Fried Gizzards

Have you ever had fried chicken gizzard before? Am sure some of you might say "Ew, do you eat that?" lol....Don't worry, hubby said the same thing.
Gizzards are secondary stomachs used by birds to grind their food before digestion. Because birds don't have teeth, they must fill their gizzards with small stones to achieve the same goal. Gizzards contain a very tough inner membrane, surrounded by a muscular pouch which provides the grinding action. Gizzards are part of the group of foods called offal, which also includes beef tripe, chitlins (pork intestines), and hearts.
I bought this chicken gizzards at the Filipino store. I made it yesterday for myself, because hubby and Akesha don't like eating it...hehhehe! I actually got this idea from Ate Cecile of Kitchen...the Heart of our Home. Thanks AteCes for sharing me your secret.
While many people may recoil at the thought of eating bird stomachs, gizzards are actually a popular food item around the world. Gizzards may be poached, boiled, ground, or even deep fried. Turkey gizzards are also included in the collection of neckbones, hearts, livers and gizzards known as giblets. These giblets are often used to make a stock or broth for dressings and soups. The gizzards alone can also be added to soup stocks for additional flavor. Gizzards are deep-fried at a very high heat for several minutes until done. Chicken gizzards are often served with a honey mustard or barbecue sauce.

Broccoli Beef

Have you ever had broccoli beef before? Most of the time when we go to Chinese Resto, I usually get the broccoli beef. One time I decided to make my very own version of broccoli beef. The only main ingredients you need are broccoli, beef chunks, and gravy. All you need to do is heat the wok and add oil. When the oil is medium-hot, add the beef. Just wait until the beef is golden brown, and add 1/2 cup of water. When the meat is tender, just pour the gravy mixture, add the broccoli cutlets and stir it. And that's about it. The recipe is not hard as a rocket science, so am sure you can try this simple recipe at home. :)

Salad Dressing

Dressings can be the downfall of many otherwise healthy salads. Lots of salad dressings pack more than 120 calories and 12 fat grams into just 2 tablespoons - and many people use twice that amount. What is your favorite salad dressing? Mine is Thousand Island. We normally get the regular kind, but since I am trying to shed some pounds I get the 0% fat kind. I also use the Asian dressing sometimes. How about you? If you would like to make your own "Low fat salad dressing", here's a step by step video recipe for you.

The concept of salad dressing varies across cultures. There are many commonly used salad dressings in North America. Traditional dressings in southern Europe are vinaigrettes, while mayonnaise is predominant in eastern European countries and Russia. In Denmark, dressings are often based on crème fraîche. In China, where Western salad is a recent adoption from Western cuisine, the term salad dressing refers to mayonnaise or mayonnaise-based dressings. Many light edible oils are used as salad dressings, including olive oil, corn oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, etc.

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Chowking

Chowking is one of my favorite restaurants in the Philippines. I specially love their halo-halo and siomai. Luckily we have Chowking restaurant close to where we live, but the thing is I don't like their food. It is way different from the Chowking in the PI.

Here's what I ordered when we went out to eat at Chowking. I did not get the halo-halo because it is very expensive...lol!

A Hearty Meal

How do you like your salad? Not fruit salad...vegetable salad! Salad is very easy and simple dish to do. When making my own version of salad, I love adding some flavors like black olives, raisins, yellow apples, celery, carrots or sometimes I add nuts on it, and for the side dish I like grilled chicken. How about you? I sometimes eat plain salad..you know just only the lettuce and salad dressing. This is a perfect diet if you are planning to lose weight like me...lol!

Deviled Eggs

One of the ultimate hors d'oeuvres (appetizers) I love making during family gatherings is my homemade deviled eggs. It is always a hit in the Dias Clan. This is very simple and you can do this in less than 30 minutes. Well, I guess it depends on the quantity of eggs you are going to make. If you would like to try this at home, below is the recipe for you.

Deviled Eggs Ingredients:

3 Large Hard Cooked Eggs
2 tb Mayo Or Salad Dressing
1/2 ts Prepared Mustard
1 Dash Of Pepper

Instructions for Deviled Eggs:

Cut eggs lengthwise into halves. Slip out yolks with the edge of a spoon and mash with a fork. Mix in remaining ingredients. Fill egg halves with yolk mixture, heaping it up lightly. Top it up with parsley and bacon bits (optional).

French Toast

Have you ever had french toast before? Have you ever heard of it? French toast is a breakfast food in North America, Europe, Bermuda, and a Christmastime dessert in Brazil. Typical French toast is made with bread and eggs. Milk or sugar is commonly added. According to what is popular in local cuisine, many of the spices that are added to bread or egg dishes are included in cooking. This versatile dish is often topped with sugar, butter, fruit, syrup, or other items.

I personally don't like french toast for breakfast, maybe because I am used to a Filipino typical breakfast. But hubby love eating this over and over again. This breakfast is very easy to make. All you need to have: bread, eggs, milk, butter/cooking oil, cinnamon, and syrup. I always like to put topping (whip cream and fruit/s) on it. If you would like to make this at home, you should check this recipe.

Applebee's: Car Side To Go

Sometimes when I feel lazy I have no desire to cook. I am sure some of you have this feeling, right? Hubby don't really mind if I do or don't cook anyway. So once in awhile we go to one of our favorite restaurants, the Applebees.

Here's my order: Ultimate Trios(boneless buffalo wings, dynamite shrimp and cheese burgers)

Boneless Buffalo Wings

Breaded chicken tossed in classic, hot, or Honey BBQ sauce.

Dynamite Shrimp

Plump, succulent shrimp coated in crispy panko bread crumbs and fried, then tossed in a spicy sauce.

Cheeseburger Sliders

Fresh ground beef seasoned and topped with American cheese, grilled onions and signature burger sauce on a toasted bun.

Hubby's order: Fire Pit Bacon Burger

Fire Pit Bacon Burger

Topped with pepper-Jack cheese and Applewood smoked bacon on a toasted bakery bun smothered with a smoky chipotle spread. Served with lettuce, tomato, and onion.

A simple order from Akesha: Chicken fingers and fries

Liempo (Grilled Pork)

Liempo is one of my favorites when I was in the Philippines. My family buy liempo all the time (grilled pork) and litson manok (grilled chicken/rotisserie chicken) especially when we have a family get together or just in a regular basis. This is my first liempo that I made from my kitchen. I don't have a recipe, but you can always look up in the internet...lol! Anyway, I served it with rice and mozzarella bread. Bonna petit!

Beer Can Chicken

Have you ever had a beer can chicken before? Oh my gosh, it taste delicious! You can either cook it in the oven or on the grill. You can check the step by step recipe on this website.

The sitting beer princess. I burned it! (Blogging can definitely burn something...lol)

This is hubby's plate not mine...lol!

Pork Choppy!

How do you cook pork chop? Pork chops are more popular than ever. Most pork chops are tender and need only a quick sear in a hot skillet, or a brief sizzle on the grill. But for me, what I do is marinate the meat the night before using the pork chop season mix. When I marinate the meat I always add beer or wine on it, a little bit of sugar and a little bit of lemon juice. That's my secret!...lol. I found a great pork chop recipe online, you should try to check it out if you are planning on making pork chops.

Green Apples

What kind of apple do you like? When I was in the Philippines I love eating fuji apple. That's the kind of apple my mom used to buy every time she go shopping. I don't eat fuji apple anymore here in the US, I am not exactly sure why maybe because I prefer buying the green ones.

The last time I bought apples from the store was a year ago. You know why? Our backyard has tons of fruit trees or shall I say we have an abundant of produce. We have two kinds of big apple trees in our backyard. I can pick green apples anytime I want, except during the off season. We have different kinds of fruits like citrus, apples, peaches, grapes, apricot, blackberries and more. If I could have sell these fruits in front of our house just like what people do in the Philippines, I am rich by now....lol!

Did you ever wonder how to store apples?
Tips:
Here's the right way to do it! Handle apples gently to prevent bruising.

Store apples in a plastic bag in the crisper section of your refrigerator. This will maintain the right temperature and humidity level to keep the apples crisper and juicier longer.

Store away from foods with strong odors. Apples are porous and will absorb strong food odors.

Do not store apples with vegetables such as leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage or cauliflower. Apples give off a gas that will damage them.