3-Kind Vegetable Stir-Fry in Oyster Sauce

A lot of parents find it difficult to make their children eat vegetables, but when I was a little kid I never gave my parents a hard time because I would always eat and finish my vegetables. Until today, I am still a veggie lover (but not a vegetarian). I would always like to have dishes with vegetables on it when dining out or make sure to incorporate vegetable servings in our weekly menu plan.

Two nights ago I prepared a dish that’s delicious and very simple to make, which involved vegetables and oyster sauce. I call it 3-Kind Vegetable Stir-Fry in Oyster Sauce. As the title suggests, I only used three types of vegetables namely: carrots, snow peas and white cabbage. Other types of vegetables can also be used like cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini, bell peppers, etc. But, I stick to the three previously mentioned as I’d like to have a quickly prepared meal and within budget.


Stir-fry vegetable is always present in any Chinese restaurant menu but I cannot tell if it is solely a Chinese creation because I’ve seen the same dish exists in Thai cuisine. There is also a similar dish popular in Filipino cooking, which we adopted from Chinese, called chop suey.

Here’s the recipe for my 3-Kind Vegetable Stir-Fry in Oyster Sauce. You will like this because it is light and, as I mentioned, very simple to prepare.

Ingredients:
2 medium-sized carrots, sliced crosswise
100 grams snow peas (remove tips)
½ head cabbage, roughly sliced
½ cup oyster sauce
1 medium-sized onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
Spring onions (optional)
¼ cup water (optional)
Vegetable oil


Cooking Instructions:
1. Heat oil in a wok. Sauté garlic and onion.
2. Add carrots and sauté for about 2 minutes.
3. Add oyster sauce and then follow with snow peas and cabbage. Add water if you desire. Add spring onions (optional). Stir constantly until all vegetables are cooked (bright in color). Do not over cook vegetables to maintain crispness.

Preparation and cooking time: 20-25 minutes
Serving size: 2-3 persons

Useful Info:
1. Stir-fry meals are best done using a wok over a high heat.
2. Constant stirring will allow equal distribution of the heat to vegetables and prevent over cooking.

Chocolate Mousse Cake Delight by Café Moka

My friends and former officemates from way back in the Philippines, Cliff and Daisy, surprised me with this delectable chocolate mousse cake when we went to Cliff’s hotel to eat dinner over the weekend. (It’s their belated birthday gift. ^-^)


Cliff just came from the Philippines almost two weeks ago for a three-week work assignment here in Abu Dhabi, while Daisy moved in Abu Dhabi early this year.

The cake was bought from Café Moka in Abu Dhabi Mall. I noticed on the cake box that the shop only listed two locations, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, which made me wonder if the shop is a local brand. And, I found out that it is!


Café Moka was established in 1996 in the UAE with four branches in Abu Dhabi and one in Dubai. Aside from putting up shops, they also cater to leading petrol companies in Dubai and Abu Dhabi namely EDNOC, ADNOC and EPPCO, supplying quality sandwiches, croissants and cakes.

I read in Café Moka’s website that their cake recipes are based on traditional French baking techniques. And, they pride themselves with this slogan for their cakes and pastries: “Sweet, creamy, rich pastries are the height of indulgence in our boulangeries.” Knowing this, it’s no wonder that the chocolate mousse cake was the epitome of the right sweetness and creaminess of a mousse cake. It was truly delightful!

Disclaimer: I am not endorsing Café Moka. I am simply blogging my eating out experience.

My Top Five List of Seasonal Fruits

As summer heats up in Abu Dhabi, Boq and I are taking advantage of the abundance of fruits that are in season. Fortunately, a lot of them are my favorites even back in the Philippines.

Here are the top five fruits in season that we mostly buy from the supermarkets these days, ranked from my most favorite to the least.

1) Ripe Mangoes

I will never outgrow my love for mangoes. It's my most favorite! Mangoes from Thailand and Philippines are being exported here but in their unripe condition. Since I like ripe mangoes over green I am settling for those that came from Pakistan. They are usually big and round. They’re sweet too although a little too fibrous. They also tend to have a strong taste when overripe or bruised, but they make a good after meal desert or snack when in good quality.





2) Lanzones

Next in my list is lanzones. I like lanzones because it’s soft and fun to eat. Peeling the skin needs a technique so that its sap won’t come in contact with the flesh. The sap is too bitter so you want to avoid it from touching the skin. I cannot explain though what is the technique, all I know is that I’m good at peeling lanzones (lolz!). Also, make sure that you don't bite the seed of the lanzones fruit because it is as bitter as the sap.



Lanzones in the Philippines have two kinds (in my opinion), one kind is acidic in taste and the other is sweet. But any of the two would do for me.

The lanzones that are available here in Abu Dhabi are coming from Thailand, which are mostly sweet. They are a little expensive though. A kilo is at around 20 dirhams or $5.50, that is more or less 260 in philippine peso.

3) Watermelon

Watermelon comes third in my top five list of seasonal fruits. As the summer peaks in Abu Dhabi, it is very refreshing to eat watermelon. A watermelon shake or juice will be great but eating the watermelon slices is just as great.



The watermelon sold here are very large in size. Fortunately, supermarkets sell them in halves or quarter sizes.



4) Atis

Fourth in my list is Atis or sugar apple in English. Atis are very sweet when it’s in its full ripeness. The only thing that I don’t like about atis is that it is full of seeds, but I know that there is a variety with less seed and there’s even a seedless atis from what I heard but I have not encountered one as of yet. I would definitely enjoy a seedless atis!



5) Pineapple

I like pineapple because it is a good source of vitamins and minerals namely manganese, thiamin, vitamin C and D. It is also rich in fiber and even has antioxidant property.



There are canned pineapples of various brands that are being sold in the supermarkets but I prefer to use them for making fruit salad than eating them fresh from the can. Luckily, there are fresh pineapple fruits available in the supermarkets. In fact, one particular brand in the Philippines (Del Monte) is being sold here.

Guinisang Ampalaya with Shrimps Recipe

Guinisang ampalaya is one of my favorite vegetable dishes. As I previously mentioned, Boq and I love ampalaya, one reason is because of its health benefits.


Some people especially the kids do not like to eat ampalaya because of its strong bitter taste. There are actually a couple of ways to reduce the bitterness of ampalaya. One is to soak it (already sliced) with water and squeeze, and the other is to rub it with lots of salt and wash thoroughly. I also encountered one particular cook that she was boiling the ampalaya to reduce the bitterness. I do not like soaking or boiling the ampalaya, what I always like to do is the rubbing and rinsing method.

Guinisang ampalaya can be cooked with strips of pork or shrimps. For this recipe, being another favorite, I used shelled shrimps.


Ingredients:
4 medium size ampalaya or bitter gourd or bitter melon by others, cut in half lengthwise, cored and sliced diagonally
3 medium size tomatoes, diced
1 large onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
3 pieces egg, beaten and slightly salted
300 grams shrimp, shelled
Vegetable oil
Shrimp cubes (optional)
3-5 tbsp. fish sauce

Cooking Instructions:
1. Sauté garlic until slightly brown. Add onion and cook until translucent.
2. Add tomatoes and shrimp cubes. Cook until tomatoes are soft. Then add shrimps and cook until half done.
3. Put in sliced ampalaya. Cover and stir occasionally until cooked.
4. Lastly, add beaten eggs. Stir continuously until egg is completely cooked.


Preparation and cooking time: 30-40 minutes
Serving size: 4-5 persons

Bon appétit!

For the Love of Country: Sen. Mar Roxas Gives Way to Noynoy

Photo credits: www.marroxas.com

"Country above self. Bayan Bago Sarili."

These were the opening words of Senator Mar Roxas, who, at late afternoon in Manila, announced his withdrawal for the Philippine’s presidential race in 2010 to make way for Senator Noynoy Aquino.

Senator Aquino apparently heeded the clamour of a lot of people to run for president in next year’s Philippine election, which started since the passing of President Cory Aquino, exactly a month ago today, that revived the nationalism among many Filipinos. He has yet to formally announce his bid for presidency.

Among the supposed presidentiables for 2010, it is more likely that I will vote for Senator Roxas (that’s despite his boring TV ads and trying hard acting! Lolz). I believe that he is devoid of greed, has the most genuine intention to uplift the lives of the Filipino people and can govern the Philippines in his utmost capacity. But, of course, being an Aquino supporter, I welcome with so much warmth the unannounced candidacy of Senator Aquino.

Senator Mar’s decision was applauded by many. He deserves the admiration because he set aside his ambition for the love of country. He can always pursue his ambition at a later time. I will support him then (even much more!)

Here's the full manuscript of the speech of Senator Mar Roxas at the Club Filipino in Greenhills, San Juan.

Source: abs-cbnNEWS.com

"Country above self. Bayan bago ang sarili.

Iyan ang habilin ng aking lolo, President Manuel Roxas.

Our nation is in trouble. Leadership is bankrupt. Institutions are in disarray. People are hungry.

Noynoy Aquino and I share the same outrage over the mess we are all in, the same way we share the solution-clean, honest, selfless public service.

Marami at matindi ang mga problema ng bansa. Kailangan nating ayusin. Matindi ang kalaban. We need a determined force for good far stronger than the festering evil around us.

We need to fight just as our own fathers fought dictatorship, and just as both died believing that good will conquer evil.

Noynoy and I want to make a difference, but we also know that we need to unite to achieve what we want.

I am the President of the Liberal Party.

It is within my power to preside over a potentially divisive process or to make the party a bridge for the forces of change. I choose to lead unity, not division. Bilang pinuno ng aking Partido, magdedesisyon ako.

Mahal ko ang Partido Liberal. My grandfather founded it. My father led it during the most difficult times of Martial Law. Sa harap ng peligro, sa kabila ng napakaraming tukso-hindi siya sumuko.

He inspired me-to stay the course, to fight the good fight, to pass the test of true character. To believe.

Over the weekend, Noynoy and I had many long conversations... Masinsinang usapan. We agreed: Let us forget about ourselves for a moment. This is not about us, this is about our people and our country. This is about our common dream. The dream of our parents.

But let us not remain a country of dreamers. Tama na ang pangarap. Gawin na natin, ngayon.

Today, I am announcing my support for the candidacy of Noynoy Aquino for President in 2010.

Noy has made it clear to me that he wants to carry the torch of leadership.

The passing of our beloved former President Aquino has reawakened a passion among us. I acknowledge this as fuel to bring us to the realization of our dream: Good will triumph over evil.

Ito na ang pinakamabigat na desisyon sa buhay ko. Maniwala man kayo o hindi, ginagawa ko ito para sa bayan, para sa inyo. I do this for unity in support of change. And if that means that somebody must make the sacrifice, it must be me. Ako na.

To you Noy, I say: I began the campaign to sow the seeds para sa pagbabago at reporma. You must now be the one to grow them in the arena of leadership.

Hindi kami maghihiwalay ni Noy. I will stand with him.

At sa aking mga kababayan, sa mga nagtiwala sa akin: Mahal na mahal ko po kayo. Mahal na mahal ko po ang ating bayan. Hindi rin tayo maghihiwalay. Itutuloy natin ang pagbabago sa ating bansa. Itutuloy natin ang laban para sa reporma!

Kay Noy, at sa aking mga kababayan: Country above self! Bayan bago sarili!

Hindi ko kayo pababayaan! Lalaban tayo!"