perhaps...

this is the 'natural' thing to do, like your mind, body, MOUTH ;D, soul and spirit yearns for it----when you have been slaving yourself with work in the workforce and work in workhome for years! sigh....but no sigh...;D
             
             the day when i took the day-off from it all! ;D
            (i'm wishing too---its like these every day...lol--or  
                       the day never ends...)

                                                      

photo collage

today, i worked on a this simple foto collage (yeps--click that site for their easy to follow app) for the day's blog entry and i will use this to to promote and let everyone else know that----some of my "OOAK" pretties (one-of-a-kind) will be available in this shop, henceforth

MOON LEAF TEA SHOP paseo de sta. rosa, philippines

drop by and enjoy!

 

vegan eats ;D

im new to this  variety of cabbage, the elongated one. what we usually use for making coleslaw salad is the rounded and lighter green in colour. this is more tiny and and leaves are thicker, making me curious to pick it up and buy it along with this strawberry wine at the wet market in baguio city.

no i didnt make a salad out of it. the leaves are thick and quite hard. this one is simply sauteed in ginger, instead of using oyster sauce i used the strawberry wine ;D

added salt to taste, sprinkle dried chilis, and lemon to garnish. coffee on the side ;D yum!

some of the best things in life are---cheap

found at a local produce market quaipo just before the stall owner closes: bunch of always coveted squash flower for only php 15. about .15 u.s.


i was planning to make a simple clear soup out of it with garlic, either chicken flavoured seasoning
or salt and pepper, let boil quickly, then serve. but then my son insisted on stir frying it and he will do the work. here's what he concocted:


         1/2 clove of garlic chopped
          dash of chicken flavoured seasoning (the one that you see above-is the secret of all the wannabes
          cooks/chefs here...in the place where i'm planted)
          brewed soy sauce (--tastes like one, a spoof of the famed kikoman...i'm gracefully cheap php 16.)
          cooking oil (forget the sesame, canola, olive--eerrghh, just plain vegetable cooking oil, but if you insist...) 
         about 2tbsp


        saute finely chopped garlic in oil
        add in quickly the carefully rinsed squash flower, (we sliced the flowers into strips, we cant imagine 
        eating the flowers whole!) re: never include the stalks, they're hard as wooden sticks

        quick stir fry it like the chinese do :-)
        serve hot
        squeezing in kalamansi is optional, but---it'll give it a twist. promise.


the verdict: fibery, some hint of powdery yum, nourishing, good for one serving but can be stretched for two in times like these, and it is delicious!

lumpia--a.k.a deep fried spring rolls, philippine style

one of the best loved pinoy dish--the lumpia. made up of mung bean springs,

sauted in garlic and onions and some other veggies like carrots, and cabbage.rolled into thin edible wrapper (flour and egg) then deep fried in vegetable oil. if you want it heart friendly, canola or olive oil :-)and that is a sudden upgrade of this very affordable snack i love to have once in a while. it goes yummy with rice too, a good treat for the vegans.

there is the version that i love all the more in this humble food--instead of using carrots and cabbage, the sweet potato works perfectly with the mung bean sprouts. simultaneous with the crisp and the crunch there is these burst of soft and sweet cubes or thinly sliced sweet potatoes. the hint of sweetness adds flavour to this staple pinoy snack.

and oh, the dip! its a sin to serve this lumpia aside from being cold and sloppy, without the flavoured vinegar. here's so far the best concoction: 

(as experienced from my long time love affair with local vinegars. i used to drink them straight from the bottle, hiding )

          fermented coconut juice (the murky it looks the 

                 better)

                 crushed garlic

                 chopped or sliced native onions (the violet)

                 pepper

                 a bit of iodized salt

                 a pinch of sugar

          and here's the killer... 

                 osterized ginger

                 and squeeze in drops of Philippine Lemon,

                 yes, the humble kalamansi

                 put it all together in a bottle

                 and shake well, and shout, yaayyy!