SPAGHETTI WITH ASPARAGUS AND MUSHROOMS

1/2 cup olive oil

8 cloves garlic, sliced

4 small tomatoes, seeded and chopped

4 shitake mushrooms, chopped (if dried, soak first)

1 bunch of asparagus, cut into cm-thick pcs and blanched

Peel from 1 lemon, chopped

1 big bunch of basil, chopped

1/2 cup cream cheese, cubed

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 handful of cilantro, chopped

Salt and pepper

1 450g spaghetti noodles

1. Cook the spaghetti according to package instructions until al dente. Once cooked, set aside atleast 1 cup of cokoing water.

2. In a saute pan, heat olive oil.  Add garlic and seat until soft and tender.  Add tomatoes and mushrooms and simmer for approximately 3-5 mins. Add asparagus, lemon peel and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer.

3.  Add spaghetti and toss together. Remove from heat.

4.  Add cream cheese, lemon and cilantro. Toss through and serve immediately.

The big 3 - 0

I like having weekend birthdays because I get to somewhat celebrate it for almost 3 days. So the following is just the food adventures I had courtesy of this annual event.

Chili Cheese Logs of Offbeat Cafe

Friday night, my actual bday, my mum had class that was until 9pm and I usually wait for her.  On any other day, we would have gone straight home to have dinner, but this being my bday, we decided to eat out. We eventually ended up in The Collective, at the Offbeat Cafe.  Well, the interiors were fine with their steel chairs and sofas, a little dark but I guess that's what they were aiming for and it was night after all.  They had an open kitchen with good exhaust system because despite what we ordered I didn't feel like we were wearing our food.  There were a selection of games and books that patrons were free to use.  The menu was written on a  blackboard on top of the bar but there were also several laminated menu cards.  I did like one particular piece which was the green bottle light fixture.  The staff was accommodating enough and quick in serving us. Now to the food. I ordered the ribeye steak and my mum the t-bone steak, and the chili cheese logs as an appetizer.  The chili cheese logs were fast enough and good freshly cooked.  The chili seemed straight from a can and zapped in the microwave (actually saw it with my own eyes)  with processed cheese used as a stuffing for the logs.  I don't mind the use of processed cheese, but you really have to eat as soon as possible because it becomes cold fast and if at first it was just palatable, cold it becomes a chore to finish. But the real travesty was the steaks. I was so in shock that I wasn't even able to take a picture. The ribeye was 1/4 inch thick and the size of my palm, and the t-bone was just a little bigger in size but the same thickness. Funny that I even specified that I wanted it medium rare since not only did they cook it for a LONG time but its thinness made cooking preference irrelevant. They were both served with heavily buttered garlic rice and a tablespoon of vegetables consisting of jullienned carrots, chayote and green beans.  My mum and I couldn't get out fast enough. Oh well. They aren't known for the steaks in the first place, but for the donut burger. Lesson learned. 

Baja Querida Mia of Army Navy

So after dinner, my mum still wanted to nosh, good thing we had an Army Navy near us. She had the Tortilla soup and I had a new menu item - the querida mia, which is like their version of pizza but made with tortilla. There are 4 varieties, cheese, baja, baja chicken and meat. I had the baja which is the veggie option, consisting of green bell pepper, onion and jalapeno. I quite enjoyed it, but must also be eaten freshly cooked to savor the crispness of the tortilla bottom and the ooziness of the cheese. I asked for hot sauce but didn't have to add any because the jalapeno peppers added sufficient heat. I paired this with a chocolate milkshake, which was almost like slightly melted ice cream, yum yum. Thinking about it, and I want some more.

Aomori Cafe facade with its gold and
purple chairs and dry-goods products

The next day, we had dinner out to officially celebrate my birthday. We had dinner in Aomori Japanese Cafe in Greenhills. It slightly reminded me as an in-between of Ji-Pan and UCC.  It had Japanese dry goods such as chips, coffee, and china.  The tea cups were darling to look at, real English tea ware, but costing P1000 plus for a pair of cup and saucer.  There's also a bakery and patisserie, with a variety of french macarons. The seats were super comfortable and furbished in either gold or purple faux-velvet. Choose the purple because  of its arm rests and feel like royalty, haha. The menu isn't that extensive but they have the usual pasta, salad, rice dishes and sandwiches. Something that's not so common are their waffles. Unfortunately, the food takes a long time to come, with each dish literally being brought out one by one. The longest took around 30 minutes, and it just had to be my grandmother's waffles. She was almost ready to cancel her order, good thing it arrived in time. I guess that's why they serve complementary bread with (get this) coffee butter. 

Selection of bread with Coffee Butter

I think they're trying to go the healthy route because their selection of bread consisted of wheat and grains. The coffee butter wasn't particularly strong, bitter or sweet. You wouldn't really realize what you were eating if you weren't looking for it. 

Beef Yakiniku Sandwich

I ordered the Beef Yakiniku sandwich which was marinated beef strips in yakiniku sauce, served on a rye bread roll with scrambled eggs, sauteed onions, mayo, tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce, with fries on the side. Its quite a substantial meal despite there not being that much meat, but each slice does have beef.  The scrambled eggs were wonderously creamy and the fries a tad salty and seemed pre-processed. Altogether, a filling sandwich and something I didn't regret ordering, but if given the chance to eat here again, I'd opt to order something else because there are other interesting options. 

Porkchop with Salsa and Multi-Grain Rice

My mother had the pork chop with salsa and multi-grain rice. The grilled pork chop was thick and served with a mango salsa which complemented it well. The multi-grain rice was distinctly nutty in flavor and extremely filling. My grandmother had the bacon and ham waffle set which consisted of 2 waffles, 1 pc of ham, 2 pcs of bacon, salad, and 2 eggs which she had scrambled. There was also the coffee butter, waffle syrup and chocolate syrup.  The waffle was cooked to order and very dense but crisp. Unfortunately, it cooled quickly. The salad had a pesto dressing and topped with nuts. In the menu, it mentioned option for the butter aside from the coffee, such as nutty butter, berry, etc, but we weren't given any option. If we go there next time, I'd like to try some of their other butters. Also, if this was really a set, it should have included a drink option.

Bacon and Ham Waffle Set

Bible Bread

From left to right, Sesame Macaron
and Oreo Macaron

To cap our meal, we tried 2 of their bestselling macarons - the sesame and oreo. I was prepared to like the latter over the former but I ended up liking the sesame more. Truth be told, this is my first time to try a macaron so I wasn't sure what to expect. The oreo had a very chewy interior, and the chocolate was intense but not sweet at all. The sesame reminded me of hopia, but the reason I enjoyed it was because of its crispier exterior and the whole sesame seeds that gave textural difference. The staff were very welcoming and were always at hand. They even have containers for the bags so that you don't have to put it on the chairs; however, if there were a lot of people in the little restaurant, it could prove to be crowded and difficult to maneuver around. There was also several promos ongoing for the bakery, and we availed of the buy-1-take-1 Bible Bread, so called because the wheat used to make the bread was gleamed from the bible. All in all, I enjoyed the food, except for the long wait for the food.

Deep Temptation for Cold Layers

Afterwards, we had dessert at Cold Layers which touts a healthier alternative to ice cream with just 1/3 of the calories. Its literally flavored shaved ice with your choice of toppings. We shared the Deep Temptation that consists of chocolate shaved ice, banana slices, chocolate pudding as a base, and topped with mini marshmallows and chocolate syrup. I wasn't sure how I was going to like this but I surprisingly enjoyed it. Since its just ice, its lighter but there was still a great chocolate taste and feel to it. Despite being made of ice, there wasn't a grainy texture. The only drawback was the marshmallows. I would have enjoyed it more if it had nuts. Still, enjoyable as a whole.

Baked Rigatoni with garlic bread

 Sunday night, my mum made individual baked rigatoni with garlic bread, after which we had the Ultimate Chocolate cake from Red RIbbon. It was a great way to end a birthday weekend. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME and until next year.

Ultimate Chocolate Cake from Red Ribbon

SPICY SHRIMP PASTA WITH BLACK OLIVES AND CAPERS

LEFT CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT, sliced garlic, chopped onion,
sliced black olives, chopped capers, basil; RIGHT, shelled and deveined shrimp

Remove the shell and devein shrimp. Set aside. Heat a large skillet and add approximately 1/2 cup olive oil. Add 1 small onion chopped and 6 large cloves of garlic thinly sliced. Heat over a medium flame until soft. Add 1/2 tsp chili flakes (heat intensity is up to you; add as little or as much as you want). Heat till fragrant and add 2 tbsp tomato paste. Saute for a few seconds and add 1/4 cup roughly chopped capers and 1/3 cup sliced black olives. Drop in shrimp and cook until pink. Flambe with 1/3 cup brandy. Season with salt and pepper. In the meantime, cook spaghetti according to package instructions. Once cooked, add to pasta sauce and toss together. Add pasta water if needed to moisten. Season with salt and pepper. Add a handful of chiffonade basil. Finish with the juice of 1 lemon and a splash of extra virgin olive oil. Serve immediately.

MOTHER'S DAY DINNER

it began with one ingredient - asparagus. and i remembered that i've been craving for fish in a lemon butter sauce with capers.... so viola! it also helps that it's my sister's birthday the next day and fish, pasta, capers and olives are her favorites :)

Fish in lemon butter sauce with capers and asparagus

Drench fish fillets in seasoned flour (salt and pepper).  Heat pan with oil and butter and pan-fry fish until golden brown. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.  Transfer to a serving platter. Par-boil asparagus spears and arrange aound fish.  In same pan, de-glaze with 1/4 cup white wine and simmer until alcohol has evaporated.  Add 2 tbsp capers and 1 tbsp garlic. Saute for 1 minute, or until fragrant.  Add the juice of 1 whole lemon.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add 2-3 tbsp butter and swish around pan until sauce becomes creamy.  Pour over fish and asparagus.  Serve immediately.

Pasta with tomato oil and olives


In a pan, heat 1/2 cup olive oil.  Add 1 tbsp chopped garlic, 1 tbsp chili oil or 1/2 tsp chili flakes, and 2 tbsp chopped capers.  Saute for 2 minutes.  Add 2 tbsp tomato paste.  Saute for 1 minute.  Deglaze with red wine and evaporate alcohol.  Add olives.  Let simmer.  Meanwhile, cook pasta (spaghetti in this case) according to package instructions.  Once cooked, add noodles to sauce.  Add pasta water to loosen sauce if needed.  Add chopped basil.  Taste for seasoning.  Serve immediately!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY, MUM!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LITTLE SISTER!!!