The Sassy Lawyer & Pinoy Cook on food, family and home.
There are many misconceptions about leche flan. One, that it is the Filipino version of crème brûlée. It is not, actually. Leche flan is the Filipino version of crème caramel, not crème brûlée. The difference? Crème brûlée has a hard caramel top created by sprinkling sugar on top of the cooked custard then broiling or ... (more)
This is an updated version of a recipe originally published on September 22, 2003. Whether you call it pancit molo or molo soup, it is the same basic Filipino soup dish — pork dumpling or wonton soup often with bits of cooked chicken in the broth. I’ve always wondered why it goes with a pancit ... (more)
The term “buko pandan” can mean either of two things. The first is buko pandan dessert with coconut meat and cubes of pandan-flavored pudding (made with gelatin or agar-agar) mixed with cream and sweetened condensed milk. The second is an iced drink made with coconut juice, shredded coconut meat and cubes of pandan-flavored pudding. The ... (more)
“Tie-dye” is a process of dyeing fabric so that unique patterns are formed usually in bright colors. Sam was the one who brought the idea into our house. She tie-dyed some shirts and I even managed to photograph her at work. The idea of using the tie-dyeing technique on food is nothing new. If you ... (more)
Some five days ago, craving for something sweet past midnight, Speedy started spooning dulce de leche from its container. He was in the kitchen and a few inches away was the jar of Nutella. I don’t know provoked him. He scooped some dulce de leche with his teaspoon then scooped Nutella. He ate the two ... (more)
For non-Filipinos, and for Filipinos who left to settle elsewhere in the world before Java rice became the better half of all things grilled, Java rice is a yellow fried rice. As to why it is yellow, the most reasonable guess would be turmeric. More than six years after I first posted a recipe for ... (more)
This is an updated version of a recipe originally published in 2006. The name of the dish sounds Spanish but, surprisingly, it is also a staple in most Chinese restaurants in the Philippines. I’m pretty sure that the Chinese don’t call their version of this pork dish asado. It’s more probable that Filipinized Chinese used ... (more)
My father loved Petula Clark’s songs. He had a tape of her album and he often played it in the car. I was very young, not even in school yet, but after listening to her songs over and over, I could do a perfect “Downtown” sing-along. If you’re not familiar with it, the song is ... (more)
Question: What’s worse than finding a worm in your apple? Oh, I’m sure you know the answer. That joke’s older than I am. You don’t know the answer? Oooohh… What’s worse than finding a worm in you apple is finding half a worm in your apple. Gross? Oh, lighten up. A healthy sense of humor ... (more)
The Antipolo Cathedral, home of the Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage (Nuestra Senora de la paz Y Buenviaje), is still a popular destination although the numerous resorts are attracting more local tourists these days. We’re an hour or two hour from the city, near enough for weekend trips but because this town sits ... (more)
What Speedy really wanted was a dish that goes like this: A deboned and stuffed chicken is stuffed into a deboned duck and the duck is stuffed into a deboned turkey. Even granting that I can debone a turkey and a duck, something I’ve never done before, I don’t know how we can finish all ... (more)
Last Tuesday, we finally did what we’ve been saying we’d do for the last two years. Speedy and I finally experienced SEx in the city. No, the experience has nothing to do with the reproductive organs. Rather, it has to do with the digestive system. SEx is short for Sinangag Express, or fried rice express, ... (more)
Casa is Spanish for house. CASA is also an acronym for Connie, Antonio, Sam and Alex. We are all surnamed Veneracion. We all love to take photos -- of anything that catches our fancy. It's a family obsession.
This is a journal of how we live, eat, learn, play and have fun. Work? Work is part of playing and having fun. Seriously.
In 2003, a time when I hadn't heard of the term "blog", I started a recipe website at cooking.houseonahill.net using a now defunct content management system that ran on ASP. Ok, never mind the geek talk, I'm sure you're not interested in that. The contents easily multiplied and, in 2004, I moved the food site to pinoycook.net. Always unhappy with the fact that the dot com … »»
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