My Regular Bread

“What must you break apart in order to bring a family close together? Bread, of course.” 

― Jodi Picoult, The Storyteller

Eversince I discovered French bread drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with rosemary leaves, I've been eating this often.  I don't know which is addictive, olive oil or rosemary or the combination of both.

Did you ever try it? 

Lately, I always crave for this snacks.  Though I favor the regular French bread, I choose to get wheat French bread. I know my health is my own doing, nobody to blame but me; so I choose to be responsible. 

I always divide the long bread into two, put back half in its plastic wrap to keep in the freezer so they stay fresh until I will toast them. 

I slice the half French bread myself, I don't trust the guys at the bakery to cut it into equal sizes the way I want them to be. Being uniform in size matter so they will toast evenly. 

I lay each piece on a tray to dub with olive oil flavored with rosemary, 

then sprinkle rosemary leaves on each slice. 

now they are ready to pop in the oven.

It takes about 3 minutes to have a soft but crunchy bread; toasted on the outside but soft in the inside. It will take longer if you want it crunchier.  I'm not timing the oven, my cue is when that incredibly pleasant smell hits me that I know they are done. 

I spread salsa on them but pate or jam will be okay. My husband prefer to dip it in a meat dish with a thick sauce, like callos or beef stew or gambas. Sometimes I would eat them as is, with no spread whatsoever. 

"Man cannot live by bread alone; he must have peanut butter."

James A. Garfield

Sunday Is My Market Day

This Little Piggy

   By mother goose

"This little piggy went to market,

This little piggy stayed home,

This little piggy had roast beef,

This little piggy had none.

This little piggy went ...

Wee, wee, wee,

all the way home!"

Source: Head Shoulders Knees and Toes and Other Action Rhymes (2002)

Sunday is my market day.  When I was employed, I market on a Saturday but there were so many people at the wet market near our place; it was hard to get what you want and there's a long queue at the fish and meat vendors, and  if I don't go early enough, they run out on the choice cuts of meat and the fish that I like. 

So, I changed my schedule and today, Sunday, I woke up early hoping to get a good parking slot, true enough, I was able to park right in front of my fruit vendor. 

My first stop was at the seafood vendor and I was able to get the seafoods I need: squid, shrimps, asojos, lapulapu (grouper),  oysters and scollops (both removed from their shells).

I will cook sinigang, (fish soup) with tomatoes, tamarind bouillon to give it a slightly sour taste; native leafy veggies will go in as well.

I cut the squid into rings, marinated with kalamansi juice, salt, pepper and wine; for my granddaughter's calamari this week; she is expecting this every week when she visits.   "That's your specialty, Nana", she says. 

I opened up and de-boned the asojos and marinated them will wine, salt and pepper, they are good for my husband's  breakfast any day.

 I steamed the shrimps for my husband's breakfast.  (he will eat it with fresh tomatoes and shrimp paste).

 I will reserve the scallops to stir fry tomorrow with some veggies as well; 

And the oysters?  They will swim in vinegar, chopped onions, ginger, and ground pepper; that is our appetizer for lunch today. 

I boiled the chunks of pork belly with spices for lechon kawali (deep fried pork belly);  while the pork belly slices will be marinated with some spices, wine and vinegar, this will keep in the refrigerator for 10 days, longer at the freezer.  It will be convenient to grill a few pieces when we feel like. 

  

The pork tenderloin, I cut into medallions and mixed into the Filipino barbecue marinade I made. Sometime this week I will grill them. This will go well with another veggie dish. 

, I divided the beef (that's almost two kilos) ; two-thirds will be for beef stew and one-third for beef steak with a lot of onion rings on the side. 

I only got these fruits, I prefer to get the others from the supermarket where there is a good variety to choose from.

For every meal, there is always a veggie dish, maybe what I got is enough, if not, there's always that vendor at the corner who has them fresh daily. 

That's it!  Guess I have enough to last me until next weekend.  I'm thinking that my husband often like to eat out at the spur of the moment anyway, so I may even have extras this week. 

“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” 

― Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own

tags: food, love 1208 likes like

I Love Ducks

Here I go again, saying that my collection started as a gift. But it's true.  It was my office assistant who gave me a wooden duck for my birthday.  We were just talking about fixtures to decorate the house and I happened to mention that I like ducks, truly, I do.  

Then one day, she presented this duck to me, my first ever!  

"My husband bought this during his business trip, it's from both of us, happy birthday!":  she told me,  and I was so thrilled to have it. 

I can't explain my fondness for ducks, 

Maybe because I love country stlye in decorating the house, and ducks are often included.

Or because one of the bedtime stories I remember as a child is "The Ugly Duckling" , oh, I was sad about the duckling then, but when my mama came to the part where he blossomed into a beautiful swan, I always felt good and had a good night's sleep.

The ugly duckling

And ducks seem so gentle and tame, at least that's what I thought, not until I saw a movie where a duck defended his master along with his friend, a dog. So ducks are loyal too!

So I'm sure you would understand why I love this movie: 

My collection increased when I started buying wooden ducks one after another; I got a pair from a Christmas bazaar, another pair in an open market.  I remember I got some from my friends at the office, and the rest, I must have bought them as well. 

Except these flying ducks on the wall.  There used to be four but after I retired, I brought them home and my husband hung then on the wall outside our bedroom where we can see them often.  Here's  how I got them: 

As I entered my office on one birthday morning, I saw four flying wooden ducks hanging on the four walls with a note from each giver; the names of my staff:  Virgie, Joanne, Millet and Helen were on each of them.  Oh, what a pleasant surprise that was!  What touched me was their trouble getting them for me, their thoughtfulness was what mattered most. I can't thank them enough for the joy  getting this gift.

Today, I'm just sorry that I lost one, (due to old age, hahaha!). They weathered the sun and rain. I want to replace it so I'm always on the look out for something similar during bazaars but until now, I could not find any. 

My collection are just around the house. 

I placed the duck set for nuts and chips receptacles (given by my daughter-in-law one Christmas when she asked my son what I'm fond of and he said, "ducks") on one coffee table and joined by a celadon duck placed atop a book of Bill Clinton.

Some I placed on this dividing shelf and the ladder:

And on a wall perpendicular to the shelf as well as on the other end of this wall.

I want to put this collection together but until now I haven't figured out how to do it.  I once tried to line them up on a ledge and my husband joked that "they are like soldiers there", so until then, I guess I'll just move them around as I please. I really don't mind anyway, they're my " toys".

My Version of "Caldereta": Beef Stew With Pineapple

Today, my older daughter has no work, so she came for lunch.  I thought I would whip up something that she would like.  I decided to cook "caldereta"  (beef stew with pineapple).

First I fried the potatoes and set them aside.

Then I browned the Pamplona chorizo in a few drops of canola oil, and  sautéed the  garlic and onions.

The pineapple juice ( together with the pine tidbits)-marinated beef with soy, lemon juice, pepper and some herbs and spices were mixed in next.

After about 2 hours, and the beef was tender, I added the olives, frozen green peas and tomato paste. I made sure the beef was fully coated with tomato paste.

carrots, bell pepper and potatoes were added last. 

I like the sauce a little bit thick, so I dissolved a tablespoon of corn starch in half a cup of water. 

When it boiled, it was time to taste 

 I found I needed more pepper, fish sauce and a dash of salt.

And the dish was done!

But oops!  We need more veggies, so I sautéed garlic, onions, shrimps and pork bouillon in another pan.

Followed by the cut beans left over from my spring roll yesterday. 

Some pepper, then I tasted and it turned out the way I like it. 

Just as my maid was setting the table, I heard the gate open and my daughter came in. 

We had a good lunch!

Home Cooking

Home cooking is becoming very popular nowadays, what with so many cooking programs going on tv all day and all night? And not only that, isn't it handy that there is always google to consult? Besides, we are becoming more and more health conscious that we make sure the food we eat is healthy, devoid of so many calories. 

Even on special events we often choose to stay home and cook instead of eating out. Some dates are taking place in someone else's home instead of at a bar or a restaurant where dating partners prepare the food themselves, thus making it an activity in itself. Even buying the fresh ingredients from a local mom and pop is something to do together, like playing house. 

To those who are reluctant to cook or afraid that the food won't turn out great, I suggest they heed the following advice of a famous American chef who introduced French cuisine to the American public:

“The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you've got to have a what-the-hell attitude.” 

― Julia Child

“This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook- try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!” 

― Julia Child, My Life in France

I would say that it is best to start early. When my granddaughter was a little over three years old,  I made sure that we had an activity whenever she spent the day with us. She would cut veggie trimmings with a plastic knife; we would bake cookies or make cup cakes. She would break the eggs, cut the butter and measure the dry ingredients. 

Oh, she loves our chocolate cup cake recipe so much, she would lick not only what was left on the spatula but scoops some of the mixture to eat. She always say: "my Nana's cup cake is the best ever!", believe me, for her, there is no match to it, even at  parties, "the cup cakes are not as yummy as my Nana makes them".

Now that she is 8 years old, she loves to cook. On the way home from the grocery with her mom one afternoon, she wanted to make banana loaf so she googled a recipe: "this one must be good, mama, it earned 5 stars", she said. 

Here she is making her banana loaf

Just last week, she borrowed a cookbook from her school library and wanted to prepare a soup for next day's lunch.  She went to the grocery with her mom so she could get the ingredients herself. Look at her soup. 

Upper photo is her finished product, lower one is the cookbook page.

Speaking of home cooking, I couldn't be more proud of my two married daughters who are very enthusiastic cooks even with their demanding careers. Do you know that they cook everything from scratch, no mixes or pre-made sauces for them, no sir!  Not even salad dressings; making Caesar salad dressing is something they learned early on from their summer cooking class.  I guess they too, were very observant as teens, I know they often watch me cook, but they seldom did it themselves. Oh, they would whip up a pastry whenever they felt like eating or made cookies, but that was all. They never attempted to cook a meat or fish dish. 

When we had guests, their role was preparing the china, the silver, the napkins and the bowls for nuts or chips. They saw that the ice bucket is always filled and glasses and drinks are within the reach of everyone. Oh, sometimes, they cut veggies but no serious cooking for them. 

Nowadays, the three of us, including my sister in the US, share recipes of new dishes we prepare. I am often amazed how they make traditional recipes their own, they are so imaginative and creative.  They are also sticklers for healthy food, they often bake or grill using only a few drops of EVOO, (as Rachel Ray refers to extra virgin olive oil), to avoid too much cholesterol. When it is necessary to fry, they use canola oil. They find baking the dish more practical though, just pop the dish in the oven and wait for the timer to ring. Besides, there are less dishes to wash, they say. 

I'm sure that their husbands are happy that they can always look forward to a healthy and delicious home-cooked meal at the end of a stressful day at work. Isn't it true that:

 "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach"? 

Well, Stephen Colbert had something to add to this famous quote: .

."... Just make sure you thrust upward through his ribcage.”

Haha! Isn't that bringing it too far?

Color Palette

Do you know your color palette?  I didn't realize that I have one, and all of us for that matter until I read about it.  

Our color palette is manifested by our choice of personal things, our clothes, shoes and bags and all other accessories, even things around the house, so if only you will look closely, you will discover that there is a color or two that stand out, and most often, that's your favorite color. 

In painting our walls, don't we refer to a color chart or the color wheel as our guide?  It's true that many  of us are quite reluctant to choose, afraid that our choice combinations won't work, so we often rely on the interior decorator to do this task. 

I like one celebrity decorator who always ask his clients for an object that they like so much to ensure that they will like what he will do. He refers to that object to develop the color palette in decorating their room/home.  I watched one of his shows where the client gave him a printed dress and the color-coordination done was amazing, to the great satisfaction of the client. 

As early as grade school, we were often asked what our favorite color is. Don't you recall the slum books as well where that is one of the standard questions?  

“My teacher asked my favorite color. ... I said ‘Rainbow’.... and I was punished to stand out of my class.” ----Saket Assertive

"The vibrant colors of this rainbow set against lush surroundings, photographed near San Quirico d'Orcia, Tuscany, make it seem like an almost magical phenomenon. However, the science behind a rainbow is relatively simple as it's just a matter of refraction, or the bending of light." © iStockphoto.com/jbarkway )

When we mature however, our taste become more sophisticated and we either go for more subdued hues or get bold and choose brighter colors. 

I for one always liked yellow, like the sun, I feel it is a lucky color, giving a lot of light and life. Nowadays however, I favor very much the warm and vibrant colors of autumn; the greens, yellows, golds, oranges and the browns put together is something I'd like to see around the house.  

So I chose a slightly burnt orange as an accent wall for our bedroom and lighter tones for the other walls.  I only buy linens in shades of beige, yellow, gold, orange and brown so everything is coordinated, they will compliment and match and be interchangeable. For instance pillow cases in yellow will easily blend or contrast with a brown or an orange duvet and it's matching pillow cases.

Experts say that when in doubt, look at nature and see which colors work. In fact, most artists get their inspiration from nature.  I myself is often amazed at the birds' feathers, sometimes the combinations are bold but they look great, like those below:

These two pictures above and below are both from the gallery of Dan Nihiser.

The ocean taken together with the sky provides a great palette as well, it is a combination of relaxing hues of blue, aqua, gray and white, sometimes stones and sand turn yellowish with the glare of the sun.

This picture is so peaceful and serene, I have to give credit to my younger daughter who took it and shared it with the family during her honeymoon at Shangrila, Maldives late last year. 

Many people stay on the safe side and only use safe colors, like the neutrals: white, beige, gray; others though are very bold combining very strong colors together, but hey, does it really matter?  As long as they are happy living with it, then all is well.

My Chiropractic experience

This is prominently posted in the chiropractic clinic we visited.   

It was due to my husband's excruciating neck pain that led us to see a chiropractor because even a good massage can't fix it.  Contrary to what we initially thought as just some kind of a stiff neck due to a wrong sleeping position, it turned out to be something more complicated. 

"I'll be able to help you", the chiropractic doctor said. He assured my husband that he will feel better soon enough if he had an X-ray to confirm the initial diagnosis. We brought back the unread X-ray plates within an hour.  After a few minutes of serious review, he then turned my husband's neck with one strong force to the right and another to the left. Right away my husband felt a lot better, the pain was at least bearable as soon as he got up from the examination table.

While at the clinic, my husband encouraged me to have myself checked as well.  I've heard about this practice and had wanted to have myself checked earlier; but I felt a little reluctant. Nevertheless, I went through the initial interview including a quick physical check up.

The doctor told me that I was leaning a little bit on my left, that my left shoulder slightly droop; but what is more significant is the slight "subluxation", a misalignment on my hips needing adjustment.  We would probably do that in about 6-8 sessions; otherwise, the doctor proclaimed I'm good!  I have a healthy spinal column.  "I would swap my spinal column with yours for a million dollars", was his parting words. I wanted to believe him but I wondered too, whether he tells that to all his patients. We settled the bill for my husbands sessions as well as for my initial check up; and I'll tell you, it wasn't cheap either. 

Over the weekend, I told my daughter about the proposed sessions and my reluctance to go through it.  "Why are you scrimping, mom?", she asked, "it's your health".  "I'm not, I just haven't made up my mind" I replied but I wasn't telling her that I was a little scared.

 On my husbands next adjustment, I decided to go through the procedure; but there were questions I needed to ask.  By the way, the doctor's first name is "STORM", strong name, right? I mean literally, not that it's a popular name. 

"Here I am, walking, feeling strong, with no pain whatsoever; why do I need an adjustment"?, I asked.

"A part of your hipbone is slightly misaligned", Doc Storm replied.

"Why can't I leave it like that? I probably had that for years and it never bothered me." 

"If there is misalignment, the nervous system cannot function well; it has an effect in the body's overall well being.  A misalignment causes strain, hence there is less flexibility in movement;  if not corrected it may have future repercussions to your health, and you may experience pain, in 5 or ten years, maybe, who knows!".

"What if something goes wrong?, the spinal column is very sensitive". 

He then related the case of his Filipino father-in-law who spent the Christmas holidays with them. "Papang", as he fondly call him, is known as a grouchy, anti-social old man in his community. He can't walk; he was carried from his home in the province to a tricycle, to a Jeepney, to a bus, to Doc Storm's car from the terminal, and upstairs in the guest room. During the first few days, Papang kept to himself in the his room.  

 Doctor Storm worked on him twice a day for a week, eventually he could walk!  He became more sociable; his disposition remarkably changed that for the rest of the three weeks left of his vacation he socialized with the rest of the household. When he went home, he could walk, to the amazement of his neighbors who noticed the big change in him. 

"It is safe", the doctor explained further;  "just like the airplane where the possibility of a crash is very slim.  "That's us, we're the airplane" he said. I guess that made me more apprehensive; since his name popped in my mind, Storm and airplanes? Hey, put them together and isn't that dangerous?  But then I was already there, why not give it a try, just this once, and I'll go from there, I told myself.

 "Dapa", he said in his American accent, meaning "lie on your stomach". He saw that my right foot was shorter than my left when put together, manifesting some kind of an imbalance. He checked my spine and before I knew it, I heard a cracking sound as he put heavy pressure on my upper back.  

"Now, lie on your right, bend the left knee, let the right leg follow close by and right shoulders forward", pulling my upper body and pushing the lower part;  I heard a snap as he applied pressure on my hips, then another snap when the left side was treated the same way. 

"The crackle and the snap is in no way dangerous even if it sounds like bones are breaking", he explained as he showed me the plastic model of a spine he had.  The sound is the result of the gas moving into space when the joints being moved become separated during adjustment. It is painless and harmless.

"Get up, now do you feel good?", he asked and I nodded my head, still stunned. "By the way, this session is free since we just talked last time.  Now, you like that, right?"; "thank you" I replied. 

That evening, I felt chilly, all night in fact. Even with two fleece blankets, I was still uncomfortably cold but there was no pain at all, I felt lighter as well. "The body reacts differently", he said on the next session. "Some even have hot flashes". By the way, Doc Storm comes out to the reception when he calls his next patient. As they approach, my husband noticed, he checks how they walk and most likely get a pretty good idea how the patient is doing. 

Oh, yes, I almost forgot, my husband had his feet scanned too. The scan showed that he may be totally flat-footed.  If he doesn't use an in-sole, this will also affect his over-all balance. They get a mold of each foot to custom-make the in-sole; costing  around US$300.00.  It's not cheap but fortunately, my husband has a pair given by his brother from his last trip to Vancouver, and Doc Storm said it is even of better quality. 

I completed my third session during this writing. Instead of having an adjustment last Wednesday, he said he will just see me on Saturday. Maybe he wants more time for my body to adjust and see if more adjustment is necessary. 

As I read more literature on chiropractic,  I feel more confident that this is a safe procedure.  It is really necessary to fix any subluxation for our health and well being. I also learned that:

Chiropractors do not prescribe medicine; it is a holistic approach.

Chiropractic is safe, the American Chiropractic Association, claims that: "statistically speaking, if you will travel more than a mile to your chiropractic appointment it is more likely that you will be seriously injured in a car accident than you will be injured during your chiropractic visit".

For neck and back pains, taking even the most conventional prescription drugs may do more harm to your health than have a chiropractic adjustment. 

The risk is very low because the force applied during adjustment is less than one-ninth of the force necessary to stretch or damage the vertebral artery, that is why the possibility of a very serious damage to the spine during this procedure is 1 to 4,000,000.

Today, my husband has about 6 more sessions to go since he brought up other discomfort and Doc Storm is addressing all of them. But he is feeling a lot better and lighter and his disposition brighter. As for me, I no longer droop to my left and I feel more at ease when I move; I am no longer lazy to pick up things from the floor;  like a young child, bending Is automatic. 

Looking back to about a week ago when my husband had that excruciating neck pain, and if we did not see a chiropractor, he may still be in a neck brace now and possibly taking drugs for pain. I would say, it must be a blessing in disguise, more so that his other discomforts are being addressed as well.   Besides, my subluxation would never have been corrected. Now I recall St. John's gospel, chapter 13: verse 7 which quotes Jesus talking to His disciples:

  "what I do thou knowest not now, but thou shall know hereafter"

And the 1st  verse:

"God moves in a mysterious way

His wonders to perform; 

He plants His footsteps in the sea

And rides upon the Storm."

---William Cowper