Every Thought Counts

Happy New Year everyone! How were your holidays? We may have diverse ways of celebrating holidays, but we all try to make it as much fun and meaningful as possible. I know, I should be posting my 2012 resolutions, wish lists or a New Year relevant post, but for the sake of keeping my posts in chronological order, let me share our intimate Christmas feast at home first.

'Twas the second time I baked Sansrival. The first one was almost four years ago and it was a flop to tell the tale. Though I still encountered a problem, I have managed it well this time. It didn't turn out crisp, but it's still sinfully addictive! I will definitely share with you guys the recipe. The few alterations from the original recipe and the solution I did is worth mentioning because I've never seen it elsewhere. Otherwise, I could have saved eggs and sugar. LOL

So these were the Chicken and Pork Empanadas I made. I am not so proud about this. Although the filling tasted just right—exactly how I wanted—the crust was too flaky. Yes, we all want a flaky one, but as flaky as a good pie, not as flaky as a biscuit. I was laughing because it was almost Uraro to me (native biscuit) just with filling. haha I opted to bake them instead of the conventional way of frying because I wanted to avoid as much fats as possible. And I thought the only thing to blame was I had overbaked them. But I still had dough sitting on the fridge to make the next morning, so tried frying instead, hoping to get a different result. Much to my dismay, it still turned out like a biscuit. So I realized, it wasn't my fault at all. It's not a good recipe. So I'm still stuck on the quest for a perfect Empanada crust.

Simply yummy Caramel Bars from Max's!

Rellenong Bangus prepared and cooked by my husband. If it's something made by my DH, don't ask 99%, guaranteed it's delicious! (Not being biased here)

Beef Morcon by an aunt. The only Morcon recipe I am dying to get. I've never tasted a Morcon sauce

as yummy.

What is best paired with Rellenong Bangus other than Shanghai Rice?

Yummy Filipino Style Spaghetti by another aunt.

The Chinese Ham we grew up with, only from Excellente. My sister braved the long line and grumpy people just to be able to take Excellente on our table. Eating this together with bread, mayonnaise, and Queso de Bola is simply heaven! Just a little disappointed that the nearest SM supermarket ran out of Antonio Pueo (chocolate tablet), which is another staple on our table during Christmas eve.