I have posted a DINAKDAKAN recipe few months ago wherein, I used mayonnaise and some seasonings. When my mom read that post, she suggested me that she will make a DINAKDAKAN with dressed with real pig’s brain as long as I give the credits to her. So this time, it’s my mom’s recipe of the authentic Ilocano cuisine of DINAKDAKAN without the substitute for
pig’s brain.

DINAKDAKAN (with pig’s brain)

pig’s brain (you may ask this from your local meat vendor)

1/2 kilo pig’s ear, pig’s skin (or just simple ask the vendor any pork meat for Dinakdakan)
1 kilo slab of pork
3 cups medium white onion, peeled and chopped
1/4-1/2 cup calamansi juice
1/4 cup mayonnaise
salt
pepper
red chili peppers, chopped

Place pig’s brain in a small plastic (plastic for ice making will do). Tie the plastic soas water will not enter the plastic.

Put in a small saucepan and pour water, about 1/2 liter water.

Bring to simmer for about 10 minutes. Remove the plastic from the water and place pig’s brain on a plate.

Put pig’s ear, skin and meat on a large saucepan or pot. Add 1 liter of water. Season with salt and pepper.

Bring to boil and cook until tender, about 30-40 minutes. Remove from broth.

Grill with charcoal or with automatic griller the meats.

Chop skin, ear, meat into small pieces.

Place chopped meats in a large bowl.

Add about 2-3 tablespoon of cooked pig’s brain, mayonnaise, white onion, calamansi juice,red chili peppers, salt and pepper. Mix until well blended. Adjust flavor by adding salt or calamansi juice.

Serve.

CHICKEN CORDON BLEU

1/4 butter
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
12 slices cooked/sweetened ham
6 slices cheddar or quickmelt cheese
2 eggs
1 cup bread crumbs
salt
ground black pepper
cooking oil

Beat eggs in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside

Pound chicken breasts to flatten them. Rub chicken breasts with butter, salt and pepper.

Top each chicken breast with cheese and ham.

Roll the chicken breast from edge to edge, securing the edge with toothpicks.

Dip the rolled chicken breasts in beaten eggs until all sides are coated Then, coat with bread crumbs.

Heat cooking oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and deep-fry the chicken breast until all sides are browned. Remove from heat.

Then fry the remaining chicken rolls.

Remove the toothpicks from the fried chicken roll.

Slice according to desired slices, about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.

And serve your elegantly golden fried CHICKEN CORDON BLEU.

MEATY SPAGHETTI

Spaghetti noodles

3 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. garlic, minced
2 medium onion, minced
1/2 kilo ground beef
500 grams spaghetti sauce
200 grams tomato sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
water
salt

pepper

Cook spaghetti noodles according to its cooking instruction. Set aside.

Melt butter on a skillet.

Sauté garlic and onion.

Add beef. Saute for 5 minutes.

Add spaghetti sauce and tomato sauce. Bring to boil over medium heat.

Add water to your desired consistency.

Cook until meat is tender. Stirring constantly.

Season with salt, sugar and pepper.

Place cooked spaghetti noodles on a plate and top with meaty spaghetti sauce and cheese.

On the other hand, a complete Hotcake Mix is a ready mix for a time, money and energy saving to a perfect flipping hotcake for a satisfying breakfast or for a wholesome snack.

ZESTY HOTCAKE

1 pack of Maya Hotcake mix
1 egg
3/4 cup water (less 1 tbsp. water)
2 tbsp. oil

1 tbsp. fresh orange juice

Beat egg in a bowl. Add oil, water and hotcake mix. Add in fresh orange juice. Stir until slightly lumpy. Do not overmix.

Heat pan or flat skillet over low fire. Grease pan with a bit of oil or butter.

Pour batter according to desired size. Cook until bubbly and turn to cook the other side.

Serve hot with butter, pancake/hotcake syrup or honey or jam.

The coconut nut is a giant nut
If you eat too much, you’ll get very fat
Now, the coconut nut is a big, big nut
But its delicious nut is not a nut…
- By Smokey Mountain

Da Coconut Nut is one of the songs that remind me of childhood. And this also indicates to me that summer time is here. It had been terribly hot for the past few days and everybody wants to indulge with anything cold and refreshing. I had been pampering myself with Halo-Halo, Mais con Yelo and Ice Cream so I thought of giving my fresh and natural side a treat.

A fresh and cool BUCO (BUKO) or COCONUT is the best to beat this summer season. Operate the blender machine with coconut meat, milk, sugar and ice makes a hot to a chilly BUCO SHAKE. You can also shred the coconut meat, mix with coconut juice, add a bit of sugar and add plenty of ice is a BUCO JUICE which is one of the best selling juice. BUCO SALAD is one of my favorite salad of all time – shredded buco meat, a can of fruit cocktail, evaporated milk, all-purpose cream and diced cheese. Or simply ask the coconut vendor to remove the other shell or hush of the coconut fruit and open the top part, stick a straw and fill yourself with 100% natural drink.

Coconut or buco is not only a refreshing drink or snack but a very nutritious food and drink which is very high in fiber vitamins and minerals and gives many health benefits afar its nutritional substance and that makes it to be classified as a “Tree of Life.” So if you are thirsty this summer, you can have a healthy refreshing quench with this amazing coconut or buco.

Instead of using pig’s head, face or ears, my friend Gina, suggested that I can use pork liempo and have almost the same texture, flavor and experience. And since I have never tried buying, cleaning and cooking and even eating pig’s head, face or ears, I am assured and comfortable with the whole pork liempo. It is a quite challenge for me
though. And I will one day, try cooking some exotic foods.

PORK DINAKDAKAN

1 kilo whole slab of pork liempo

1 tsp. ginger, minced
1 cup onion, finely chpped
3-4 pieces, red chili peppers, minced (or more)
1/4 cup calamansi juice (or more)
2 tbsp. mayonnaise
powdered black pepper
iodized salt

Wash pork liempo with running water and drain.

Rub pork liempo with salt and black pepper.

Leave for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix ginger, onion, red chili peppers, mayonnaise and calamansi in a bowl. Set aside.

Grill pork liempo until well-cooked. Then, chop finely.

Pour on the mixture into chopped pork liempo.

Season with salt and pepper.

Serve!

Nope, this is not a Halloween Edition of Hungrynez’ recipe. I know that to some the picture is a yucky, deadly and scary image of chicken feet yet a yummy feast to some just like me. I like to categorize ADOBONG PAA NG MANOK (CHICKEN FEET ADOBO) as one of the exotic foods of Philippine Islands. I believe Asians are much acquainted with Chicken Feet since it is one of Asian Dimsums I find in Chinese Restaurants. And since our country has this influence of Chinese culture, chicken feet are familiar to Filipinos as we serve and eat Chicken Feet as a main dish, finger food or as a street food.

The best part of the Chicken Feet is its edible meat, yeah, it has meat! Its skin and tendon with its gelatinous texture gives a different yet excellent experience far out of the usual chicken meat we usually eat. Chicken feet can be fried, steamed, boiled, stewed, grilled but the best recipe for me is to cook them just as the Philippine’s National Dish, Adobo – cooking Chicken Feet with soy, vinegar, whole peppers, sugar and bay leaves. Scared or dared? You better try some!

ADOBONG PAA NG MANOK (CHICKEN FEET ADOBO)

1 kilo chicken feet
3 heads garlic, peeled and chopped
1 large onion, peeled and quartered
1 tbsp. ginger, peeled and minced
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp. black pepper
1/4 cup vinegar
3 pieces bay leaves (laurel)
salt
optional: red chili peppers (minced)

Wash chicken feet thoroughly. Drain.

Rub chicken feet with salt and chop off nails.

Wash with running water. Drain.

Place chicken feet, garlic, onion, ginger, soy sauce, pepper, water, sugar and bay leaves in a pot. Bring to boil and lessen heat.

Simmer for 40-50 minutes until chicken feet are cooked through and tender.

Season with salt and vinegar.

Add water or sugar according to taste.

Add red chili peppers and cook until sauce thickens.

Serve as a finger food or serve with rice as a main dish.

I took a break for a while from baking. It is quite hard for me with my big belly to go around the kitchen, reach for baking utensils in our cabinets, bend on my knees if I dropped something and whew, I find it very warm for my tummy each time I bake. I was grateful Royce was at home last weekend and helped me bake some goodies again. I guess he misses my baking.

I had a couple of apples waiting in our fridge so I gave APPLE CINNAMON MUFFIN a shot. I am not really a big fan of apples but with the APPLE CINNAMON MUFFIN recipe that I experimented with, I am now an apple aficionada. I just ran out of nuts so if you will try this recipe, don’t forget to shower the batter with chopped almonds or walnuts for the ccrruunnccchhh! And instead of chopping the apples, I grated them creating a wonderful moist bread.

APPLE and CINNAMON truly are perfect pair. Not only fills our house with the fresh and fruity scent of APPLE and CINNAMON, but fills the big tummy of my two boys.

APPLE CINNAMON MUFFIN

2 cups grated apples
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
chopped nuts or raisins

Sift flour, cinnamon, baking powder, allspice and salt together. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy on medium speed of electric mixer.

Add eggs and mix on medium speed until smooth.

Add buttermilk and vanilla.

Add flour mixture. Mix until well blended.

Fold in the grated apples.

Scoop into muffin pans.

Top with chopped nuts or raisins.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 325 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Anyway, desserts and sweets are my best part of the meal. They make lunches and dinners truly enjoyable. My eyes as well as my taste buds enjoy the variety of colors, shapes, sweetness and tang of fruits, sweet breads, chocolates, puddings, candies, gelatins, and many more.

My favorite desserts are those which are with noodle or pasta. Pasta suggests a large variety of opportunity as main dish, side dish and as a dessert. Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme becomes an ultimate alternative substitute to a satisfying snack, an invigorating appetizer or a complement to a well-prepare meal. Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme is just one of the most well-known pasta salads in the country.

Just a couple of reminders I learned from my mother in preparing Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme. One, cook ingredients must be completely cooled before mixing the mayonnaise. And, Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme should be kept chilled at all times as mayonnaise-based salad are ideal breading ground for bacteria that might cause poisoning.

CHICKEN MACARONI SALAD SUPREME

250 grams Elbow or Salad Macaroni
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
250 grams chicken breast, skin removed
1/2 cup white onions, peeled and minced
1/2 cheddar cheese, cubed
1 cup pineapple tidbits, drained
2 tbsp. sweet pickle relish, drained
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
8 cups water
salt
ground white pepper
cooking oil

Boil 6 cups water in a saucepan. Add salt and cooking oil.
Add macaroni to boiling water. Cook uncovered 9 – 10 minutes, stirring once in a while to prevent pasta from sticking from the bottom of the pan. Do not overcook.

Drain cooked pasta in a colander and immediately place under running water. Drain well. Let it cool and transfer to a mixing or salad bowl. Set aside.

Wash off any soil or dirt from carrot and place in a small saucepan with 2 cups of water. Place chicken breast in the saucepan with the carrot. Bring to a boil, then lower temperature to simmering. Simmer until chicken and carrot are cooked.

If cooked, remove from fire and drain. Peel of skin from carrot using fingers and finely chop carrots. Place cooked chicken breast on a plate and shreed chicken meat, separating meat from bones.

Add carrots and chicken to macaroni.

Add onions, cheese, pineapple tidbits and pickle relish to a bowl.

Season with salt, ground white pepper and sugar.

Add mayonnaise and carefully mix all ingredients together. Be careful no to crush the macaroni.

Refrigerate your Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme to 2-3 hours before serving.

Last night, I prepared Creamy Gelatin Medley from the extra sachets I made from Fruity Gelatin Layers few months ago. I added a little condensed milk and cream to go along with the gelatin flavors. Gladly I was when Colby almost eat most of the Creamy Gelatin Medley I prepared.

CREAMY GELATIN MEDLEY (Gulaman)

1/2 cup condensed milk
1/1 cup cream
1 box of green unflavored gelatin (gulaman)
1 box of yellow unflavored gelatin (gulaman)
1 cup of sugar, divided into 2
pandan extract for green gelatin
lemon essence for yellow gelatin

Dissolve the green gelatin and cook according to its directions. Add pandan extract and 1/2 cup sugar. Pour in a mold and refrigerate until set (about 10-20 minutes).

Then cook another box, add the lemon essence and sugar. Pour over in another mold and chill until set.

Slice into cubes. Add condensed milk and cream.

Chill for one hour and enjoy!