the canDIshhh tales

I was startled when I saw a friend's status message on FB that said RIP Nora Daza. I was silenced. I've always said that it was because of the show Cooking it Up with Nora - that I learned to appreciate watching a cooking show. Nora Daza is an icon for me.  She's one of the biggest influences in my life with regards to cooking.  I would remember waking up early on weekends to watch her cooking showwas it Saturday or was it Sunday morning) on Channel 2 when I was still a kid.  Watching her show made me want to try cooking.  I think it was because of watching the show that I learned to love to cook and bake.  I would remember her and her children (I remember Nina and Sandy) whip up dishes and I was so fascinated with how they sauteed and cook up dishes with such ease. The theme song is still plays in my head when I remember her. So, to Nora Daza - THANK YOU for your cooking show.  If not for your shows, I wouldn't like to be influenced to learn h...

Thanksgiving Turkey! Just this morning - I made a Plurk/Tweet that I wanted to have a Turkey dinner. I've been secretly wanting to make one - but was always overwhelmed with the preparations and the size! I can only dream of making one. I was honestly thinking of buying a cooked bird, and inviting friends over to share the feast! Then, one of my friends Bny , commented on my Plurk/Tweet that he wanted a Turducken . I thought I was reading wrong - turducken ? What the hell was that? Thank goodness for Google! A Turducken - simply put is a chicken in a duck in a turkey! from this site Now - where did that come from? Like you, it’s the first time for me to hear this and first time for me to research about it! After reading through a number of articles - I immediately declared that indeed, a turducken is much more yummier than a roast turkey! What's better? Most everything of a turducken - i CAN eat!! Wooohoooo!!! :) This can be my ' lechon '! Hahaha.. :) Do...

I've never cooked lasagna before. I've seen them made on tv and in real life, but I never got the chance to make one myself. Last Friday, I decided that I wanted to make one. And so, last Saturday afternoon - I made one. And this is what it looked like! Making lasagna isn't that hard pala.. I always had this thought that it was difficult and very time consuming - but it wasn't. I found it actually really simple!! This is the recipe that I used: Meat Sauce 500g - Lean ground beef 1 whole carrot - diced 3 whole white onions - diced 1 clove garlic - crushed 2 cans 200g Crushed tomatoes 5 tablespoons - Tomato Paste 2 cups Chicken Stock A pinch of nutmeg 1 tablespoon Sugar Chicken powder to taste Salt and Pepper to taste Saute the onions, carrots and garlic until soft. Add the ground beef and saute until brown. Add the crushed tomatoes and the 2 cups chicken stock. Add a pinch of Nutmeg. Season with Salt and Pepper (or chicken powder). Make sure to add for flavor Simme...

Last night - was for the first time in years that I cooked my own pasta dinner. I have been so out of the cooking loop for a long loooong time now. And yesterday, when our fish/seafood man called to ask what we want to be delivered - I immediately thought of Clams/Halaan! And when it was delivered - I was quite shocked to see that they were huge! I was so used to the small clams that were served in restaurants. Nevertheless - I had the whole to day to plan what I wanted to with the clams. Make it into soup or a pasta dish? I searched the web for recipes - and I found 2 recipes from food tv. One's from Tyler Florence and the other was from Giada De Laurentiis. I couldn't decide which one I would use. I was looking at both of them the whole afternoon - tossing from one to the other. It was just after my yoga practice that I decided to go with Giada's recipe. I figured - Tyler's was the better choice - but I've never tried anything from Giada - and so I gave h...