josie's kitchen

The package meal from KFC. This was what we have for lunch when went out to claim the long-overdue premium of the  Educational Plan for my children.

For me:  consists of 1 pc fried chicken breast, rice, mashed potato with gravy, Alfredo pasta, soda and brownie.

For hubby: fried rice, fried chicken, pork barbecue, mashed potato w/ gravy, soda and cookie. I wasn’t able to take picture before he gobbled up his coz he was too hungry to wait, after all it was already 1 pm.

Cost – Php 159.00 for  each meal or Php 318.00 ($7) all in all, fair enough.

I’m not a big eater, I was already full with the rice, chicken, mash potato and soda, and was only able to eat 1/3 of the pasta, so hubby finished the rest. Even when we got home I didn’t eat dinner coz I still felt full.

I told you hubby loves barbecue, here’s another one

Same ingredients for the marinade, also done on his improvised barbecue  grill/oven. This part is also on the rib section of the pork but here it’s pure meat and the bone was removed. It took him 2 hrs. to cook this meat and came out tender and juicy also.

Hubby loves to make BBQ, he made an improvised oven. It’s a small cabinet but inside there is a grill where you can place the meat and under the grill is an iron tray where the charcoal will be placed and lighted to barbecue the meat.

Here is one of his creations

Ribs (whole)

marinade:

• 1 cup sprite
• soysauce
• minced garlic
• ground pepper
• calamansi juice
• catchup

He marinated the meat for at least two hours and placed in the refrigerator and then barbecued in medium charcoal heat. He brushed it with the marinade every once in a while on the grill.  The meat came out tender and juicy except for a little burned part.

A little respite from cooking meals, I invite you to drool on these lovely cakes

Black Forest from Goldilocks

Choco Roll

Most of our cakes came from Goldilocks because it is nearer in our place, we also love Red Ribbon cakes, they are both delicioso.

Chicken is the most diverse when it comes to cooking recipes.  So many things you can do with it, fried, barbecue, as soup, or with sauce.

For Chicken Afritada:

• 1 kilo chicken chopped into pieces
• 3 cups potatoes cut into cubes
• 1 cup carrots cut into cubes
• 1 bell pepper cut into strips
• 1 med. onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup milk or all-purpose cream

**********

• Saute garlic, onion, bell pepper and chicken.
• Add 2 to 3 cups water, cover and simmer until chicken is tender.
• When chicken is tender add potatoes, then carrots continue cooking.
• When potatoes and carrots  are done, add milk or cream, simmer while stirring occasionally until the sauce become creamy.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Variation:  Tomato sauce can be used as substitute to milk or cream.

Why is it that most of the clothes displayed at the shopping malls are size 1? Yes I know that they cater most for young people, but why not consider adding the other sizes too to make it universal? Sometimes it took me hours to find clothes fit for my size. If  I still possess my 26 inch-waist body size, no problem. I can just grab any design I love,  go straight to the payment counter and go home, as easy as that. But no, my former 26-inch went to 32, (sob) so sometimes it took me hours hunting for clothes that will fit my size. Or went home tired and disappointed.

Good thing there are online clothing stores from Shopwiki that provide the complete sets of women’s  wardrobe of all sizes. From plus-sized to petite. From regular to Designers’ Item. From sexy to maternity dresses.  All I have to do is choose the design, order the items, and it will be delivered to me with no hassles. No more shop-hopping or dieting just to get a dress that will fit

During Summer which started on March up to June fruits like mangoes, pineapple, banana, water melon and honeydew melon are all at their sweetest and cheapest season. Mangoes and pineapples are available all-year long but not as sweet and delicious during the summer season and quite expensive too.

Because these fruits flooded the market, some vendors will go house to house to sell their products. It’s a common sight when you see carts full of different fruits roaming the streets even in private residential areas.

Now that rainy season sets in and the fruits were not as sweet as before, it’s time to do some cooking.

Here’s the peeled pineapple which I cut into bite size, this was about 1 kilo. I first boiled 2 cups white sugar in 2 cups of water to make a syrup. Then when sugar was dissolve, I added the pineapple pieces and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or when pineapple changed into soft color.

So there it is even if it’s not summer anymore I can still enjoy this delicious fruit without the sour taste. Sweet and crunchy. Best serve cold as dessert and the juice for refreshment by adding ice into it.

Sunday and Monday were spent cleaning our little store, we have closed it already because it’s not earning anymore, this was my first venture in earning extra income and was doing very good on it’s first 12 or so years, but the falling economy caught up with it. Even if it is hard for me to close it, I have no choice coz it’s eating up my time and as I said not earning that much anymore. I didn’t know it had accumulated so many stuff and trash. We already thrown all the junks and garbage. Now the only thing left are the big stuff and other materials which we are planning to sell, for the meantime we need a big and durable storage place for them like Duramax Vinyl Storage Sheds until we find buyers to disposed all of them.

This is my hubby’s specialty. When we had our eatery business a few years ago, this was one of the sought after menu besides his Bulalo and Papaitan recipe. The duck meat came from his hometown in Pasig, very near to Taguig where duck raising and balut producing business is the primary source of livelihood in the province. One whole duck can be bought from Php 125-150 ($3 -4) depending on the size.

Ingredients:

• 2-2.5 kilos duck meat
• 1 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup calamansi 0r lemon juice
• 3 cloves or  garlic minced
• 2 med. size onion chopped
• 1 bell pepper cut into strips
• 3 small hot chili (siling labuyo)  (Optional or depending on the spiciness preferred)
• 300 gms. tomato sauce
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp. ground or powdered black pepper
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• salt if needed

• Marinade the duck in soy sauce and calamansi juice for at least 30 minutes. Meat tenderizer was also added.
• Drain and set aside the marinade.
• Saute the duck meat in garlic, onion and bell pepper.
• Add the marinade and let simmer for 2 hrs. or until the meat is tender or at least one hour in the pressure cooker.
• When meat is tender add tomato sauce, hot chili,  bay leaf, and pepper. Continue cooking until the sauce became creamy.
• Add a little sugar and season with salt if needed.

Note: Duck meat is tougher than chicken and contain more fats or cholesterol, but tastier. I suggest to remove extra fat before serving. In this recipe he was able to remove 1 cup of oil or fat.

Variation:  Use sprite or seven-up and don’t add anymore sugar. You can add coconut milk to make it creamier, though spoilage can occur shortly if not heated or refrigerated.

Happy Eating!

Going on a road trip? If you are planning to visit different places using your SUV or RV always make sure that all the details are carefully planned. Take all the necessary precautions and think of any or all incidents that may occur while you are the road. As any traveler need whether on land, air or sea, emergency kits must be handy and so are repair tools for your vehicle. Since it’s a long journey having a roadside assistance plan is very useful and practical to spare you of any worries when some unexpected events happen. With just one call to your provider you will get the help you need. This way you can enjoy your trip to the max.