Indeed what is Christmas or New Year in the Philippines without Queso de bola (Edam)? Our Spanish colonizers probably brought the festive ball of cheese hundreds of years ago but the cheese is originally from Holland. My friend who married a Dutch claims that the brand “Marca Piña” manufactures this round ball exclusively for theRead More
Suman Luya (Suman Flavored with Ginger)
These days, traditional suman has moved on to many flavors. I still stick to my childhood memories of Suman Luya dating back to Christmas Eve. My mom would cook the sticky rice in a big kawali in the dirty kitchen. Suman Luya is extremely smooth tasting with the right amount of sweetness. It’s perfect forRead More
Maple Rum Cake using Anchor Maple butter
My Noche Buena menu is always special. I honor the day with something lovingly baked from my kitchen. I plan my groceries ahead of time so I never ran out of supplies. Butter has to be Anchor because I prefer to source my ingredients from either Australia or New Zealand. To my surprise , theRead More
Waiting for Noche Buena : Cheese Fondue and conversation
Christmas Eve is known as “Noche buena” (the Good Night). It is a time for family members to gather together to rejoice and feast around the Nativity scenes that are present in nearly every home. Our noche buena usually consists of light meals. Tonight I prepared an early Christmas dinner of Brown Arroz Caldo atRead More
Chicken Relleno (Stuffed Chicken)
Chicken Relleno or Stuffed Chicken. Relleno comes from the Spanish word “Rellenar” which means “to stuff. The chicken is stuffed with ground pork, ham, vegetables, hard boiled egg, etc. and then baked. Here is a favorite dish which I want to share with you. The hard part is in the deboning but once you’ve masteredRead More
Lengua Estofada (Braised Beef Tongue)
The doctor turned chef Efren ‘Boy’ Vazquez of Cafe Juanita showed off his culinary skills by doing a traditional Filipino holiday feast at the Maya Kitchen. One well-loved traditional dish is the Lengua Estofada or Braised Beef Tongue. I remember this dish fondly because my mestiza auntie always served this during the Christmas Season. TheRead More