Tokwa't Baboy

Tokwa't Baboy (Fried Tofu and Pork)

This dish is as straightforward as its name suggests. But, simple as it may seem, this dish has seen many happy days, as it is popular beer food. It's just the perfect fit for munching in-between gulps and chatter. Tokwa't Baboy, however, is also a popular snack item, usually paired with rice porridge. 

In a sense, Tokwat's Baboy is comfort food. Just mention the name and it never fails to bring out smiles all round. 

This recipe is not the traditional dish in a sense, as pig's ears are normally used. But pig's ears are hard to come by where I'm in. So I used pork liempo instead. Also, the sauce is usually mixed right in with the pork and tofu and served as such. But when we order this dish, we ask the waiter to place the sauce in a separate dish and we dip the yummy pieces in. That's because the tofu slurps up the sauce so you get mushy bits after some time. This is also how I present this recipe.

Chorizo sausage pasta

Chorizo sausage pasta

We bought some sausages for the weekend barbie, and spotted a pack of Heller's chorizo sausage. I suddenly had a craving for chorizo and so we bought one. It was nothing short of awesome. My wife, who is not fond of anything spicy, loved it. Even my son had a second serving. And then my wife and I thought of the same idea: this sausage will taste great with pasta! And it did. I used dried Italian herbs for this recipe. I'm sure that fresh basil will taste loads better.

Philippine mangoes in town!

I thought I have to go on vacation in the Philippines in order to savour our heart-shaped, scrumptious, sweet mangoes.  It does make me wonder why our mangoes are not being imported here.  Bananas and pineapples are in regular stock, but not mangoes.  Sure, there are imported mangoes from elsewhere, but they're just not the same.

So imagine my surprise when I saw one on our table when I came back from work one night!  My wife excitedly told me that she bought it from the local fruits and veggies store.  She got excited when she saw it herself, and did not want to miss an opportunity to have a taste (it's been a couple of years since we've had one) so she determinedly took one to the cashier.  She did grimace a bit at the price - a whopping $3.99 for one piece (it's about PhP120.00!) but it was well worth it.

Even our baby daughter loved it!

If you are craving for ripe Philippine mangoes, try dropping by the local Fruit and Veggies store in Johnsonville.  Now I'm crossing my fingers for those crunchy, sour green mangoes too!

Fun fruit salad

Fun fruit salad

I picked up a packet of almond-flavoured agar-agar (or simply agar, which is similar to gelatin but derived from red algae instead of animal proteins - yes I looked that up) from the Asian store some time back because I like making simple desserts. Incidentally, the same packet had this cool idea of mixing up some agar cubes with tinned fruit salad. What could be simpler? 

I just had the opportunity to make this last weekend when we had some friends over. They wanted to enjoy the sunny, great outdoors by tramping up the mountain and wanted Jo-Lo and myself as tour guides. We would all be back home by sundown and we knew everyone would be famished by then, so my wife decided to whip up some pasta in white sauce and I cooked the Agar and the gelatin ahead of time so it can cool down while we're away and then I can just combine the ingredients together when we get back. 

Wellington Night Market

If you find yourself wandering the city streets on a Friday night looking for something different to do, head over to Cuba Street at the Left Bank for scrumptious treats and entertainment.

We have visited the place some time ago, and the place definitely has a charm all its own.  Food stalls line the alleyway, each offering something different.  A courtyard of sorts comes alive with performers while friends sit and enjoy their treats.  Once you're done with your food, you can always roam around and try something else!

Jo-Lo and the other kids love these Bavarian Style Wieners.