chopped

1. In a medium bowl, beat eggs with salt. Add heavy cream and stir in the sugar until dissolved. Add vanilla and langka.
2. Butter a 9" x 13" glass pan and place half of pan de sal cubes. Pour in half of egg mixture over the pan de sal, making sure some langka get poured in. Put in the rest of the pan de sal then pour the rest of the egg mixture.
3. Cover pan with plastic wrap and put in refrigerator at least 6 hours, or overnight.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove plastic cover and bake for 40-50 minutes or until mixture is set. If a toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean, it's done.
5. Let come 5-10 minutes. Serve with whipped cream or ice-cream, if you like.

Enjoy!

Finally! (A Cheesecake Story)

I've been in the mood for cheesecake for weeks now. So on our weekly grocery shopping at my husband's favorite store, I picked up a big 3-lb. chunk of cream cheese. My husband has that look, I know he's thinking "What's with all this cheese?" so I just said "I'm going to make cheesecake" and kept shopping.

The next day, I realized I didn't have any graham crackers. So he said he'll bake me some but then found out he didn't have molasses needed for the recipe. Then I told him I can substitute some Trader Joe's Joe-Joe's (they're like Oreos without the hydrogenated fat) but then he said it wouldn't be a "classsic" cheesecake. Uy!

So days passed, we kept going back and forth on how we're going to do my cheesecake. Then the weather got really hot and I felt lazy making it. I actually forgot about it until I saw my husband with my big chunk of cream cheese. I probably have that look "What you doing with my cream cheese?" so he just said "I only need an inch off this big block" and proceeded to make some coxinhas. (These were awesome, by the way. I will ask him for the recipe.)

Would you believe I forgot to buy the graham crackers on our weekly grocery shopping several times? I think this is when a shopping list comes handy, gotta try doing that. The always-talked-about-but-never-seen-cheesecake is how my husband would tease me when we talked about what to have for dessert for all these weeks.

So two days ago, I finally made it! The recipe I used is from Martha Stewart but then realized this one asked for sour cream. Guess what? I didn't have any. Uy. But I had some lowfat plain yogurt so decided to use that instead. Even I was getting tired of all this procrastination. My craving for cheesecake is back in full force!

The yogurt was a little runny so I placed it on a strainer lined with a coffee filter and let it drain in the fridge while I wait for the cream cheese to come to room temperature.

The cheesecake was out of the oven by afternoon but needed to cool down then chilled overnight. My husband didn't realized this so after dinner he asked when I will be serving the always-talked-about-and-finally-here cheesecake. I told him it wouldn't be ready until the next day. He let out a big Uy! and said "I ate a light dinner for nothing?!?"

So last night, I finally served it to rave reviews. My husband ate a light dinner a second night in a row to indulge in this really rich creamy cake. I served the chocolate glaze as a sauce on the side since my husband wanted to have his caramel sauce with it as well.

Pansit Palabok - Saucy Noodles with Pork Rinds!?!

My oldest brother, who lives in Tarlac, emailed me some pictures from his oldest son's birthday dinner last month. My nephew turned 8 years old and was proudly showing off his robot toy he got as a present along with his homemade birthday cake his Mom baked for him.

Right next to the cake is what grabbed my attention and made me drool. It's Pancit Palabok! It has been a while since I've had it. My parents would usually just buy them from Red Ribbon or cook with the powdered mix but I found it never tastes quite the same as I remember eating them in Manila.

Pancit Palabok always reminds me of my Mom's oldest sister who always gets commissioned to cook this dish on our parties. I remember watching her in the kitchen putting the dish together. She boiled and strain the noodles then ladled the simmering sauce and proceed to lay out the toppings one at a time. Then she would hand me the platter to put out in the dining table. I'd always be careful when I did this 'cause I'm afraid I'd disturb the the way my Auntie "designed" it; her work of art!

So I decided I should cook this from scratch just like my Auntie did. Based on what my Mom and sister knew about what goes into our Auntie's recipe and here's what I came up with.

Pancit Palabok

Ingredients:

2-3 Tbsp. cooking oil, more as needed
1 package medium-firm tofu, drained, patted dry and cut in 1/4 in. cubes
1o-15 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1 large onion, finely minced
1/4 cup flour
2 lbs. head-on shrimp, peeled, heads and shells reserved for shrimp stock
6 cups Shrimp Stock (recipe follows)
1/4 cup atchuete seeds soaked in 1/2 cup water for 10 minutes
1 1-lb. package pancit noodles
1 package chicharon, ground up
1 bunch scallions, green tops sliced (save white part for other use)
4 hard-boiled eggs
kalamansi wedges (or lemon)

Directions:

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Fry tofu until lightly brown and crisp on all sides, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain; set aside.

Lower heat to medium and in the same saucepan saute the garlic until lightly brown. Stir often as not to burn or overcook. (May need more oil, if needed). Remove all but a tablespoon to bowl and set aside.

Turn heat back to high and add the onions, cook until soft and fragrant, about 4-5 minutes.

Add the flour and stir frequently for a couple of minutes. Then add the fried tofu, shrimp, stock and atchuete water and let boil for 1 minute. Remove the shrimp as they cook so they don't get tough and set aside. Lower heat and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes or until thickened.

Meanwhile, boil another pot full of water for noodles. Boil until done and strain. Place noodles on serving platter.

The decorating starts! Ladle on the sauce until all the noodles are covered. Then sprinkle on the chicharon, reserved fried garlic and shrimp and scallions. Lastly, slice eggs and place on top. Serve with kalamansi wedges.

Nine Years Ago Today

My husband and I drove to Cambria get hitched. It was Friday the 13th. He thought it would be great to tell people we got married on what people consider an unlucky day. He contacted the local minister to marry us and we exchanged vows on the bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was a simple ceremony, just me, him, the minister and a camcorder set up on a tripod!

I don't think he's aware it's our anniversary today. He's preparing dinner and it just so happens he's making Feijoada. It is a stew of black beans with chunks of pork and beef, considered the national dish of Brasil. He had made it easier (and faster) by using a pressure cooker. If you don't have one, just use a large pot and boil longer until beans are tender.

I have never made this myself but I've watched him make it all the time. Here's his recipe:

Ingredients:

2 TB olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 lbs. pork picnic, cut into 2-in cubes
2 ham hocks, smoked
1 bag (16 oz.) black beans

Directions:

In a large pressure cooker pot, heat olive oil until hot over high flame. Add onion and saute until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant.

Add the bay leaves along with the the pork picnic and stir. Season with kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper.

Put the ham hocks and black beans along with about 8 cups of water (or at least 1 inch over the beans). Cover with pressure cooker lid and let it boil for about 30 minutes.

Turn off heat and let pressure cooker cool a little bit. Open carefully and taste for doneness. You might want to put lid back on to boil, depending on the tenderness of beans or just let it simmer on low heat until beans are tender and sauce has thickened.

Serve with rice. This serves a small army, about 20 people.