Door prize

and aboutA while back I posted that I won a prize when I was shopping in Vancouver. The store had mailed it and a few days ago I received it. Just in time for Christmas baking. It was really nice and useful.

And about two months ago, I bought an air fryer and we have been doing all kinds of chicken wings recipes and they turned out really well and not greasy as no oil is used to cook anything. On New Year's Eve I might try onion blossom.

Here is the first recipe of wings I did, just simple salt, pepper and garlic and was yummy.

Christmas baking

I usually do a lot of different kinds of baking for Christmas but for this year, I just baked a few batches just to give away. I do not eat a lot cookies even during Christmas and being diabetic I try not to have too many temptations around in the kitchen. Also I have three friends who have moved out of Edmonton due to retirement so less friends to give cookies to.

This year I have made all cookies and no bars. It was convenient since I froze the dough and just took them out today and baked them. I guess I am getting old and not as adventurous in terms of trying out new recipes.

Here are four of the batches I did. I also baked this regular cut out sugar cookies. I forgot to take pictures as I was busy setting up our new dining set and assembling our new tv stand which I am proud to say I did all by myself.

Baking and cooking......

For quite a while I have been baking and forgetting to take pictures. I found it hard to blog about baking/cooking when I do not pictures to go with it. I have also been trying same recipes but refining or adjusting it to my personal taste preference.

I have tried so many corn bread recipes and now I think I may have found the one I like but then again when I was at Smokehouse BBQ and had their bacon/jalapeno shortbread, I now want to find something like it. It was really good.

I don't like cilantro and I love Mexican and Vietnamese food. It is hard to request not to have cilantro in their salsa as it is prepared with it. The Vietnamese restaurant we go to all the time has been very accommodating and will omit cilantro when I ask not to have it in anything I order.

Today I am trying yet again another banana bread/muffin recipe. This is the only way to use my over ripe bananas.

Chewy peanut butter cookies

 

Pineapple/orange chiffon cake....I had a hard time cutting it as it was so soft and moist and not too sweet

 

Spaghetti a la carbonara....I made this after that disastrous carbonara my grand nephew ordered at an Italian restaurant and this was a lot better, I put a little bit more bacon.

 



When you have lemons, make lemonade.....

A few weeks back I was at the grocery store (Save on Foods) and looking for different fruits when I saw packages of Meyer lemons. I got two packages and when I got home I made lemonade. Meyer lemons are thin skinned lemons and sweet and tart at the same times.

I did not put a lot of sugar and it was really good. I don't see them a lot in the store so when I saw them I knew I had to get them.

 

Here they are, not too big but shiny and smooth skinned. When I was squezzing them, the oil from the skin I can smell from my hands.

 

A very refreshing pitcher of lemonade.

 

A few days ago, I saw them again at the store and bought another package and made a different kind of lemonade.

 

This time I added lime slices and strawberry slices. Cool and refreshing!

 



Pictures.....

For a few weeks I have not been able to post with pictures and I don't know how that happened. So I have not taken pictures of anything but I have posted about a dessert I did for Christmas without pictures and before I lose my computer's capability to post pictures I am posting the picture for now and will write the recipe on my recipe page.

So P....here is the picture.

 

Refreshing tropical dessert.

 

 

Slow cooked sweet and sour ribs which was delish.

 

Since receiving the slow cooker, I have tried all kinds of recipes including chile which turned out really good. I have put it on top of fries, hot dog and used it as dip for nacho chips or just it ate it with corn bread, which is a new recipe I have found and tweaked and turned out yummy.

 



An easy refreshing dessert.....

Over the Christmas holidays, I was thinking of what to make for dessert. I thought of creme caramel, cheese cake, choco flan and since I could not decide, I went online to look for a very easy recipe.

I found this dessert that looks so yummy and started to check if I have all the ingredients in my pantry and I did except for pina colada yogurt. I had asked someone to get it for me on his way to coming over.

I prepared the base for it and just added the yogurt and other stuff just before dinner.
When I have time and not too busy at work, I will post it on my recipe page.

For some reason, I can't post a picture so I will post it later, the dessert is called Tropical Delight.







What's cooking/baking

I have not posted about baking or cooking in a while. I always forget to take pictures and even if I had baked anything, I seem to remember about taking pictures after I had cut or eaten part of what I had baked or cooked.

Today was not a busy day so I decided to bake soft dinner rolls and I tried a new recipe and I am glad I did as it turned out very well.

For supper I cooked fish and chips and tried a new batter for the fish. Since I do not drink beer, I never have it on hand so I could not do a beer battered fish.

I just looked for a different recipe and found one that is crispy and good texture, so I might use it again.

Soft dinner rolls, very easy to make and very good recipe, a keeper.

Chocolate covered strawberries, I was doing something with chocolate and has a bit of leftover and I had bought thiese large berries so I just dip them in the chocolate, not as nice as I would want it to be but none the less, yummy.

I made this for myself on Mother's day as I did not want to go out, I was feeling lazy.

My indulgence for the month, I like trying new chips and when I find new or different ones, I always get them to try. The sweet Maui onion is good.

And of course I had to have the chips with my own concoction of strawberry margarita, I am getting really good at making this.

Enjoy the work week, I am feeling a bit better going to work now a days.



What is cooking/baking?.....

I was not in a cooking or baking mood this weekend but still managed to cook/bake/made a few things.

It seems like every other weekend I bake banana bread and always I forget to take a picture. So it is not a surprise that I baked one and forgot to take a picture again. I believe I have a picture taken a while back.
I always have left over bananas and it is the easiest thing to do.

I baked a fish as well, in fact it was a whole fish and also forgot to take a picture. I always remember after I have taken a piece of it to eat.

Anyway, I was at T&T and bought seafood there and some other items I fancy at the moment.

Corn muffins, not the best recipe I followed so I won't post the recipe.

I had too many lemons so I decided to make lemonade. I had frozen raspberries so I put them in the pitcher and zest of one lemon. It turned out like pink lemonade and it was good and refreshing. I will be making lots of this during the summer.

I love these mangoes, it reminds me of the kind we have in the Philippines. I eat them as my dessert.

I love these jelly pudding, mini version, these are strawberry, mango, cantaloupe and lychee. I have them as snack at work, my jello shooters of a different kind.











What's cooking/baking?

I have not posted about cooking or baking lately. I have some pictures and also will post the recipes of what I have baked or cooked lately.

I will try to keep up with the recipes as I have been really busy lately.

Apple crisp. I apologize for the caramel on the edge. It would not look the same if I transfer it to a serving plate.

Cassava cake, by the time I remember to take picture I have tried it as I wanted to check, I had brought half of the cake to work.

Lemon loaf, I remember my dad loved this loaf with lots of lemon glaze.

Singapore noodles, a favorite at both work places.

More next time. I will be busy getting the recipes on my Recipes page which is on the right top side of my blog.

Happy baking and cooking!!!





What's baking/cooking......

Usually during the holidays, I do a lot of baking and give them away as presents. This year I did not do as much since I will be away. I have made shortbread because it does not feel like Christmas at all without it. I also made steamed rice cakes for our cookie exchange.

Here are some baked goodies I have done in the years past.

Classic spritz

Pineapple filled bars

Kisses thumb print cookies

Chocolate crinkles

Steamed rice cakes

It is fun when you see them all baked and wrapped ready to give as presents. But I must admit it is hard work.



What's cooking/baking.....

This weekend was kind of relaxing for me. I did a bit of this and that ....cleaning my home, cooking and baking. Since I have started baking bread again, I now get excited when I bake anything.

On Saturday morning I baked pan de sal which is a popular bun in the Philippines and I made jumbo ones. 

As you can see they are big but still tasted like our pan de sal back home.

As soon as it was out of the oven, I spread butter on one side and butter and jam on the other side. Yummy!

Sunday evening, I barbecued chicken and made the marinade from scratch and it tasted good.

Took 2 pieces to work for lunch with scalloped potatoes.







What's cooking?

Last week, a lady from work brought pre-packaged tomato sauce/pizza sauce. So she gave me 5 packages, then a few days later she brought a whole box of the sauce which has 100 packets of the sauce and I got another 10 or more of the packets. And ever since I have been planning to make pizza with crust made from scratch,

So Monday night with the weather so yucky, I decided to make my pizza and that sauce was just great. I guess I can use it to make lasagna or spaghetti as well. That is my project for this weekend.

I tried a new recipe for the dough and it is easy and turned out good. So after having made this dough/crust I was enticed to start baking my daily bread.

When my two boys were aged 5 and 7, I used to bake bread everyday and remember them waiting for it to come out of the oven and cutting the two ends and slathering butter on top and just munching on them.

This is how the sauce was packaged and I must have 25 of them right now.

I always make pizza in a rectangular tray, because of the size of the recipe of the dough.

And my strawberry concoction...non alcoholic.





What's cooking/baking?

As a lot of you reading my blog know, I am on a diet and doing well with it. But that does not mean, I don't cook or bake anymore. I still do and enjoy it although I don't much of what I bake.

Update.....I have lost 11 lbs and maintaining it and still try to lose a few more. But the best part is that my blood sugar is now quite stable and I am sure I will not go on insulin for now.

I have a lot of support at work and very thankful for that.

Empanada I tried with a different dough recipe

Beef curry as I wanted to use the peppers I planted.

Salmon dinner with some fancy rice, I made mango salsa, again to use the tomatoes and peppers from my balcony garden. Jared cooked the salmon. I guess he is trying to practice for the new job he has at the Urban Diner.

Yesterday morning, I woke up and found bread that had gone bad and I wanted to eat omelet. So I made buttermilk biscuits from a new recipe but will post picture later. It was nice to eat fresh from the oven biscuits with butter. Yummy!!!!



What's cooking?

Since I have been on a diet, it seems like I have not done a lot of cooking/baking. But I still am doing these things but not as  much as before. Yesterday, I decided to make empanada but tried a different recipe for the dough. It turned out really well.

While looking over the weekend flyers, I noticed that butter is on sale at Shoppers Drug, the regular price there has always been the lowest so I always get my butter from there. And lately I have also been getting baking items and some other stuff as when they are on sale, the prices are really reduced.

My sister already told me I have to cook/bake particular dishes when I visit her this Christmas so I am trying to see if I can find better recipes but most of the time I stick to my tried and true recipes.

A different way of cooking adobo, I pan fried it first and then simmer on low heat and it came out nicer and with nice browning.

I took a picture of this fried egg as the yolk was really orange and not the bright yellow we are accustomed to seeing. And I don't know but it tasted a lot better.

This was part of the diet I was on and I sort of look forward to it as I could not stand tuna. I am still on a diet but almost the diabetic one.

Puffed wheat squares which I love but brought most of it to work for the ladies.

I wanted to make some brownies but will wait since I did not want to sabotage my diet. I have gotten the results of my lab tests and the best news is that my LDL (bad cholesterol) is .97, yes you are reading that right. If it got any lower, I may be the only person I know of who almost have no bad cholesterol. Isn't that amazing?

Since the weather had been really nice most of the week, I have done a lot of walking even today I had walked about 15 blocks, 6 of that with a bit of rain.

Hope your weekend was enjoyable or at least productive.



On the menu.......weekend

I was busy this weekend but I managed to try the choco flan recipe. I have not perfected it yet. I think I have put the flan mixture over the cake mixture fast and did not do it slow so it showed a bit in the finished product. It was yummy!!!!

It is amusing because I put the cake mixture on the bottom and flan mixture on top. But when I turned it over the flan mixture is still on top. Gravity!!!

My specialty strawberry margarita. I got the glass a long time ago when Kelsey's first opened in Edmonton.

We had wings, salad and corn after getting plants on Saturday. The drink is an invention of mine, clementine juice, pineapple juice, grenadine, dark rum, and cointreau blended with ice cubes. Good expecially because I have no clue about bartending.



On the menu....weekend

This was a bit of a busy weekend. I have started my spring cleanup and got my pots ready for when I do my planting. I have no idea what I would plant except I want some tomatoes again.

I had cleaned my patio door and windows and my balcony. Thank God the pigeons are not coming as often as they did a few weeks back.

What I cooked/baked this weekend.

Pineapple upside down cake minus the cherries...

Vegetable tempura