Tuna Casserole

MMM...I love Tuna casserole, it's an easy dish to make and one of my favorite comfort foods to eat! Here is my recipe! Enjoy! :-)

Ingredients:

• 2 cans tuna (flaked) packed in water, drained
• 2 1/2 cups of whole wheat rigatoni
• 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup (Campbells is what I prefer to use)
• 1/3 cup frozen peas
• 1/4 cup red onions
• 3 cloves garlic (chopped fine)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain well.

- In a pan on medium heat, sautee garlic and red onions for about 4 mins.

- Fold in the tuna, peas, and add salt and pepper to taste. 

- Add in Mushroom soup and pasta in and stir occasionally on medium heat for another 5 minutes.

- Transfer to a casserole dish and top up with cheddar cheese.

- Put Casserole in a 350F oven for about 15 minutes

- Let it cool for about 5 minutes and Enjoy!

21 Steps Kitchen & Bar

When you go up to Whistler, you have to go try this Restaurant! It's located in the heart of Whistler Village and you have to go up the stairs which has 21 steps. Has a great vibe to it and always had great dining experience there. 

Everything here is made from scratch is very reasonably priced! My favorite dishes here are Steamed Mussels, Baked Mushroom Caps, Smoked Chicken Pasta, Creme Brulee...and probrably the whole menu! LOL

They also have a great selection of alcohol, whether it's wine, martinis, coctails, etc.

They are open everyday from 5:30 pm until midnight!

St. Andrew's House
Main Village
Whistler BC Canada
Telephone: 604-966-2121 

Banana Chocolate Muffins

This is my favorite recipe that I have created on making these delicious muffins! It's super easy to make and this will be one of the best muffins you have ever tasted!

Ingredients:

3 cups All-purpose flour
1 tbsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1 1/2 cups Milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup Melted Butter
3/4 cup Sugar

5 ripe bananas, mashed

1 tbsp Banana Extract
1 cup Chipits Milk Chocolate Chips 

Instructions

- Preheat oven to 375 °F 

- Grease or paper-line muffin cups.

- In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda.

- In a medium bowl, beat together milk, eggs, melted butter, and sugar. 

- Stir in mashed bananas and blend well. 

- Pour over dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. 

- Sprinkle Chipits Milk Chocolate Chips over batter and gently fold in. 

- Fill prepared muffin cups right to the top, mounding up slightly and top up with more Chipits Chocolate Chips.

- Bake for 15 to 20 min or until firm to the touch.

(Yields 12 medium sized muffins)

Low Fat Chocolate Souffle

This dessert seems sinful, but with this recipe, it's only 110 calories per Souffle! It's very simple to make and the best part is that it tastes even better than the regular Souffle's!

  Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup fat-free milk
• 2 egg yolks
• 4 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• Sifted powdered sugar (optional)
• Berries

Instructions:

1. Place eight 6-ounce ramekins in a shallow baking pan; set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a small saucepan, stir together 1/3 cup of the granulated sugar, the cocoa powder, flour, and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir for 1 minute more. Remove from heat. Slightly beat egg yolks. Slowly add chocolate mixture to egg yolks, stirring constantly.

3. In a large bowl, combine egg whites, vanilla, and cream of tartar. Beat with an electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form (tips curl). Gradually add remaining 1/3 cup granulated sugar, beating on high speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight). Stir about 1/4 of the egg whites into chocolate to lighten. Gently fold chocolate mixture into egg white mixture. Spoon into ramekins.

4. Bake about 25 minutes or until knife inserted near centers comes out clean. Serve immediately. If desired sprinkle with powdered sugar and garnish with berries. 

Makes 8 souffles.

Halo-Halo

Halo-Halo is a popular and a favorite Filipino dessert or snacks that is a mixture of shaved ice and evaporated milk to which are added various sweet beans and fruits, and served in a tall glass or bowl. Halo means “mix” in English.

This dessert is very popular during the hot Summer months but can be made all year with this simple recipe!

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

• 1 cup sweetened red mung beans (monggo)
• 1 cup sweetened white beans
• 1 cup kaong (sugar palm seed)
• 1 cup nata de coco (coconut gel)
• 1 cup macapuno (coconut sport strips)
• 1 cup langka (bottled jackfruit strips)
• 4 tsps white sugar, optional
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 2 cups shaved or crushed ice
• 1/2 cup purple yam jam (halayang ube)
• 1/2 leche flan (caramel custard)
• 4 scoops ice cream (vanilla, strawberry, or purple yam/ube flavor)

The ingredients like the sweetened fruits, purple yam jam, and beans can be bought already cooked, bottled, or canned at Filipino or Asian stores.

Directions:

Place about 1 tablespoon each of the first 6 ingredients into 4 tall glasses. If desired, add a teaspoon of white sugar per glass. Add half cup of shaved ice to each glass. Add 1/4 cup of evaporated milk to each glass. Top with 1 tablespoon of purple yam jam and caramel custard. Add a scoop of ice cream on top. Serve with a long spoon and enjoy!

** You can be creative and make your own Halo-Halo by adding fresh fruits, jellies/tapioca and other ice cream flavors!! **

Szechuan Beans with Pork

I love cooking green beans! It's good for your health. To educate you quickly on the benefits of this yummy green vegetable, it's low in fat and offer an excellent source of protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates. They are a very good source of folic acid and provide significant amounts of iron, phosphorus, magnesium, manganesese, and potassium! Doesn't sound bad, right?

They can be cooked in a lot of dishes but I love making this particular dish and having a huge bowl of brown rice with it.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• ¼ teaspoon Sesame Oil
• ½ tablespoon Mirin
• 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar
• 2 teaspoons Soya Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Thai Red Chili Paste 
• 15 ml Serrano Peppers
• 1 lb Green Beans, ends trimmed off
•  ½ cup ground pork
• 1-2 cloves of Garlic
• 1 teaspoon Fresh Ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon Grapeseed oil
• 1 tablespoon of scallions (optional garnish)

Instructions:

• Combine the oyster sauce, sesame oil, mirin, brown sugar, soya sauce, & chili paste in a small mixing bowl and beat together with a fork until combined. Set aside.
• Heat a large wok over medium high heat. Add about 1 tablespoon of grapeseed oil and let it warm up.
• Add in the ground pork. Stir for 2-3 minutes. 
• Add in the ginger, serrano peppers and garlic and stir for another minute.
• Remove the pork mixture from the wok and set aside.
• Raise the heat to high.
• Cook the beans, stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes until they have sear marks on them but are not soft.
• Reduce the heat back down to medium high and add the pork back in. Stir quickly to incorporate the ingredients.
• Add the sauce and stir to mix it into beans. The liquid should burn off fairly quickly in the wok. It should reduce to a syrup consistency (coating the beans) in about 30 seconds. As soon as it has, remove from the heat and transfer to a plate.
• Garnish with a sprinkle of scallions (optional) and serve hot.

Cactus Club Cafe

My girlfriend and I always have a ritual to have dinner at Cactus Club Cafe to catch up on our chit chat and have a few round of drinks. We always end up getting pretty much the same order everytime we go there...her Cosmo, Pesto Quesadilla and my Bellini, Creole Chicken...and of course a shot of Tequila to finish off the evening!

There is a delicious drink that a server recommended for us both to try. It's a double Brazilian with a splash of Bellini on top and it`s an awesome combination! Brazilian is fresh kiwi, lime & sugar cane muddled with rum & soda. You got to try it!

In the past, I was an employee at Cactus Club for over 5 years and miss working in the kitchen! One of my passions has always been to cook food and have it all done at a set time & schedule.It gets super intense most days during the lunch and dinner rushes but seeing the customers having a great time and eating the food really made me feel super satisfied!

Cactus Club Cafe is definately a place with good food! You can find anything that will satisfy your taste buds!

Ensaymada

Ensaymada is one of my favorite baked good items that reminds me of the Philippines. I used to eat so much of this delicious sweet bread when I was a little kid! If Goldilocks isn't around your neighbourhood, try this delicious recipe!

6  1/2 cups bread flour
2 Tbsps  instant yeast
2 Tbsps sugar
1 cup warm water
3 egg yolks
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup mashed potato
1/2 cup warm milk
2/3 cup butter, melted

Edam Cheese (For topping)

Dissolve 2 Tbsps. sugar and yeast in warm water.  Set aside.

In a bowl, combine egg yolks, eggs, sugar, salt, mashed potato, milk and melted butter. Add half of the flour
and dissolved yeast. Mix thoroughly. Add enough flour to form a soft dough.

Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead just until smooth and elastic. 

** Do not over-knead!**

Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth and let rise until double in size, About 1 hour.

Punch down the risen dough.  Shape dough into 24 balls if you want medium size Ensaymada, or 12 to 18 balls if you want large Ensaymada.  Let it rest for 5 minutes.

Brush your rolling surface with some melted butter.  Roll out each ball of dough thinly.  Spread with some butter and cheese (if desired) or ube and macapuno filling.  Roll lengthwise like a cigar, and rest for a few minutes. Shape each rolled dough  into coil or snail shape.

Transfer the shaped doughs into Ensaymada molders or  in greased baking sheets.  Let rise for about 35 to 40 minutes.

Preheat  oven to 350 degrees. Bake Ensaymada for 15 minutes or until golden brown in color.

Brush the tops with melted butter or butter icing, top with grated Edam cheese.

For the butter icing: 

1/2 cup softened butter, 1/2 to 3/4 cup granulated sugar. Beat the butter and sugar together.  Spread on top of cool Ensyamada. 

** If you  spread the icing while the Ensyamada is still hot, the icing will just melt. **

Stuffed Peppers AKA Punjene Paprike

My boyfriend is Serbian and they have awesome food from back home! His momma cooks her Stuffed Peppers to perfection and I always look forward to having it! This itself is a full meal! Yum!

Here is a recipe:

• 6-8 bell peppers
• 400 gr beef or pork minced
• 1 cup of rice
• 2 carrots
• 2 onions
• 1 Tbs chopped parsley
• 2 Tsp salt
• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• 2-3 potatoes
• 2 Tbs plain flour
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp vegetable or dehydrated green herb stock

Directions

• Cut tops off peppers and remove seeds. 
• Wash peppers to prepare for filling. Fry chopped onions and Grated carrots in olive oil at medium to high temperature. Stir constantly.
• After 2–3 minutes add mince and salt and continue to fry it for another 4–5 minutes. 
• Take it off heat and add rice, plain flour, sweet paprika and dehydrated vegetable or green herb stock.
• Stir the mixture. Spoon filling into the peppers. Cover the top of each pepper with a slice of potato.
  Place peppers in a dish. Place remaining potatoes put between peppers.
• Pour water until peppers are covered. 
• Boil at low temperature for 40-45minutes. 
• Sprinkle chopped parsley on the top. Serve hot.

Chicken Adobo

I always crave for Adobo...it's so delicious! Adobo is the National Dish of the Philippines. It consists of chicken cooked in garlic, soy sauce, and vinegar which is then seared. The process is simple, and the taste is to die for! It is one of the major food that identifies the Filipino culture, and a very easy dish to prepare. You have to try it! 

Ingredients

• 2 lbs chicken, cut into serving pieces
• 6 eggs
• 3 pcs dried bay leaves
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 4 tbsp vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 cup cooking oil
• salt and pepper

Cooking Procedure

1. In a large container, combine the soy sauce and garlic then marinade the chicken overnight
2. Place the cooking oil in a pan and apply heat
3. When the oil is hot enough, put-in the marinated chicken
4. Add water and bring to a boil
5. Add the dried bay leaves and simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender
6. In another pot, boil eggs for 10-12 minutes, let it cool and peel the shell
7. Add hard boiled eggs with the chicken Adobo
8. Add vinegar, salt, and pepper and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes
9. Serve hot with rice. Share and Enjoy!

Eggs Benedict

Mmm...Eggs Benedict! My boyfriend decided to surprise me and brought my favorite breakfast on my break at work a few days ago..which inspired me to post a recipe on how to make it!

HOLLANDAISE SAUCE 

INGREDIENTS:
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Dash cayenne pepper

PREPARATION: In a small metal bowl, combine egg yolks and water; stir with a whisk until foamy. Set bowl in pan of barely simmering water, but do not let bottom of bowl touch the water. Continue to whisk the eggs until mixture thickens slightly.
Remove the bowl from the pan: add the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring with a whisk until blended and mixture is thick. Stir in lemon juice, salt, mustard and cayenne; whisk until smooth.
Serve warm.
Makes about 1 cup sauce.

EGGS BENEDICT

INGREDIENTS:
• 8 slices Canadian bacon
• 1 teaspoon canola oil
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh asparagus, tough ends trimmed off
• 8 eggs, poached
• 4 English muffins, split and toasted
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Hollandaise sauce

PREPARATION: In nonstick skillet, lightly brown Canadian bacon slices in oil; remove and keep warm. In same skillet, lightly saute the asparagus until tender, yet crisp; set aside. Toast the English muffins, or brush cut sides lightly with butter and brown in skillet.
To serve, place toasted English muffins, cut side up, on each plate; butter lightly if desired. Place one slice of Canadian bacon on each muffin half. Carefully spoon poached eggs onto the Canadian bacon. Arrange asparagus spears alongside each muffin half. Drizzle Hollandaise sauce over each serving.
Makes 8 servings.


Looking to eat Eggs Benedict without feeling too guilty because of the calories?? Try it with whole grain English Muffins, substitute the Canadian bacon with steamed spinach and a slice of tomato in between spinach and poached egg. Substitute Hashbrowns with a bowl of fresh fruits!

PASSION FOR FOOD..

Food is one of my biggest passions, amongst the other topics listed on my Blogs. With over 10 years of Culinary experience, I have made, watched, and most of all tasted the best (and worse) food this world has to offer.


This Blog will discuss everything from Recipes I enjoyed and would love to share with all of you, Products that I truly love, Restaurants I would recommend, etc.


Bon Appetit!!