TheAljay: April 2011

Friday, April 22, 2011

Lutu-Lutuan Portion: Tuna Carbonara on Budget

Lutu-lutuan Portion

I grew up in the kitchen (it is not obvious in my figure, though) watching my mom cooking. I must say that I've learned lotsa things about her recipes.

Here's a recipe of Tuna Carbonara added is my secret personal touché. LOL

Good Friday Dinner =)

What we need:

minced garlic and sliced shallots

1/4 cup butter

2 cans of hot and spicy Century Tuna

300 grams spaghetti pasta

250ml all-purpose cream

My Secret Weapon (instead of cream of mushroom)

2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon iodized salt

2 tablespoon hot sauce (alternative to crushed pepper or to chili flakes)

1 tablespoon chicken powder

How to cook:

1. Boil water with oil and salt. Add the pasta and cook for 10 to 12 minutes.

2. Sauté garlic and shallots in butter until caramelized.

3. Add the drained canned tuna (set aside the oil included in the can). Sauté until the tuna is cooked.

4. Add the cream of mushroom. But here I'm using my secret ingredient. =)

5. Add iodized salt, chicken powder, freshly ground pepper, hot sauce, and all-purpose cream.

6. Simmer for 2 minutes.

7. Add the oil that came with the canned tuna and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Best served with iced soda. =)

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Cyma

“Know that in cooking, no seasoning is equal to the sauce of impudence.”

- Athenaeus

Second Century B.C.E.

After several months of having a crazy schedule, me and my friend, Jyv, finally got the time to eat out last Sunday, 3^rd of April 2011.

The original plan was to eat at Van Gogh is Bipolar Restaurant/Café in Sikatuna Village. We were there at past 6pm and it was still closed. I wasn't sure if we were too early or was it just that they did not plan to open that night. Though, the sign says business hours are from 6pm to 12:30pm, every day except Thursday. Hence, we decided to go to Eastwood and look for a something we haven't tried, yet. Our taste buds brought us to Cyma. A Greek inspired restaurant located at the 2^nd level of Eastwood Mall. I believe this is the only restaurant in Metro Manila that serves Greek inspired dishes. They have another branch located at 6^th floor of Shangri–La Plaza Mall.

For our orektika (appetizer), we had the Cyma Caesar (Caesar Salad). The only thing that I liked about their salad was that the romaine lettuces were cut into smaller pieces which made eating easier. I did not like that their croutons were flavored. I always want my croutons plain wether for salad or for soup.

Pastisado

(Greek Osso Bucco - beef shank braised in Greek tomato sauce, served over spaghetti)

I ordered Pastisado for the my maid dish that was like a calderetang bulalo served on top of spaghetti. The spaghetti was thicker than the usual which actually looked like the lomi. The meat was so tender. It felt like eating beef sardines maybe because of the manner that it was cooked.

IMPORTANT: Please be wary in ordering a solo meal especially when you are eating alone. In some restaurant, solo servings means single crocodile serving which if converted, is good for 2 to 3 human beings. Don't be like me, ait?

Jyv enjoying her Lamb Gyro

(marinated lamb with tomatoes, red onions, tzatzik and wrapped in pita)

Jyv had the Lamb Gyro which is like the shawarma except that the filling included a lot of herbs and that it was served with potato wedges (additional Php100) and creamy spicy dip. She found the serving too big for her; but for me, it was just fine. Both of us did not finish our food and had them taken out.

We decided not to order glyka (dessert) as there were no enough space left in our tummy.

For a complete list of their menu, click here.

It was a fine night. We did a little shopping after the dinner and had coffee with Yance. I love trying new stuff.

Cheers,

TheAljay