Hosting for this week's Weekend Herb Blogging is no less than Kalyn herself from Kalyn's Kitchen. For my entry this week, I am featuring another increasingly popular spice - Chili Flakes. Asia Pacific's big suppliers of Chili flakes are China and India. But in the Philippines, we have our own share of real hot and spicy pepper in the form of "siling labuyo" or bird's beak chili. It's believed to be hotter than world renowned Tabasko. Chili adds a different zest to any dish. It's so versatile that it's use is really unbounded. You can add it in sweets, savoury and even in drinks. Have you tasted the latest trend chili-choco drink? How about chili-chocolate ice cream? Don't they sound so intriguing? For now, I won't be attempting to create any of them but I have an equally interesting recipe that'll go with any of your favorite food, Sweet Chili Sauce.

Preparation time: 2 mins

Cooking time: 7 mins

Serves 3 or more

Ingredients:

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients in a sauce pan and allow to boil. Continue cooking for 5 mins with constant stirring.

2. Serve immediately as sauce on fried foods (best in spring rolls), as dip for your favorite crackers or gourmet biscuits, or anything you think it will go well with. Just be adventurous and creative.

I missed the big 6 month celebration of Presto Pasta Night of OnceUponAFeast (sigh...) Thus, I made sure this time my entry came in early. I thought of something that will go as a complete meal. This means having carbohydrates, protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals in it. So, here's an all original recipe of our Beef & Vegetables Hofan that satisfied this criteria. This noodle dish is actually a spin-off of Beef Broccoli in Oyster Sauce which, is a favorite family viand. Hence, you may also opt to serve the beef recipe with rice if you're not in the mood for pasta. I just love the flexibility of it!

Preparation time: 5 mins

Ingredients:

I do heart coffee. If you get interested to read this post, perhaps you are too! The mushrooming of café and coffee shops and the birth of enormous coffee products are living proofs of its growing market. It is now one of the most wanted drinks in all age segments. Yes, young and adults alike. Today, drinking coffee at a very young age is no longer taboo. In fact, scenes of bonding parents and kids frequent cafés. Other than that, isn't it interesting how coffee is personified in many different ways and positioned in most inviting views? Think of a warm conversation between husband and wife over a cup of coffee. Think of connecting with friends, meeting new people or doing business. All things important to us, we frequently do with coffee around. Thus far, it's no longer just a drink made more readily available, it's already a lifestyle. So, here are some of the bits and pieces behind that delightful cup of coffee...

Is there really something good in coffee? Yes, definitely! It keeps you awake, perk up your mood and boost that much needed energy. But what is well noted in many researches is it's being a major source of disease fighting antioxidants. In fact, it's known to be better than black tea.

How is coffee consumed nowadays? From plain and simple black coffee to the most complex flavor profiles, the choices are simply amazing. There's an INSTANT which, is usually in powdered form positioned as something easy to prepare. Grab a mug or cup, just add hot water, stir and it's ready to be sipped. Ready to drink (RTD) coffee, normally in liquid form packed in tin cans. Japan recently made it available also in bottles. As the product name implies, it's something ready to drink anytime, anywhere. Simply the right choice for people on the go. Brewed or machine pressed coffee is prepared at home or in coffee shops by filtering the ground coffee with hot water in coffee machines. It can also be infused by steeping in boiling water which, is the traditional way of preparing coffee. In brewed coffee you get to enjoy the coffee's fresh aroma and taste. This café kind of coffee commonly offers a lot of flavors and mostly appeals to the more adventurous market.

What are the different types of coffee beans? There are generally 4 kinds of coffee beans. Arabica, is believed to be the superior grade coffee bean that boasts of more subtle, delicate flavor and aroma. It is produced in the highlands thus, the most expensive variety as well. Robusta, is bolder than Arabica. It's caffeine content is twice as the former and the flavor is also stronger. In contrast to Arabica, it is grown in the lowlands. This kind of bean provides higher yield in farming that's why it's the preferred raw material for most instant and commercial blends. Liberica, is the most popular variety in the Philippines known by many as "Kapeng Barako". It's called as such due to the large size of berry fruit produced by the tree. It has a very strong taste and aroma especially when consumed "black" that is, no milk nor creamer added. Excelsa, is another favorite by commercial manufacturers. It exhibits similar properties with that of Robusta only it has the ditinguishing characters of smoky and earthly notes. Most coffee manufacturers blend these different types of beans to come up with more varied flavors and taste.

How is the coffee bean processed? The way coffee bean is handled greatly affects its quality. Whether the coffee will deliver better taste, sweet, caramelic and more lasting aroma, it will depend on all these. Generally, it starts with harvesting. Essentially, when this is done the fruit should be of the right maturity. Then followed by sorting where good quality ones are preferred. Afterwards the berry fruit will undergo pulping to remove the pulp and other parchment. This process can be done in two ways either wet (water washing) or dry (sun or machine drying). Water washing is believed to be better because it causes less damage to the bean than the later. For a more detailed comparison, read here. Subsequently, grading will determine the value of the bean. Last but certainly not the least, roasting. This is the most important process for this will determine the degree of taste from mildest (light roast) to strongest (dark roast). The lower the time and temperature parameters used in roasting, the milder it will be and vice versa. Most flavor oils and extracts are likewise incorporated in this stage to produce the flavored coffee bean.

Who are the world's biggest coffee producer? There's an article that says coffee growers are far more important than coffee makers. Wouldn't you agree? Although coffee originated from Ethiopia, countries that topped the list of coffee growers are Brazil, Columbia, Indonesia and Mexico. In Asia, Vietnam is an emerging big producer too. Don't you wish the Philippines be included in this list? I don't believe our most treasured "Barako" brand will fail in comparison alongside other world brands. What's more with the up and coming of Coffee Alamid? There's no better time to reinvent and develop our coffee industry than now!

TRINOMA - the youngest Ayala Mall recently opened in Quezon City, generally shows nothing new. It basically has the same mall offering as those we already frequented anywhere in the Metro. Some things worth noting are probably, the proliferation of "new", imported stuffs like this beauty and skin care shop from Australia (the name just didn't register so well so I can't remember), nice landscape outside the mall, being the birthplace of some new restaurants and cafe such as Five Cows and Mrs. Fields Cookie Cafe, spacious cinema lobby and game zone, convenient location and for in-housing another shoppers' haven, the Landmark. Unfortunately, it's still one of the many unopened stores in the mall. One thing that needs significant improvement though is the availability of better signages to and from the carpark area. We find the existing quite confusing and hardly recognizable. On a lighter note, below are some of our good finds that'll give enough reasons for a second visit.

Just the right size carousel. Check it out while there's still a promo. There's an additional P10 plus 1 free ride when you reload your Timezone PowerCard.

Cold Rock, your new kind of ice cream!

Max Brenner, for that rich coffee drink!

This Resto and Ice Cream Bar really caught our attention when we're roaming around at the 4th level. The resto's name, the menu card, the resto-look and that inviting service won't just let you pass by. When I started to peruse their menu, mouth watering assortment glittered right before my eyes. So, tell me how can we resist?! Minutes after that, we're already savouring these...

Kids seemed so lucky nowadays. Their needs are simplified, tailored fit, made more fun and even better. From more comfortable nappies to power packed milks and vitamins, to more educational toys and techie gadgets even to fun hair grooming! Moms and dads fret no more! Gone are the days for this frightening, so hard to do hair cutting activity. Kiddie Salons made it all easier for us. It simply makes the hair comb - scissors encounter more enjoyable and less traumatic. So what's in a kiddie salon experience? Apart from that refreshing new hair cut, inviting and familiar toys with some favorite kiddie programs await young customers in this establishment. This provides a comforting ambiance to the kid that'll help make the job easier to do. Let's just call it a needed conditioning process. It should be emphasized however, that the skills and the patience of the hair stylist is of prime importance as in making the place more entertaining as possible. Valuing kids' safety all the time, is a mission to work for. Entrepreneurs behind this business concept deserved real commendation. They made a good job in addressing their PTM's (primary target market) needs. Now, getting a hair cut is something that kids will look forward to. However, there are still parents who would rather do the thing than entrust their kids to the hands of someone else. For some, maybe because they are just too careful to be trusting especially for their real young tots, or maybe for the practical ones, they don't find much value for money for the cost of the hair cut. For a price range of P200 - P250, wouldn't you really expect something from it? Whatever the reason is, I believe all parents are one in the purpose of providing what's vital for their kids.

In May-June 2007 issue of MomsToday (a parenting magazine in the Philippines), they featured the "10 tips to raise young readers". This article caught my attention because we certainly are raising a "book lover". According to Michelle Gan, "reading is the first skill required to understand and apply concepts, both at work and in life". We are glad that we did not have any difficulty instilling this skill with our son even at a very young age. He’s still a tot but he's someone who would rather trade toys for books. I’ve already proven this a number of times. We don’t have to drag him to go to a bookstore instead of a toyshop. Hence, it was such a treat for him when we went to the newly opened Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street. As expected, he did not go out of the store empty handed. Some friends are asking me how we honed him as such. I think primarily because we started as early as possible. From the moment I felt him growing inside my tummy, we are already journeying together through books. I read something to him as often as I can and it’s not limited to story books and rhymes alone. Even books that I’m reading for work, I communicate my learnings with him. There’s this mother's instinct that told me he would understand in some way. Probably, this is why sometimes we heard people saying nobody is too young to understand. For me what mattered more is that we’re already communicating, establishing our connections even before I helped him see the real world.

Apart from that, leading a good example greatly helps. Apparently, book is one of the many things that connected me and my husband together. We share the same passion for it. Also, we make sure that we visit a bookstore whenever we go to the mall. It’s but an indispensable part of our weekend itinerary. Likewise, books topped the list of our rewards to our kids. It’s a gift waiting at the end of a good behaviour or any milestone. There are actually many ways of molding a lifelong book lover. What's fundamental is to find that, which will rightly fit the parents' objectives as well as the kid's needs and interests. It's but essential to tailor fit.

Umenoya, a japanese term for a flower is a popular Japanese Restaurant in Paseo de Sta. Rosa. It offers great selection of real tasty japanese cuisine. The best time to dine here is during lunch. Because it is only at lunch time that they offer the bento sets at affordable prices (starts at P200++). On other meal occasions you have to order a la carte style and you may find that some food are a bit over priced. We keep on coming back here and undoubtedly, the taste is consistently good. Unfortunately, we noticed that the service is deteriorating in quality. My colleagues and I recently dined here and we were so dismayed with the poor service rendered to us. We’ve been standing inside the resto for quite awhile waiting for a waiter to approach us and give us some seats. But all that we saw were crews running here and there at the top of their voices. For seconds, we thought we were given a market feel instead of a decent to say the least ambiance! When we were finally seated after making so much attempts to get the waiters' attention, we felt that the table is just not comfortable for a group of five. Therefore, we requested to be transferred to a new one, preferrably the "tatami room" since it's the only table available at that time. However, one of their crews told us that there's a minimum charge of P1500 for the room. Imagine, they have to compute for our bill first so they can decide if they will transfer us or not. It’s quite annoying really! We went there with our hungry stomachs and the least that we would expect (or any customer for that matter) is poor service. We feel that the 10% additional service charge is definitely not worth it. To think that the service charge is added on top of the tax, huh! Anyway, this is the first time that we experience this kind of treatment at Umenoya. Unless they do something to improve on their service, and had it not been for their food, surely I will never go back.

It happened once again, I almost didn't make it to this Presto Pasta Night by Ruth Daniels of Once Upon A Feast. Why am I always beating the deadline huh? I think I really need to make some improvements on my blog hopping activity. Lucky me this time! I still had a day to prepare for my initial entry. This is another fun and exciting activities of food bloggers around. Each week, all pasta lovers are encouraged to submit a pasta dish of their own and share it with the rest of the blogging community. Ruth makes a wrap up on fridays so everyone can have something to relish on weekends. Being a big fan of Pasta, I simply can't pass on this one. By the way, Pasta here means all types of NOODLES. After checking what ingredients I've got in our pantry, I've decided to make this simple, popular Filipino-Chinese noodle dish called "Stir-fried Chow Mein Noodles". It is more commonly known in the Philippines as Pancit Canton.

**read Ruth Daniels' wrap up here, we're included

Preparation time: 5 mins

Cooking time: 30 mins

Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

200 g pack Pancit Canton (Chow Mein Noodles)

250 g chicken breast, cut into strips

1 cup cabbage, chopped

1 small carrots, julienne

100 g green beans, cut in diagonals

1 cup chinese cabbage, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1/8 cup soy sauce

1 1/4 cups chicken broth or 1 chicken bouillon dissolved in 1 1/4 cups of water

3 hard boiled eggs, quartered

1 beaten egg
3 tbsps canola oil

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Add canola oil in a heated wok. Saute onion, garlic and chicken.

2. Add all vegetables and saute for a few minutes. Set aside.

3. Bring water or chicken broth to a boil. Add soy sauce, salt and pepper to taste.

4. Add the noodles, stir-fry and cook.

5. Mix previously sauted vegetables and chicken.

6. Add beaten egg and continue stir-frying for 2 mins.

7. Transfer to a serving dish and top with hard boiled eggs.

It's Weekend Herb Blogging once again by Kalyn's Kitchen. The host for this week is Zorra of Kochtopf. Last week I blogged about Moringa, one of the nutritious leaves we have in the planet. This week, I am featuring its nutritious kin Ampalaya, scientifically known as Momordica Charantia and Bitter Melon in English. Ampalaya is a widely cultivated plant in the Philippines. It's getting more and more popular nowadays due to its invaluable health benefits. In actual fact, a number of researches have proven Ampalaya’s ability to increase the production of “beta cells” by the pancreas. This leads to the body’s improved production of insulin. In this way, Ampalaya became most notable for its effectiveness to combat diabetes. We are proud that the Philippine variety is considered as the most potent. Thus, the Department of Health of the Philippines (DOH) endorsed it as one of the best herbal medicines for liver problems and diabetes.

In the Philippines, taste preference is very extreme. Looking at the types of foods available either home cooked, restaurant or commercially made, Filipinos generally want something salty, sour and sweet. Undoubtedly, the latter is considered the most well liked taste driver for many Filipino foods. As a consequence, it’s not surprising that there are about 3 million Filipinos now estimated by DOH as diabetic. To a greater extent people are looking for remedies against this disease and ampalaya surely topped the list.

However, due to the vegetable’s inherent “bitter” taste its consumption is very selective. In truth, this was one of my unwanted vegetables when I was a kid until I went to school and learned about the food pyramid in greater details. Now that I am a mom and a home maker, I am aware of my responsibility for my family’s health and wellness. I have to ensure our menu plan will not only satisfy our taste buds but more importantly it shall meet the family’s nutritional requirements. Thus far, even still at their toddler years I am starting to encourage my kids to eat vegetables. Ampalaya, apart from being known for the treatment of diabetes is also a good source of other essential nutrients such as vitamins A, B and C, iron, calcium and phosphorus. It is for these nutrional rewards that this simple dish usually frequents our dining table.

Warm from the oven PIZZA, rich CHOCOLATEY treat, frosty ICE CREAM, delightful DOUGHNUTS, creamy PARFAITS, savoury CHIPS, oh so yummy CAKES, mouth-watering STEAKS, even that lip-smacking, crispy Lechon (fire-roasted pork) ...the list can go on and on. These are the foods we often get to indulge. We normally heart them because they deliver pleasure and satisfaction in many different notes. The word indulgent is defined here as tolerant, lenient, favourably inclined, yielding to the wishes or appetites, mostly to excessive consumption – put it simply, to give in. All yummy attributes just seemed so fitting to indulgent foods. In fact, we often end it with “insanely delicious!” remarks. On the contrary, they are also referred to as “sinful”. Enticing and delectable as they can be, indulgent foods can also take their toll on our health. These are the foods that usually contain substances which when taken in excessive amounts can lead to unhealthy results. Indulgent foods are typically rich, fatty, sweet and high in calories. Yet, we still opt to have them because we’re willing to splurge for the experience.

Some said the pleasure of eating is only in the mouth. Once the food followed the digestive pathway, all olfactory and gustatory stimuli will be gone. Admittedly though, we cannot resign to the pleasures of the sensory experience. It’s but an indispensable part of the eating process. Nonetheless, there are those who have already given it up for some dietary concerns and for the more important preservation of good health. For the others who hardly can resist, why not go for a better alternative? Decide on low fat, no sugar, bite size servings against hefty ones; better yet indulge on a regular exercise to strike a balance and make up for bingeing in rich foods.