Tuna Pasta for Friday Lent

Here's a quick meal that I would like to dedicate to all Catholics out there.  If keeping your "no meat Friday" is a challenge, here's a quick and delicious alternative to help you fulfill your religious duties.

How I Like My Bacon (Garlic Fried Rice)

It is very rare that the hubby and I get to have breakfast together during the weekday.  But today, when I mentioned bacon, he immediately got hungry before I could even get out of bed.  Yeah, the power of bacon...LOL!

Slow Cooker Braised Garlic Spareribs

I recently had a hankering for some tender pork ribs and by that, I don't mean American style ribs with a sweet BBQ sauce. No, what I wanted was an Asian version with a salty, garlicky sauce perfect for drizzling over steamed white rice. I bought some spareribs over the weekend and today, was finally able to quell my craving. Best of all, these ribs cooked up in my slow cooker while I went about my day. I did spend about 20 minutes in the morning prepping the meat and putting the sauce together but after that, it was all on auto pilot. These ribs made for a fantastic dinner along with some sauteed green beans and steamed rice. Easy peasy.

Red Wine Steak Marinade

Hello again! Yes, I have been away from the blogging world for a couple of months due to work and other endeavors. Big thanks to Gingham Girl for keeping our little blog alive. While I may not have blogged, I have still cooked almost every day, even during the two weeks last month when we were hit with nasty 100 degree temperatures. When the weather gets that hot, we do most of our cooking outside on the grill. Yesterday, the hot weather returned once again, seemingly with a vengeance (it got to 105 degrees!) so I decided to marinate some steaks to throw on the grill.

Cheesy Bacon & Garlic Dog Treats

It's another doggie biscuit making Saturday. The last of the peanut butter doggie biscuits that I made a couple of weeks ago just got polished off so I needed to replenish the treat box. Now that I'm getting into the groove of baking dog treats at home, I don't think I'd be buying them from the pet store again. Not only are homemade dog treats inexpensive to make but they are also all natural and can be made fresh on an as-needed basis. 

Lemon Rice

We had April showers last weekend and cold, gloomy winter weather came back to haunt us for a day or two. Then Monday rolled around and the weather cleared up almost instantly. Today, we had sunny skies and warm summery weather so I sent the dogs out to play.

Chicken Noodle Soup

When the mercury dips down, my kitchen gets steamy.  I love hot soup dishes, and this is one that I make during cold days.  It's hearty, it's meaty, and it's packed with flavor, yet it's so easy to make.

Classic Adobo

Adobo has got to be the Philippines' national dish.  Whether that's official or not, I'm not really sure, but it practically is.  Ask any Filipino if they know how to make adobo, and I'm almost sure they will say yes.  Adobo can be cooked in different methods with different ingredients in it, but what I am doing today is the very basic and classic of them all.  I made it with chicken, but you can definitely make it with pork or a combination of both.

Chicken Alfredo W/Penne (from Costco)

Hello bloggers!  It's been awhile.  I miss writing, I miss cooking, and I miss reading mouthwatering posts.  It's been a hectic week, with the release of my calendar, a new part-time job, and the usual household chores...it's been fast food and take-out in my household the past week.

Binagoongan (Pork with Shrimp Paste)

Bagoong (bah-go-ong), that's the root word of Binagoongan (bee-na-go-ongan).  Bagoong is shrimp paste, but not just regular shrimps.  These are tiny, tiny shrimps we actually call "alamang" in Tagalog, that belongs to the shrimp family.  Binagoongan then is a descriptive word meaning, something was bagoong-ed, if you will.  Or something on which you put or added bagoong to.  Ok, enough of the technicalities.  Let's get down to this delicious dish.

Penne in Almond Sauce

Last week, I was in the company of very dear friends to celebrate my birthday.

Kale Salad

The Oprah Show is now gone, and what better show to replace it than the Dr. Oz Show.  Weekdays at 3:00 p.m. on ABC.  Although it's hard for me to have a "3 o'clock habit," I was able to watch the first two episodes last week, and that is where today's recipe comes from.

Crab with Chili and Coconut Milk

I love it when an experiment turns out to be good.  I love coconut milk, and yesterday I was wondering what I can make with it.  My other requirement is that I need to already have the main ingredient in the freezer, as I don't want to step out to go to the grocery.

Vegetable Sesame Noodle Stir Fry

Have you ever seen a person change right before your eyes? I have and I'm still seeing metamorphosis in this person today but not quite as rapidly. It's more of a steady change these days, for the better I would say. The person I'm referring to is Mr. VG. 

Clams with Black Bean Sauce

Put me in a Chinese restaurant in the company of seafood eaters, and more than likely I will suggest to order this dish.  This is one of my favorite seafood dishes.  There is just something about the combination of shellfish and black beans that make it so tasty.

Steamed Spareribs with Black Beans

I've been craving steamed spareribs for a while now, in fact I have the ribs in the freezer but not really had the time to experiment on this dish.  This is a popular item on most dimsum carts, and since I haven't had dimsum in about two years (or has it been three?), I think it's time for me to experiment.

Teppanyaki Fried Rice with Pork

Thursday lunch: Ham sandwiches.

That was what I had jotted down on Saturday when I had decided to try my hand at planning a whole week's menu in advance. OK, I'll admit it. I'm an impromptu grocery shopper and I can be over eager at the store, often buying more than what I can use (especially vegetables). Then I'll end up feeling guilty when I have to throw out mushy, rotting produce a week or two down the road. No longer! I'm proud to report that I've stuck to my menu like wallpaper glue (GG will appreciate this analogy - inside joke, sorry) and have so far, cooked every dish specified for that day...that is, until today.

Shrimp Pasta

I’ve been away again…not on vacation though.  I’ve been busy with some DIY (Do-it-Yourself) projects around the house.  I’m not gonna bore you with what they are specifically.  They were just tiring to say the least that I have not had the chance to cook….I know….again…for a few days.  I had enough of fast food that even though my muscles are still ache-y from my projects, I just had to cook.

Toaster Oven Mussels

I am debating on what to call this appetizer.  It is so easy that’s why I don’t want to give a fancy name.  I want it to appeal to the novice cook, even perhaps a college student sharing an apartment with his or her schoolmates with nothing more than a microwave, a few gadgets and a toaster oven.  By the time I finish writing the recipe, I will have figured out a name.  So bear with me for a sec.

Chicken Afritada

My freezer is starting to look big.  That means I am running low on supplies.  Let’s see…chicken, mussels, or squid?  I really want to make seafood, but my hubby wants chicken, so chicken it is.