I got back home on a Friday night after a week-long teachers’ boot camp in the province of Laguna. I missed Jeff and the mutants so I was very excited to take care of them and whip up some magic in the kitchen.
One of the exercises facilitated by Kuya Prim Paypon of The Dream Project in that boot camp involved listing down the top 10 things I want to accomplish. He told us to trim down this list to seven, then five, three and finally one.
The one thing that remained was: cook more for my husband.
So here I am on a Sinulog Sunday — which would normally be spent on the streets or the grand stand to witness the Grand Mardi Gras of this year’s Sinulog festival — cooking three dishes that mostly involved vegetables. Jeff and I were one in deciding that this home would have more vegetable dishes serve on the table this year and the years to come.
For lunch, I decided to cook the following: (1) nilat-ang baboy (pork soup); (2) baked potatoes with cheese and spring onions; and (3) ginisang sayote (sautéed chayote).
Dish #1
NILAT-ANG BABOY (PORK SOUP)
I’ve been cooking Dish No. 1 since I was 11 but over time I’ve been adding more and more veggies. I also learned to add the squash early on so it will give the soup a yellow color. I also do this so Antoinette, who doesn’t like veggies but loves soup, can still “eat” vegetables without chewing them.
Dish # 2
BAKED POTATOES WITH CHEESE AND SPRING ONIONS
Dish No. 2 was my favorite meal when we were living in the US. It was my go-to meal during the haggard days of being a full-time, stay-at-home mother. Here is the recipe from my February 2016 post.
Dish #3
GINISANG SAYOTE
Dish No. 3 is a simple but delicious veggie special I learned at the boot camp. It is now one of my favorites! Affordable and healthy!
We ONLY spent around 200 pesos for all three dishes and was able to feed three mutants and four adults.
Jeff and I agreed that the local wet market is the best place to buy fresh produce and not the supermarket. We are assured of the freshest finds and our pesos goes a loooong way.
What’s cooking in your homes these days?
