Food, food, food ... and food

Cooking is one skill I learned through the years. Although I did not have formal schooling by chance I made it and my family and close friends like my cooking. My parents allowed us (we are four girls in the family) to explore the kitchen and that's it we developed our own skills and we (my sisters) have our own specialties.

I allow my kids to familiarize themselves in the kitchen too. Kim and Joe3 can do basics and they also learned some of the simple dishes that I prepare at home.

There was one time that I had to be out for a coverage on a Sunday and Kim was asked by my husband to cook breaded pork chop ... while am out and with the now technology I sent instructions through the celfon from the time she started cooking until she's done. And presto they had dinner served in white platters with ice cream as dessert. Very rewarding isn't it for parents to know that kids are also learning.

My son while in grade school joined cooking club and this time Joe3 knows how to make special egg sandwich with chicken and white onion with some innovation that I shared with him.
Cooking is also bonding time as my children would request me for a special dish that they like.

My husband too has a long list and among his fave are pochero, fish pellet with lemon sauce, my own version of crispy fried chicken and beef steak in mushroom and broccolli, "Pompano" steamed in spring onion with seasoning (I like the fish grown in cages in Sarangani Bay).
Cooking to others may not be easy but I tell you it is one task worth doing especially for the family.

I have a kitchen not that big but cozy enough to work on things easily but i still want to create my dream kitchen one that i can go online, watch tv and write stories at the same time while am there.

May be cooking by heart allows you to produce good food aside from the fact that your taste buds may be has something to do with it.

But one thing basic in cooking is food preparation.

Handling is also another and if we dine outside we always wonder how it is being prepared.
Doctors would always remind us that food handlers play a big role in keeping food safe and washing of hands before touching the food is a must do thing for food handlers. What with salmonella around - isn't that frightening? That is one aspect about food.

But learning to cook is a challenge too especially when you can convince people that the food you cook is good.

The coconut jam

There is this coconut jam sold in Davao that me and my son love to spread on hot bread. That's why i have to bring some to Manila because none could be found in groceries either in SM, Robinsons, MOA, or the 7/11, etc.

It has not reach other market except here but the producer Kablon Farms is exporting some of their products abroad.

We like it because it is soft and creamy and the sweetness is just right. Main ingredient is the coconut milk mix with muscovado or raw sugar.

Kablon Farms, by the way, produces fresh, healthy, all organic products in their farm in Tupi, South Cotabato in the Philippines.

They have the pure tablea (cocoa tablets), marinated asparagus, fruits processed into jellies, marmalades, jams, juice concentrated and puree.

For pioneering such products, they received awards and recognition one of which is the Natatanging Marsasaka-Processor ng 1999-2000 given by the Gawad Saka. Its product packaging and labeling are of world-class quality and can readily complete in the global market.

In the farm itself, you will find a Pasalubong Center where can take a pick over its long product line. Wondrous nature's bounty Kablon Farms in Tupi, South Cotabato is a 70.5-hectare multi-crop farm and processing center owned and managed by the Pantua family. Headed by Ernesto Pantua Sr., Kablon Farms launched its first product in 1968, which was the Pure Tablea or the traditional chocolate tablets.

From factsheet provided by Kablon Farms, it said that Pure Tablea is the bestseller among their products lines. Tablea comes from cocao bean (Theobroma cocoa) that underwent several processes. These include sun drying, roasting and grounding it to form chocolate tablets. In the case of Kablon Farms, all its cocoa trees are organically grown.

Next in line is the black pepper that is obtained from the small dried berry of the vine piper nigrum. The berries are picked while still green, allowed to ferment and are then sun-dried until they shrivel and turn a brownish-black color. Pepper can be stored for many years without losing its flavor and aroma and has long been known as the master spice. Organically grown black pepper is one the many wonders that can be found in the heart of Kablon Farms and is one of its best sellers.

Within Kablon Farms also are organically grown fruit trees like, passion fruit, papaya, guyabano, jackfruit, durian, lanzones and mangosteen. Their farm-grown passion fruits are blended with other fruits to make exquisite twist taste to their juices. Passion fruits are nearly round or ovoid fruit that have tough yet smooth and waxy rind. These are rich in potassium, which is good for the heart.

Passion fruits are high in Vitamin A content. It is good for people with sleeping disorders as these vinefruits are considered mild sedatives.

Guavas are also grown and processed in Kablon Farms. They are blended with passion fruit, guyabano and other fruits in their juice concentrates and are made into jellies. Guava fruits may be round, ovoid or pear-shaped and have four or five protruding floral remnants at the apex. The seeds are numerous but small--actual seed counts ranged from 112-535. Like passion fruits, guavas have high potassium and Vitamin A content that are necessary to a healthy body. A Guava tree can tolerate many soil conditions, but will produce better in rich soils high in organic matter as is in the case of Kablon Farms.

Guyabano or soursop (Annona muricata) is another fruit crop raised organically in Kablon Farms. The soursop tree is low branching and bushy but slender because of its upturned limbs. The fruit is more or less oval or heart shaped, sometimes irregular, lopsided or curved--the tips breaks off easily when fully ripe. Guyabanos are blended with other fruits and are made into puree, juices and the like.

The marinated asparagus of the Kabon Fartms are now exported to Montreal in Canada. It is said that asparagus was the favorite vegetable of Julius Ceasar, King Louis XIV, and Thomas Jefferson. Asparagus is a member of the lily family and is related to onions, leeks and garlic. It contains more cancer-fighting glutathione than any other food. It is packed with folic acid, which helps to prevent birth defects and heart disease, and is a good source of potassium, fiber, vitamins A, D, B8, and thiamin.

Health conscious dieters will be pleased to know that asparagus contains no fat and no cholesterol. Another reason why you should buy their Marinated Asparagus is that, they are grown organically in Kablon Farms.

Papaya (Carica Papaya) is another fruit grown organically there. Papaya is succulent fruit of a large plant of the family caricacae that is considered a tree, though it's palm-like trunk is not as woody as the designation generally implies.

The papaya fruit is slightly sweet, with agreeable musty tang. Papayas are usually grown from seed. It is a good source of potassium, calcium, vitamin A, C and folate. Langka or jackfruit (Artocarpus heteropyllus) is another addition to the farm's long list of orchards. It is the largest edible tree-grown fruit.

The fruit is covered by numerous hard points, is pale green in color and changes into a yellowish-brown when ripe. Fruit is mature for harvest when the single small leaf above the stem withers and the first color changes appear. Ripening continues post harvest and, with experienced, is ascertained by tapping the fruit. When ripe, fruit soften a little and will "give" when pushed. Ripe fruit exudes a musty odor, for a day or two before fruit is ideal for most purposes.

Kablon's processed product of jackfruit is the Langka Preserve. Among the favorite fruit is the Durian, which is a big, green thorny fruit native to Malaysia and is considered "King of the Fruit" throughout Southeast Asia. It has a creamy texture, and the taste of its flesh sends eater ecstasies (and it has the reputation of being an aphrodisiac). But it has one drawback; it has an extremely offensive smell described as garlic like and similar to stinky feet. It has high potassium content, and it is also a good source of Magnesium, Vitamin B-6 and Niacin.

Bread ...

It's not the money but the flour mixed with lard, egg and milk and baked to hot bread... In Davao, I buy my supply in groceries and at bakeshop along the way that even at night has hot bread to sell.

It's frustrating to bring home bread that aren't fresh. But what is good with my favorite bakeshop aside from the newly baked bread that i get still hot and yummy to eat, is that they indicate expiration date.

For us consumers, we need to check also the shelf life of bread... and the appearance because molds develop fast.