Margherita Frittata

Frittata or egg cake is a famous Italian dish. It is egg- based and often baked. It's like pie or cake. Only, the egg holds the ingredients together. I made some for breakfast today. It can be served for lunch and dinner as well, it will depend on what type of Frittata you plan to make. Some have pasta in it, potatoes, vegetables and meat.

Like my usual omelet, I used basic, onions and tomatoes. Then I added button mushrooms, fresh basil leaves, Vienna sausage, yellow bell peppers, cheese and white sauce of my own. It perfectly matched my favorite fried Danggit.

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs (beaten)
• 2 medium tomatoes (chopped into small pieces)
• 2 medium tomatoes (sliced into round pieces)
• 1 medium white onion (chopped into small pieces)
• 1 small can Vienna sausage (chopped)
• a cup of button mushrooms (chopped)
• 1 medium bell pepper (sliced into sticks)
• 1/2 cup grated cheese
• 2 tbsp  olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter (melted)
• a dash of salt and pepper

Procedure:

• Preheat oven at 375 degrees.
• In a frying pan, heat olive oil.
• Saute chopped onions and tomatoes. Stir for a few seconds.
• Add vienna sausage and mushrooms, stir until cooked.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Add chopped fresh basil, stir for a few seconds. Set aside.

• Butter baking platter or pan.
• Set stir- fried vegetables and sausage in buttered pan.
• Pour in beaten eggs.
• Arrange sliced tomatoes and whole basil leaves over the egg mixture.
• Top the platter with grated cheese.
• Bake for 20-30 minutes.
• Cool it a bit in room temperature before serving.

Tips: 

1. Frittata can also be fried also known as open faced omelet.

2. Add cream or white sauce on top to make it soft and smooth.

Longganisa With a Twist

Longganisa/ Longaniza is a famous breakfast food, sausage made of ground meat, usually with a sweet or garlicky taste. Traditionally cooked by simmering it in small amount of water until dry, poked with a fork so it's natural oil spurts out, then fried using its own oil.

 My choice of Longganisa is skinless, lean and not too sweet. I like serving a regular skinless Longganisa in different ways, here's one: 

Servings: 2- 3

Ingredients:

• 5-6 Longganisas chopped into small pieces. 
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 whole fresh garlic minced,  or about 2 tbsp of processed garlic bits.
• 1/2 tsp of lemon juice/ orange or calamansi juice

Directions:

• In a pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil.
• Saute minced garlic until light brown.
• Add chopped Longganisa (skinless or not).
• Stir fry for about a minute on medium heat.
• Add lemon juice or any unsweetened citrus juice available.
• Stir fry for another 30 seconds.

Serve it with hot rice, some eggs and slices of fresh tomatoes.

Often times, I eat Longganisa with vinegar on the side. With this recipe, the tangy taste that the vinegar's suppose to give is already mixed with the Longganisa thru the fresh citrus juice.

Thursday Breakfast: Tinapa at Sinangag

Tinapa: Smoked Fish
Sinangag: Fried Garlic Rice

Favorite breakfast meal of most Filipinos. The smoked fish can also be served with cane vinegar. I like mine with tomatoes and white onion.

I was originally planning to cook spam and eggs for breakfast today. I seldom cook dried fish or smoked fish for breakfast, my husband isn't really a fan of it. My son... he's learning to love it now. This morning, I made a quick visit to the market. I was one of the early birds so I was able to buy fresh Tinapa. The smell was not only tempting but it was inviting as well. When I got back, I immediately prepared Sinangag which has been the perfect match, some tomatoes and onions on the side.

My Ultimate Breakfast Duo

Champorado and Bacon

Champorado or sweet chocolate rice porridge. It's sticky rice mixed with cocoa powder.

Often served hot also cold  with milk and sugar, eaten during breakfast and sometimes as an afternoon snack for the kids. Best served with dried fish called Tuyo.

Since I'm allergic to dried fish, I prefer it with bacon or toasted Spam slices instead. Yum!

Food Trip Friday

Beef Salpicao

It's one of those nights when you want to eat something new using the very same ingredients of the regular viand served within the week. One thing I like about breakfast steaks is it's flexibility to become an all-around beef ingredient. I use breakfast steak for dishes like: Filipino Beef Steak, Beef Curry, Peppered Steak, Beef Broccoli and the latest ---Beef Salpicao.

Beef Salpicao also known as Stir-fried garlic beef.

My favorite Beef Salpicao version is the one from Slice N' Dice. Beef Strips combined with their special gravy sauce topped with mushrooms and roasted garlic.

I made my own version for dinner last night.

Basing it on how it tasted from a previous food adventure, I gladly say yes, I was able to nail the taste. The presentation? well, that depends on how you like you Beef Salpicao.

Servings: 3-4

Ingredients: (Marinate)
1/2 K beef (breakfast steak)
5 cloves of garlic chopped
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 Calamondin Juice
1 packet of Splenda
a pinch of salt and ground pepper


Ingredients: (Actual Dish)
3 tbsp EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
10 cloves of garlic minced
2 tbsp left-over marinate
1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 tsp all purpose flour
21/2 cups water

How To:

Marinate beef in soy sauce, Calamondin juice, chopped garlic, splenda, salt and pepper for 1 hour.

DISH:

• After marinating, in a pan, simmer beef steak in 2 Cups of water until tender. Cut into strips then set aside with the excess sauce.

• In the very same pan, saute minced garlic in olive oil until golden brown.
• Add beef strips and excess sauce from boiling, stir for a few minutes.

note: excess sauce: the oil from the beef and water from boiling if there are any left in the pan. Add them all.

• Add butter. Keep stirring until melted. Low fire.
  
• In a cup, mix flour, 2tbsp marinate and 1/2 cup water and mix until well-blended
• Add mixture with the beef
• Add salt and pepper to taste
  

I prefer mixing the garlic with the beef than using it as a topping. It makes the dish more delicious and tasty.

You can add button mushrooms too.

Note: I didn't use beef cubes. I boiled the meat to extract it's flavor. Using the old-fashioned way is healthier.

Scrambled Eggs with Ham and Cheese

As requested by my husband. It took me months to prepare this easy scrambled egg dish for breakfast again. Aside from serving it with hot rice and coffee, I enjoy eating it with bread.Mix your preferred omelet ingredients in a pan.
Stir for about a minute. Add beaten eggs.
Add quick melt cheese.

Join Us Friday Food Trippers at: Food Trip Friday

Filipino Tapa

Originally, Tapa is the name of a wide variety of appetizers in the Spanish cuisine. It is a traditional dish of salt-cured beef, fried and eaten as a full meal, usually for breakfast with garlic-fried rice and fried eggs, along with a chili-vinegar dip.

There is also a sweet variant of tapa, with the sugar added. Anotheris the (wet) type, which has strips of beef cooked in water, vinegar, and soy sauce and flavored with calamansi, garlic, and sugar.The ingredients and preparation are almost the same with the Filipino Beef Steak. Only, my tapa recipe has artificial sweetner in it, instead of sugar.

What You Will Be Needing:

1/2 K Sirloin Beef ( Beef Steak cut is good)

1 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup Calamansi juice ( i like it on my steak)

3 small packets of Equal

2 pinches of salt and pepper

2 tbsp vinegar

5 cloves garlic minced

How To:

Marinade

Cut beef into tiny pieces. If you're using beef steak cut, tenderize the meat first. Ask your local market meat vendor to cut your steak thinner than the usual.

In a container, mix the meat pieces with the rest of the ingredients.

Marinate over night.

Cooking

Separate meat from the marinade
In a frying pan put marinated meat and 1/4 cup water

Bring to boil until dry

Stir meat continuously until meat is cooked. Add oil if necessary

Best served with tomato and onion salad.
Most of the time we serve Tapa with sunny side up egg. We call the dish TAPSILOG (tapa, with sinangag (fried rice) and egg). It is served during breakfast in restaurants and at our very own homes.