Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura

My daughter and I have been craving for tempura for days now. She suggested we try to make it ourselves to make it more fun. I'm all for it because you know me, I love to experiment. It turned out good and we were satisfied. We had tempura for lunch and dinner. And since we loved it so much, we are planning to have tempura at least once a week now. Will we get tired of it? We'll find out in a few weeks!!

So I googled different recipes for tempura batter. There is a lot of versions out there. But I will be using the one similar to my onion ring batter. One thing I noticed though, it gets soggy after an hour, so it is best to eat it right away after cooking. For our leftover that we ate for dinner, i warmed it up on toaster oven to make it hot and crispy again.

And by the way, some good news my beloved readers. I finally have my own YouTube channel. This is so exciting. This way you will be able to see the videos on how I cook all those recipes I experimented on. Please visit me at my channel below. Cristina Kitchen

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtftGG0cWO9bWipFlsQ_H7g

Here is my own version of shrimp and vegetable tempura

Batter:

1     cup      all purpose flour, sifted

1     pc        egg

1     cup      ice cold water

1     tsp       baking soda

2    pcs      carrots,  peeled, cut in half then quartered

1    cup      brocolli

1/2  lb       shrimp, deveined and shell removed

1/2  cup    cucumber, cut into 3" long

1/2   cup   green beans, cut int0 3" long

Dipping Sauce

1    cup    water

1   tbsp     soy sauce

1   tbsp     vinegar

1   tbsp     brown sugar

1   tsp       minced ginger

3 cups vegetable oil for deep frying

Procedure:

You can choose what vegetable to use. We just used carrots, green beans, brocolli and cucumber because those are what I have. Sweet potato, cauliflower, onion and spinach may be used to if you prefer them.

Wash and prepare the shrimp and vegetables. They should be like juliened shaped although its 3" long. Set aside.

Batter

Sift the flour. Set aside. Beat the egg in a bowl, add in the cold water, beat then slowly add the flour and baking soda. Set aside

In a deep pot, add the vegetable oil for frying.

Dip the vegetables in the batter then deep fry for a few minutes or until golden brown.

Dipping sauce

This is my own version of dipping sauce. We loved it so I will be using this recipe for my my tempura.

Mix all the ingredients for dipping sauce in a small pot. Let boil for 5 minutes. Set aside.

Serve the tempura with dipping sauce and steamed rice.

Don't forget to visit me on my YouTube channel. Hit the like button and subscribe!!

Diaper Cake

I had a few days to come up with a diaper cake for an upcoming baby shower we were invited to and I was panicking. I may be creative in food but was never crafty. I didn't know what to do. I was thinking, will anybody accept a last minute order? But I might have problems and so I decided I will just make it myself. My daughter encouraged me and volunteered to help me out. We watched some YouTube videos on how to make diaper cakes and thought, well, this might be easy.

I spent two days buying all the "ingredients" and went to several stores. I would need anything Minnie Mouse. I end up getting almost all the stuff I need at Walmart. When I searched diaper cakes on Facebook Marketplace, I was surprised how expensive they are. But adding all that I bought, I was shocked that they really cost a lot and the prices in Marketplace were actually reasonable.

I'm not claiming that I came up with a square diaper cake. I have seen the style on YouTube. Common diaper cakes are the round ones, usually three layers, but I like the square ones better. What I can claim is that, I designed the cake myself, with the tremendous help of my daughter, of course. 

So here is the "recipe" for my square Minnie Mouse diaper cake.

Ingredients

1     box      Walmart diaper #1 (160pcs) or 

3    packs    Walmart diaper #1 50 pcs each pack

1    pc          Minnie Mouse stuff toy, small

1   pack       wood dowel

1   pc           red gift wrapper

1   pc          board, or any carboard box you can use as base

1   pc          pink polka dot silk ribbons

1   pc          black silk ribbons

1   pc          Minnie Mouse pacifier

1   pc          Minnie Mouse magic towel

1   pc          Minnie Mouse art kit

1   pack       scotch tape

1   pack      rubber bands

pink plastic flowers

pair of scissors

Procedure

Cover your cardboard base with red gift wrapper. Set aside

First layer of cake - you will need 75 pieces diapers, 5 pieces per group with rubber bands. 5 groups per column, to come up with 3 columns of diaper that is shaped like a square.  Wrap each column vertically with black silk ribbons. Then wrap the whole three columns horizontally with pink polka dot ribbons. Place on the cake base, securing it with scotch tape at the bottom.

Second layer - you will need 40 pieces diapers, 4 pieces per group with rubber bands, two columns with 5 groups each column. Wrap each column vertically with black silk ribbons. Then wrap the whole layer horizontally with pink polka dot silk ribbons. Place on top of the first layer.

Third layer - you will need 24 pieces of diapers, 6 pieces diaper per group with rubber bands, 2 columns with 2 groups each column. Wrap each column vertically with black silk ribbons. Then wrap the whole layer horizontally with pink polka dot silk ribbons. Place on top of the second layer.

Fourth layer - you will need only 10 pieces of diapers, I made it 11 to make an even 150 pieces of diapers all together. 5 pieces of diaper per group with rubber bands. 2 groups in one column. Wrap the column with black silk rubber bands vertically. Then wrap horizontally with pink polka dot silk ribbons. Place on top of the third layer.  

Secure the four layers with wood dowels, place in between the diapers. 

Place Minnie Mouse stuff toy on top of fourth layer. tape it then secure with wood dowel at the back.

Place pacifiers, magic towel and art kit in between the pink polka dot silk ribbons.

Place some pink flowers for more decorations. I also made some bowties out of the black silk ribbons left overs.

Hopefully the mom-to-be will like my first diaper cake!

Adobong Pusit

I haven't posted in a while and there is no excuse. I set aside my love for writing and that is something I never thought I would do again. But anyway,  I'm back and that is all that matters.

Today , I went to a local market and found some squid on sale. It usually is very expensive so I'm quite surprised it was cheaper than usual. It's been months since I cooked this dish and I am excited to share the recipe with you. I usually make chicken adobo, but then I get tired of eating it all the time. So today when I saw the cheap frozen squid, I couldn't resist but buy it and make adobong pusit.

Adobo, as we all know, is a very popular authentic Filipino dish. It is one of the dishes shared with non-Filipinos and they all liked it. In fact, Giada de Laurentiis cooked chicken adobo in her show years ago. I liked her more after that. Different meat can be used for adobo. Pork, chicken, beef, squid and other seafood and even vegetables are made into adobo. It is a dish that can last for days. In fact, some people like their adobo a day after it was cooked.

Below is my version of adobong pusit. 

Ingredients

2         lbs         squid, cleaned

2         pcs        plum tomatoes, diced

1         pc         onion, chopped

2         cloves   garlic, minced

1/4     cup        soy sauce

1/4     cup        vinegar

1/2     cup        water

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

In a saucepan, sautè onion and garlic. When the onion is translucent and the garlic brown, add tomatoes.

Sautè for another 2 minutes. Add the squid. Cook for another 2 minutes.  

Add soy sauce, vinegar and water. Salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until squid is tender.

Serve with rice.

Turkey Meatloaf

I try to make my daily menu for a few days so I don't have to think about what to cook when I'm busy and only have limited time to prepare dinner after work. I always ask my daughter to help me with meal planning so she can eat meals that she lives. She has requested for this dish a few days ago. And I said I will do some groceries today and will be getting ingredients for this dish.

Meatloaf is a dish composed of minced or ground meat with minced vegetables and a binder, usually egg and flour or breadcrumbs. It's origin is in western and northern Europe particularly Germany, Belgium and Scandinavian countries (Norway, Denmark and Sweden). Countries all over the world have their own version of the meatloaf. In Philippines, we call it embotido. In the US, it is baked with tomato sauce on top to form a crust when baking. It is often eaten with mashed potato and gravy or cream of mushroom.

I usually steam my embotido (meatloaf), but to be different and to achieve the crust on top, I opted to bake it instead. And since I stay away from pork, which is usually the main ingredient in meatloaf, I substituted it with ground turkey. I have used ground turkey several times in my embotido recipe and so far there were no complaints that the taste is different.

So my recipe for turkey meatloaf is almost the same as my embotido recipe.

Ingredients

1          lb           ground turkey
1          pc           onion, chopped
1          cup         cheese
1/2       cup         flour
2          pcs          hard boiled eggs, cut into wedges
1          pc           egg
1/2       cup         sweet relish
1          cup         dried cranberries or raisins
1/2      cup          tomato sauce
1         pc            carrot, finely chopped
1         tsp           salt
1         tsp           pepper
butter to coat the baking pan

Procedure

In a bowl, combine all ingredients except for boiled eggs and butter. Refrigerate for a few hours.

Pre heat oven to 350 °F.

Coat the pan with butter, add half of the meatloaf.

Layer the boiled eggs evenly, then add the rest of the meatloaf.  For crust, add tomato sauce on top.

Bake for 50 minutes.

Serve with mashed potato and gravy.

Ginataang Gulay (Sauteed Vegetables in Coconut Milk)

I have been cooking this dish for years. Some of you know that I eat mostly vegetables. I am not a vegetarian. I still eat chicken, fish, seafood, egg and milk. Perhaps you could say I'm semi-vegetarian. But when people ask me why I stay away from beef and pork and other meat, I just say, I try to eat healthy by eating more vegetables and less meat.

One vegetables that I wasn't really fond of growing up is okra ( aside from ampalaya). I don't know, I wasn't really into it. Perhaps because it becomes "slimy" when cooked. But eating okra has a lit of benefits. It is Rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals. It is also said that it promotes good heart health and can fight against cancer.

Funny thing is, my daughter would only eat okra if I cook it with other vegetables in Coconut milk. So I make sure I cook this as often as I can.

Here is my receipt for Ginataang Gulay

Ingredients

2       cups   okra
2       cups   green beans, cut in half
1       cup     ampalaya, cut diagonally
1       cup     kalabasa, cut into cubes
1        lb       shrimp
1        pc       tomato, diced
1        pc        onion, chopped
2        cloves garlic, minced
1         tbsp    fish sauce
1         tbsp    ground pepper
1          tsp     chili powder
Vegetable oil

Procedure

In a saucepan, saute garlic, onion and tomatoes.

Add shrimp, saute for a few minutes.

Add all the vegetables. Cook for 20 minutes.

Add coconut milk, fish sauce and pepper. Simmer for another 5minutes.

Serve with rice.

Lentil Soup (Ginisang Lentil)

For so long now I have been thinking of substituting lentil whenever I cook "ginisang mungo" or mung bean soup. Never had a chance until now but it was always at the back of my head, So finally today I was able to do it. And it turned out good, I feel like there was little difference. Maybe because they are both legumes.

Lentils and mung beans are both healthy and nutritious. They are typically low in fat, high in minerals like potassium and magnesium and both are also high in fiber. Lentils are actually more nutritious than quinoa because it has more amount of protein and fiber. It is know that lentils are beneficial for your health, especially heart health. It can be a substitute for meat when it comes to protein content for vegetarians.

So the recipe for my ginisang lentils is almost the sane as your typical ginisang mungo, but with a little twist. Below is my recipe

Ingredients

2         cups        lentils
1         pc            onion, chopped
1         pc            tomato, chopped
2         cloves     garlic, minced
6         cups        water
1          tsp          ground coriander
1         tsp          chili powder
1         tbsp         fish sauce
1         tbsp         ground pepper
2         cups        spinach
2         tbsp         vegetable oil

Procedure

Unlike mung beans, lentils doesn't need to be soaked for a few hours before cooking. It typically cooked within 30 minutes. Lentils are to be washed only before cooking.

In a pot, saute garlic and onion. Add in tomato. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the lentils.Saute for a few minutes.

Add the water, fish sauce, chili powder, coriander, salt and pepper. Let it boil for 5 minutes then lower heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until lentils are cooked.

Add the spinach. Simmer for another 3 minutes.

Serve with rice or crackers.