I do not consider myself to be a good cook - but I know how to work my way around the kitchen. Since I entered college, I have learned to cook for my siblings since my mom isn't always there to cook for us. Her job responsibilities included frequent travels to different places all over the country and abroad so we are mostly left to fend for ourselves. Then, when she and my dad separated, she still comes to visit once a week to cook up a storm and we are left with a week's supply of food which we just reheat come dinnertime. But during moments when our supply runs out, I remember poring over recipe books and following the procedures step by step until I am able to whip up something that my younger sisters and brother find palatable (well, their plates end up clean...unless, of course they feed it to the dogs when I am not looking)
But I could never be like the cooks I see on tv coz no matter how hard I try, I simply can't seem to memorize the ingredients needed for a dish. Unlike my mom, a typical Kapampangan who can cook without measuring ingredients - I always seem to need a recipe on hand, to make sure I'm doing things right. And what's more, there are even cases when even if I follow the recipe, I still do not manage to cook the same dish and have it turn out the same way.
Which is why, this year I have made it a personal vow to not cook the same dish twice lest my family discover that I am not really a whiz in the kitchen but merely a pretender!!! (ha,ha,ha) No, what I really want is to document a little what I have been doing so that I will know where I went wrong and what went right... Further, I intend to learn more secrets from cooking experts which is why I have started surfing the net more frequently just to find some recipes to cook for my ever-demanding kids.
This is partly the reason why I discovered blogging - once while I was searching for recipes I stumbled on Sassy's pinoy food blog and then I started browsing other blogsites and the rest is history... Thus, I owe a debt of gratitude to Ms. Connie Veneracion since it is through her that I am able to discover so many recipes to try and they all come with a step by step guide to make it easier for us kitchen newbies to follow. In addition, it is also through Connie that I discovered the joy of blogging which in turn inspired me to create my own blog. Though mine is not dedicated to cooking (unlike hers!) I still want to post some of my (mis) adventures in the kitchen.
But mind you, I will not be posting recipes here ... maybe I'll just refer you to where I got them. Instead, I will just be putting in some pictures of what I did and descriptions of how I did it... maybe a few tips on what not to do, especially if my meal turned out a disaster... (he,he,he)
So, here's a glimpse of my first kitchen adventure....
TUNA HASH BROWNS
Last year, when I embarked on the Southbeach diet I learned that potatoes are not really good for the body since it has more starch/carbo than the sweet potato. But I love fries and mashed potatoes so when I stopped doing the Southbeach diet... (coz it was a bit too strict for me!) I returned to eating potatoes with a vengeance but I decided to lessen the carb content of what I was eating so I always put half and half of the potato/sweet potato even if the recipe called for potatoes. That way, I will not be sacrificing flavor since the end product will still taste and feel like potatoes and I guess the carb content will also be reduced considerably. (just a guess though, no scientific basis for this yet...)
I saw this recipe in a newspaper, and it seemed quite easy for me since it will not require much cooking - all that is needed is about 3 cups of grated potatoes (in my case I used 1 1/2 cups each of potato and sweet potato or camote), a can of tuna, a pack of tomato sauce, eggs, salt and pepper to taste. You just mix them all together, transfer to a heat-proof or baking dish, top with grated cheese and bake for about 20 - 30 minutes, or until the top turns golden.
Well, I wasn't sure if the finished product was what the recipe actually intended it to be but mine looked like some form of lasagna. My original concept of a hash brown were the flat pancake-like pieces that McDonald's sells during breakfast but mine didn't turn out that way. I guess it was because the hash brown was fried instead of baked so it looked more a lasagna/baked mac to me... nonetheless, my kids and hubby loved it... I guess that's what matters most to me!
BANANA MUFFINS
This is another recipe I got from the newspaper... I just couldn't remember where??? It's the usual recipe for a muffin - You need to mix all the dry ingredients first - flour, sugar, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Make a well in the center where you will slowly add the wet ingredients - oil, milk an egg and vanilla. Then you add 2-3 pcs mashed bananas. Stir everything with a wooden spoon and transfer to muffin cups up to 2/3 full and bake in the oven for 18-22 minutes.
Well, the recipe turned out fine and the kids loved the muffins... the sad part though was that the batch I made only filled 1 muffin pan and a small loaf pan so my plans to reserve some for my kids baon went unfulfilled since they all gobbled up the muffin for snacks, while the hubby and me ate some with our afternoon coffee... just perfect!
