Filipinos have been enjoying chocolate cereal long before the likes of Cocoa Puffs, Cocoa Pebbles, Cocoa Crisp, Count Chocula, or Chocolate Frosted Frosty Krusty Flakes (Only sugar has more sugar!) ever entered the sweet-toothed maws of hungry children. Although these factory-produced, mass-marketed, sugar-filled cereals are fine and dandy for breakfast (I've enjoyed many of them), they lack the rustic homemade charm, and overall stick-to-yo-ribs-ness, of Filipino Champorado.
Champorado may perhaps be the original chocolate cereal as it is quite literally a "chocolate cereal"--it's made from chocolate tablea and cereal grains in the form of sweet sticky rice. Put more simply though, Champorado can best be described as a sort of chocolate rice porridge. Or perhaps it can be likened to a warm bowl of oatmeal crossed with a chocolate bar--only better. Way better.
Although cacao trees flourish in the tropical climes of the Philippines, chocolate is not indigenous to the islands. In fact, like a few other Filipino foods, chocolate was introduced to the Philippines by Spain via Mexico (the cacao tree IS indigenous to parts of Central and South America).
In fact, according to many historical accounts, the ancient Mayans are credited with the invention of hot chocolate. Originally, the Mayans simply ground native cacao beans and spices into a paste, and then frothed the mixture into water and served this concoction hot. Soon, the Aztecs were introduced to cacao beans and made a similar chocolate brew of their own--though it was a cold drink that was served during religious ceremonies and human sacrifices (oh, those crazy Aztecs).
Then one day, some Spanish dude named Cortez arrived in Mexico and was peacefully received by Aztec emperor Montezuma. As the story goes, Montezuma presented Cortez with a frothy cup of chocolate out of simple good will. In return, Cortez wiped out the entire Aztec civilization (oh, those crazy Spaniards).
Finally, to make a long story a little bit less long, about a hundred (give or take) years later the Spanish took the cacao trees (as well as the Mexican custom of drinking chocolate) from their Mexican colony and introduced it to their Philippine colony. Thus, Filipinos started growing their own cacao trees, and then making and drinking their own form of hot chocolate known as Tsokolate.
I don't eat many vegetables. So, by default, I sure as heck don't eat much eggplant. Of course, dishes like Eggplant Parmesan may prove tantalizing to some, but I find such preparations do more to hide, rather than enhance, eggplant's true nutty and smoky flavors.
Luckily, the Filipino dish known as Tortang Talong indeed takes advantage of the purple nightshade's flavors and textures--and it's a dish that I happen to love.
Tortang Talong can be roughly translated to mean "Tortured Eggplant" (that isn't actually true, but it sounds cool don't it?). In fact, whenever an innocent eggplant falls into my clutches, I like to go medieval on its proverbial ass. That's right. Nothing brings the best out of eggplant better than good ol' ridicule, humiliation, and physical abuse. Step into my culinary dungeon, won't ye?
I've been lucky enough to have a multitude of "grandmothers" in my life. Two of my paternal grandmother's sisters live with my grandmother and grandfather. And although my grandmother's sisters may technically be my "great aunties," I actually call all three sisters "Grandma." Confusing, but true.
My brothers, and pretty much the rest of my family, all refer to my great aunts as "Auntie" and my grandmother as "Grandma". So I'm not sure how or why I came to lump my grandmother and her sisters into the same "Grandma" category, but it's something I've done since childhood.
All in all though, I don't think any of the sisters mind. In fact, I think they all like being called "Grandma." Afterall, the coveted title of "Grandma" seems to magically transform a woman into a "Culinary Superhero." As such, each of my grandmothers has a specific Filipino specialty in their superhero arsenal. For instance, one of my grandmother's sisters makes a pinakbet I swoon for, the other sister makes some mean Miki (a type of Filipino noodle dish), and my grandmother herself specializes in any and everything sweet.
So whenever to grandmother's (grandmothers') house I go, I am guaranteed to be treated to a family feast on many fronts. I am truly one lucky son of a gun to have access to wonderful Filipino food from three great grandmothers.
But thanks to Pat Tanumihardja's new book, The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook, everyone can now have access to an extra set of grandmothers, and their recipes to boot.
Some say that it's never too early to read to your child--even
reading to an infant still in the womb is said to increase a baby's
language skills. So when the fine folks at Shen's Books sent me a review copy of one of their latest children's books, I couldn't wait to read it to my own new baby boy.
But the book I received was no ordinary
children's book. It was a children's book about Filipino culture and
food!
As new parents, the wife and I have received some child-rearing tips from, oh, just about everyone we know. I'm not saying we're not appreciative of such tips, but some of these pointers have been downright unusual. Not surprisingly, the strangest pointers have come from my own mother:
"Make sure you massage his head so it will stay round."
"You should leave the lights on at night when he sleeps, so he gets used to it."
I know I'm new to this whole parenting thing, but I'm perfectly satisfied with the current roundness of my kid's head, and leaving the lights on at night just makes no sense to me. Ironically enough, I can rest a beer on my own head because it's so flat, and I'm nocturnal. Strange, that.
So despite my mother's good intentions (at least I think her intentions are good), I've pretty much ignored her "sage" advice. However, there was one nugget of knowledge that spilled from my mother's mouth that did kinda sorta make sense: "Tinola is good for increasing breast milk production."
"I can produce breast milk?" I asked my mom.
"Not you, your wife!" she corrected me.
I told you, I'm new to this.
Anyways, Tinola is a simple-to-make rustic Filipino chicken soup. Like the chicken soups of most other cultures, Tinola is also known for its healing and restorative powers--helping to recover from cold and flu symptoms--this much I knew. But I had never before heard that Tinola was also good for nursing and feeding newborns.
So I wasn't sure if my mother was just perpetuating some old
Filipino wives' tale, or if Tinola indeed possessed any lactic magic (I'm very pleased with myself that I came up with that rhyme).
But if cooking a pot of Tinola would make things easier for my wife,
and indirectly get some Filipino food into my kid, I was all for it.
Just wanted to give a quick heads up to my SoCal readers about the 18th Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture (FPAC) happening this weekend (Sept. 12-13) in San Pedro, CA.
Widely known as Southern California’s
largest and longest-running Filipino cultural celebration, FPAC will feature
live performances by a diverse line-up. This year's headliner at FPAC will be Filipino Amercian comedian, Rex Navarrete:
Poo jokes. They never disappoint.
In addition to Navarrete, FPAC will also feature
performances by Geologic, of the rising hip hop group the Blue
Scholars; MTV’s America’s Best
Dance Crew Season 2 finalist, Supreme Soul; YouTube sensation, AJ Rafael; and
pop vocalist Ashley Robles.
The two-day festivities will also include its first-ever Martial Arts Village--a small enclave in which I envisioned festival-goers battling each other with sticks and knives (Sumbrada, anyone?). However, I've been told that the Martial Arts Village will feature demonstrations by the IMB Academy and the South Bay Martial Arts Club--and that's just as cool.
And lastly, yes, there will be Filipino food at FPAC! In light of complaints for a lack of actual Pinoy food at last year's FPAC (one of those complaints being mine), I've been informed that FPAC organizers have gone the extra mile this year to include more Filipino food vendors. (NOTE: FPAC makes sure to approach a number of Filipino food vendors every year, but vendors don't always have the time or resources to participate.)
Vendors providing Filipino food at this year's festival will be Aling Neri's and The Park's Finest BBQ, among others. And another new addition to this year's FPAC will be a Filipino Cooking Demonstration Booth run by Chef Cecilia DeCastro. I imagine workshops on lumpia rolling and "How to skillfully evade kitchen criticisms from your mother" would be popular topics, but no matter what is demonstrated, I'm sure Chef DeCastro will handle the booth with professional ease.
To make sure you get in on all the action that FPAC has to offer, you can pre-order tickets for the festival here. Tickets will also be available at the entrance on the day of FPAC.
For more information on the Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture, check out the FPAC website here.
What: The 18th Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture
When: September 12-13, 2009. 10am-6pm for both days.
Where: Point Fermin Park, 807 Paseo Del mar, San Pedro, CA 90731
In case I ever get the Jones to roll up a few fatty spring rolls, I almost always have a package of store-bought Lumpia wrappers at the ready, hidden within the depths of my freezer. But after closer inspection, I found the following ingredients listed on the packaging of said wrappers:
I have no idea what half of those ingredients are (isn't glycerin in soap?)! But up until very recently, the chemical make-up of spring roll wrappers was of little consequence to me. Store-bought lumpia wrappers could contain Soylent Green (mmm, soylent green) for all I cared; I was content as long as the end product resulted in crunchy and tasty lumpia.
But thanks to the help of Andrea Nguyen's newest cookbook, Asian Dumplings: Mastering Gyoza, Spring Rolls, Samosas, and More, I had a spring roll epiphany: Lumpia wrappers can be made from scratch!
Crazy right? Aside from the crepe-like skins of Lumpiang Sariwa (fresh unfried lumpia), I never considered making my own wrappers for fried lumpia. But with Andrea's fantastic cookbook, a few simple ingredients that I already had in my pantry (no glycerine necessary), and a bit of patience, I was able to fashion my own stash of homemade lumpia wrappers--thin skins that, when fried, were just as crisp and golden as their store-bought counterparts.
Just wanted to check in right quick with everyone while I can. Earlier this week, The Wife and I welcomed a beautiful baby boy into this world. Both mother and baby are healthy and well.
"Baby Lumpia" was born 8 pounds 3 oz, and measured 22.5 inches long (he's a lean mean machine!).
Thanks to those who emailed me and DM'd me on Twitter these last couple
weeks wondering about the baby! Your well-wishes were much appreciated!
I'll get back to posting here regularly as soon as I can, so hang tight!
One wouldn't normally associate Filipino food with America's Pastime, but on the evening of August 18, 2009, the Los Angeles Dodgers will be hosting Filipino Community Night at Dodger Stadium as the Dodgers will face the St. Louis Cardinals. As part of this special night, a designated "Dodgertown Philippines" section of Dodger Stadium will have access to an all-inclusive Filipino-themed menu.
That's right. Filipino food at a baseball game.
Historically, the closest proximity between Filipino food and a baseball
game was when my grandpa (a hardcore Doh-jair fan) enjoyed a plate of
Igado and rice while squatting in front of his TV--which was probably
only last night. But I digress.
On the night of August 18, the special menu for the Dodgertown Philppines section of Dodger Stadium will include "Chicken Adobo, Philippine Style BBQ Pork, and Pineapple Spears." In addition to the Filipino menu, the Dodgertown Philippines section will also have access to All-You-Can-Eat Dodger Dogs, nachos, peanuts, popcorn, Coca-Cola products, and water. (It would have been awesome if they offered Filipino Spaghetti made with Dodger Dogs.)
And if the Filipino food isn't enough to get you to the game, the Dodgers will also be giving away free, limited edition (limited edish, as the kids like to say) "Dodgertown Philippines" t-shirts.
So get yourself to Dodger Stadium on August 18! How often will you be
able to cheer on ManRam v. PooHoles with chicken adobo in your mouth
and an $8 beer in your hand alongside a raging group of other drunken
Pinoys?
For more information, and to purchase tickets for Filipino Community Night at Dodger Stadium, CLICK HERE.
NOTE: If purchasing tickets, make sure you select tickets for the "MY TOWN LOWER RESERVE SECTION". No other sections have access to the Filipino menu.
