Apple Butter

Apple Butter

Apple Butter, uuuummmmm, uuummmmh. Another slow-cooker recipe. I always have fruits in my fruit basket. Always. And one of the fruits that I always have is apple. And what do you do with tons of over-ripe, left-over apples? -----you make them into Apple Butter! If you don't know what apple butter is, well its Apples in a creamy version but much better.  It has the consistency of an apple sauce/ jam texture but thicker, creamier and delicious. I can tell you that you'll want to slather  this apple butter on just about anything that is well, slatherable! I usually just eat it by the spoonful. Fills me right up. It's sweet, thick and reminiscent of apple pie. I love apple pie. 

Ingredients:

10 apples or so {I use a mix of apples; Gala, burnbrae, macintosh- use as many as you want}

1 cup honey or 1 cup sugar {you can adjust the sugar if the apples are sweet enough}

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 ground cloves

1/4 tsp. nutmeg {optional}

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract {optional}

 Directions:

Slice and core apples. {you can peel the apples, I prefer with the skin on, more fibers}

Throw all the ingredients in the slow cooker and let it simmer on high or low heat for 5-6 hours or longer, and let simmer. Stirring on occasions.

All in one pot.

The house smells so great.

5-6 hours later, it should look like this.......all mushy and tender.

Using your immersion blender, puree the mixture until smooth in consistency. {you can do it right off the crock pot or transfer the mixture to a blender}. Be careful with the immersion blender, I had to scrap off the splatters on my cabinets! 

Allow to cool completely and transfer to airtight containers to refrigerate or freeze. Refrigerating it can last up to 2-3 weeks- I highly doubt it can last this long.

10 apples yielded a full jar for me. You can canned the apple butter mixture, {check canning instructions}, this can lasts up to 2 years.

Apple Butter! This is so easy to make and has lots of uses. You can spread it on toasts, or croissants. Spread it over ice cream. Use as a filling for crepes. Serve with pork chops. Or just eating it plain by the spoonfuls for breakfast. Need I convince you more? Enjoy Apple buttering!

Pork Chops for the Slow Cooker

Pork Chops 

The weather dipped to closed to -40 this week and its freezing! Been too busy with life and everything in between aswell! So my time in the kitchen these past few days have been limited. The more better excuse to take my out my slow-cooker. I rarely use my slow-cooker, and I truly appreciate it more so now...and of course it was given to me by John- he always get me a cool gadget or tools in the kitchen without me asking it. He knows how I love kitchen tools or anything with kitchen stuff. Really, it dawned on me why I never use it in the kitchen as much. Well, its going to get some using this week. Here's a pork-chop recipe for you to try. It's tender and smackingly delicious.

6-8 pork chops

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. ground ginger

salt and pepper

1/2 cup soy sauce

1 tsp. garlic powder or 3 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar or vinegar will do

1 cup ketchup

Throw all the ingredients in the crock-pot on high or low heat and let simmer for 5-6 hours. Stirring on occasions. 

The house smells amazing.......

*********I rarely use my crock-pot due to the fact, I'm always scared leaving it "ON" for  hours. I always use it when I'm around at home. Despite, what everyone says, "you can walk-away and leave it  for few hours", I always treat the slow-cooker as a stove, and it shouldn't be leaf unattended.{just my preference}.

Pork Chops! Yummo. This is really fork tender and delicious. I shouldn't say more, just go ahead and try this recipe for yourself at home.

Moroccan Beef stew with chickpeas

Moroccan Beef stew with chickpeas

I have been so busy with work lately, that I needed a  recipe that calls for a one-pot- wonder. Enter Moroccan Beef stew with chickpeas recipe. Literally, you throw everything in your crock-pot and a few hours, while you do your errands or work around the house, you have food ready in a few hours and your house smells great with the dish cooking. Pretty much most of the ingredients called for this recipe are pantry ready, {I usually stock my vegetable tray in the fridge with potatoes, carrots or any vegetables I need or want to experiment- they usually last for at least 2 weeks, potatoes maybe longer}. I stock my pantry with  canned beans of any kind- red, white, kidney, chickpeas or mixed.  These are so handy, and any canned  tomato sauce, paste, crushed, or minced variety. Also, the weather has dipped to -40 this week and this recipe is one that calls for cocooning at home! 

Ingredients:

Beef {cubed}

1-2 carrots chopped

2 peeled potatoes cubed

1 onion sliced

crushed garlic

salt and pepper

1 can diced or crushed tomatoes

1 cup raisins

1 can drained chickpeas {or whatever beans you have in your pantry}

dried oregano and basil

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. tumeric {optional, if you don't have it}

Throw all your ingredients, except your chickpeas to your crock-pot on low or high and let it cook away for couple hours {about 5-6 hours}. When the meat is cooked through and fork tender, pour your drained chickpeas and let it simmer for another half-an hour or so. Serve and enjoy!

Diced, cubed, and mixed all your vegetables and place everything in your crock-pot and leave it alone. Easy peasy as that.

The house smells so great while this dish was simmering.

The chickpeas added is a low-fat protein that sure is great for the body! Bonus!

After 5-6 hours, this dish looks like this.

Moroccan Beef Stew with chickpeas, I love this dish! Comfort food when its too cold outside and you don't want to cook. Easy to prepare and yummy!

Grilled Teriyaki Salmon with Stir Fry Bokchoy

Grilled Teriyaki Salmon and Stir Fry Bokchoy

Feeling under the weather lately, battling a cold/ flu, I opened the fridge and looked in bewilderment with what to do with a Salmon that I bought 2 days ago. It's frozen now as I never got around to cooking it the other day. This time, I decided to switch it up with the seasoning. I wanted to recreate the flavors I had when dining at a Japanese Village restaurant a year ago, it was very delicious. And with a various Asian condiments I have on hand, {my impulse ingredient shopping  a couple weeks ago}, I need to make a good use of these. I have cooked salmon before, but I always just throw in whatever I feel like putting in it, which can be a good or a bad recipe. This time will be different, I'll follow a  Teriyaki recipe. {fingers crossed}.

Ingredients:

4-5 slices of salmon

 Marinate sauce: 1 tbsp. honey

1 tbsp. Soy sauce

  1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
t tbsp. mirin

2 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. minced garlic
pinch of salt and pepper

5 heads of bokchoy cut in half {most grocery store carry this}

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. minced ginger
salt and pepper to taste

For glazing {Optional}: Balsamic vinegar, Siracha {chili flakes can be substituted}, and a splash of lemon juice

Pour  half of  the marinate sauce over salmon fish for 30 minutes or longer.  Heat pan grill to medium high heat and spray or pour 1 tsp. olive over pan. {this prevents the salmon from sticking}. Cook salmon 6 minutes per sides. {I always like to see the grill marks on my fish and its ready to flip when the salmon slides on the pan and doesn't stick}. Brush glaze sauce as much as you want. This gives a nice sweet flavor to the salmon.

Cut bokchoy in half, and saute it with olive oil, minced garlic and ginger and pour the remaining marinated sauce over it.

 Garnish with toasted sesame seeds {optional}.

Serve immediately to enjoy.  The marinate gives the botchoy a sweeter flavor and I can't get enough of this. It truly complements this dish.

Teriyaki Salmon.

Teriyaki Salmon, this is going to be my regular marinate from now on.

Grilled Teriyaki Salmon, better than the Japanese Village restaurant I went to. Another home run on this!

Taho

Taho- Silken Tofu

Taho is a famous street food back home in the Philippines. It consists of silken tofu, brown sugar syrup, and tapioca or sago pearls. This is enjoyed as a breakfast drink or a snack mostly in the morning or anytime of the day. It has a sweet custard like texture from the tofu, and  sweet brown sugar syrup with chewy, crunchy  tapioca pearls. I remember, early morning in Makati where I stayed I would always have taho in the mornings before I get to my bus ride. I always ask for extra tapioca pearls. I remember when we were little, we eagerly await the taho vendor- "Tahooooooooooo" and we run outside with our spare change and our own mugs {the bigger the better} and you get priced according to your mug size. Here's a quick recipe for this. I'm not really sure whether to classify this as a drink or a food. You be the judge. 

Ingredients:

1 package of silken tofu {you can find this at your local grocery stores}

tapioca pearls {optional}

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp. water

Get a great quality silken tofu.

Directions:

Cook tapioca pearls per package directions. Set aside and let cool.

In a sauce pan, heat sugar and 1 tbsp. water on a medium heat, make sure the sugar is all melted and brown or caramel color. Let completely cool and set aside.

Place silken tofu in a heat proof mug, cover mug with a cling wrap or a saucer plate to prevent water from coming in and place on a steamer and steamed for 15 mins. {You can also use the microwave for this- microwave it for 1-2 minutes}. I prefer the steaming method as it yields better result. Remove mug from steamer and top with sugar syrup and tapioca pearls. Serve it while warm.  

Brown sugar caramel. Take sugar syrup  from heat when it turns amber in color.

If you are curious about this, try it! you might be surprised you might like this. Tofu is a great source of protein by the way.

I didn't have tapioca pearls, but I didn't seemed to mind it. It still gave me the reminiscent  sweet, sticky, brown sugar syrupy flavor.

I got my Taho fix today, mmmmmmh. Yum.

Tahoooooo! I could hear the vendor screaming. I'm pretty sure everyone has their Taho stories to tell growing up enjoying this treat. Tahooooooo!

Zucchini Ribbons and Elbow Macaroni pasta

Zucchini with Macaroni Pasta

One of my mantra in the kitchen is to use as many possible ways I could with whatever ingredients I have on hand.  I always love to experiment with food. Sometimes, the unexpected recipes and combinations provides the best flavorful recipes. I always pride myself with that. Most often it comes out perfect and delicious. That's how I perfected my Spare ribs! {It's to die for- I kid you not}. Here's another dish that I was inspired from my risotto recipe, with the leftover zucchini vegetables.

Ingredients:

2-3 zucchini vegetables
1 tsp. canola oil and a 1 tsp. butter

1/2 tsp. mirin sauce

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar

salt and pepper

1 clove of garlic

dash of parsley {optional}

2 tbsp. minced onion

1 tbsp. Knorr Chicken bouillon

2 cups cooked elbow macaroni pasta

1 cup pasta water

Directions:

Peel zucchini like ribbons using a mandolin or a peeler and set aside.

Saute onions until translucent, and add garlic in oil and butter. Add zucchini ribbons and cook for 1-2 minutes. Pour mirin, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and cook for another 1 minutes. Add cooked pasta to the vegetables and season with salt and pepper and Knorr chicken bouillon and cook for another 2-3 minutes until vegetables is cooked through. Pour pasta water if its too dry.{this will create a creamy sauce}. Serve immediately. 

Sauteing zucchini ribbons.

Love. Love. Love this dish. It's so simple to make.

This is so good. I like my pasta a day old, it seems to absorb more of the flavor the next day. {just my preference}.

Zucchini Ribbons with pasta! Enjoy!