Happy Mother's Day!


In honor of my own Mommy, I am going to post something I recently whipped in my kitchen, which reminded me of her so much.


I just whisked together all the vegetables in the fridge and surprisingly came up with  a pretty array of vegetables which I will call  ----

Summer Vegetable Stir Fry


You see, next to rice, my Mom likes to stir fry leftovers in our ref. She believes in using whatever is available or on hand:) This creation is meat free- the mushrooms add the protein component.


I just sauteed some garlic, then added the shiitake mushrooms. I allowed the mushrooms to steam for a few minutes. After which I threw in some celery and then  some broccoli florets and asparagus tips. I allow the veggies to know each other a little, and then I threw in some sliced carrots. I added some salt and pepper to taste. You can also add in some sesame oil if you like some nutty Asian flavor.


I threw in some boiled pasta spirals after, but this is also delicious with rice. :)




I wish I ate healthy all the time. But I'm only human. But whenever I do find some beautiful produce, I am inspired to make some healthy creations for my M and I. I am so lucky he likes veggies too. This is so easy and, the results are so pretty to look at!


I hope I can make some when my family visits soon. In the meantime, I'm off for some greats finds tomorrow at the grocery. Wish me luck!


Happy Mother's Day!

Trying Japanese Fusion at Mangetsu

It was a rainy Friday evening when my lovely friend, Nice,  invited us to Mangetsu on the eve of her birthday. Mangetsu is a chic Japanese fusion restaurant.

That evening,  I was late. I had to wait for the dear M so we could go together for dinner. Plus metro people, you know  what it means to get a cab on a Friday evening, yes? Horror. I had to surrender to a harassed Mom and a couple of shorts clad teenage girls at the cab drop off point. Plus, it was drizzling, etc and more excuses. :D

It's a good thing we still had some dinner left when we arrived. The first thing I noticed when we arrived at Mangetsu's doorstep were the colors of the place. Truly Japanese. Grays, beige, blacks and reds.  I felt like we were back in Tokyo ( we were there last November, remember?) I loved the feel of the place. So authentic. We were brought up to the second floor where the gang was waiting at a reserved area. Cool. Privacy!

When we got to the tables, I gushed on the dinnerware. Sigh... lovely.

I am particularly enamored by this pretty plate.

And check out the cutlery. They use this really tiny slotted spatula as serving spoon. 

The little bowl beside it is a condiment bowl. Cutie!

Wait.  Food. 

Sushi platter

Too bad I didn't have some of this. I'm trying to avoid raw fish as much as possible for health reasons. 

Oh, but I was really tempted.

Sukiyaki

This is a classic Japanese noodle soup with beef ,tofu, and leeks and lightly seasoned 

with soy sauce and mirin. It was okay. There's better somewhere. But kudos to the staff for reheating it for the latecomers like us. Service is good :)

Tori Karaage

Fried chicken. Good. This one was really tasty. And the prawn chips on the side was a hit!:)

Cheese Tofu Gratin




The piece de resistance. This is composed of tofu blocks swimming in a pool of spiced mozzarella cheese . I suspect the spice is nacho chips! It's soooo good, and when you get a block of tofu, the cheese stretches like forever! Ah, fusion! Oh, and check out the spatula again :) 


I wasn't there when they were ordering so I wasn't able to peek into the actual menu. But they do have a website. 


You will also enjoy their artworks. I did! I love Japanese art.
 It's so detailed, and yet simple. 
So calm, yet colorful. 

This is my Cinco de Mayo foodtrip because my friend's birthday falls on the 5th of May. 
Happy birthday again, Nice!

These crab cakes and that shake!

What is it about men and sports that drives them out of their caves and makes them travel from one "city" to another just to be able to watch a live telecast of their favorite game? It's crazy!! 

M called me out of the  blue to "invite" me to lunch at Italianni's The Fort because his favorite game was being telecast live at that branch. I had lunch when he called so the invitation was late, but the thought of him rushing there to watch that game was just too much for me to resist. I needed to get some baking ingredients at the grocery anyways. 

I arrived after the game was over, and he was doing some work, and using the available wifi. I ordered a special on the menu-the Crab Cakes Capri. I thought they would be a light and filling supplement to my leftover pizza lunch :D Seafood is summer food! These were really good!

Crab Cakes Capri (P175)

Pure white, flaky, juicy real crab meat. Yum.  Good deal!

There were 6 pieces to this order. M had enough of the pasta that he ordered so he didn't get any of this. I was so full after. I think 2-3 people should share this dish. 2 would be perfect, 3's fine.

   

Strawberry Shake 

It was so hot outside... er, if you live in Metro Manila, I think you know how hot this summer is. 

I then ordered a truly refreshing Strawberry Shake that got me right in the mood to explore The Fort. It was full of fresh strawberries, with a hint of mint. I'm not so sure but I think this beverage cost as much as the Crab Cakes. Hehe.

It's so good that I would like to thank the Lord for the creation of the blender :D

I've had the Peach Mango from Shiok and this awesome Strawberry Shake 
from Italianni's to make this summer refreshing.

What's your summer drink this year?:)

Shiok in Summer

It was a dreadful weekday. Hot & Humid. Then the rain fell. One of those days. Having missed Tonton massage Perea, we decided to try Tonton Massage's Fort branch. Have you ever had a massage before dinner? Try it! You'll feel light and hungry. Well, having your massage before meals is actually more ideal for the body, they say. 

We parked right across the block where Shiok was located. Shiok is a Singaporean specialty restaurant supposedly reminiscent of the hawker centres in Singapore. This is what we had for the evening:

Hainanese Chicken Rice

I'm not a big fan of the Hainanese Chicken Rice, because I'm used to having my chicken dry or crispy. But the garlic rice that accompanies this dish is yummy. M likes that it's moist and juicy.

Nonya Laksa

This one was spicy and had way too much curry powder.
I like Toast Box's Laksa better because the curry, spice and coconut milk was my perfect balance.  I think M liked this one better though. He likes his food really spicy.

Peach Mango

This beverage served to refresh my spiced out taste buds.
Alone though or without the laksa, it would taste a bit cough syrupy ( I suspect the peaches were the canned variety.)
I am learning to prefer fresh fruit shakes instead of my favorite cola.


Hot summer and Peach Mango- nomnom.