Watermelon granita

A poolside BBQ and swim party is something my friends and I love to plan all year round. Usually we just throw burgers and sausages on the grill then lay out the condiments and whatever sides we decide to make that day. Sometimes there's a casserole of some sort or a pasta dish. Drinks are always aplenty. The beers are chilling in the ice box and a pitcher of iced tea and various soft drinks are also available. The music and laughter are flowing freely and we just eat and hang around and have a great, great time.

These parties become more frequent as soon as summer comes around. And there's no denying that summer has arrived in the Philippine islands! I'm already tempted to turn on the a/c at night, but I'm holding off for as long as I can still manage to sleep well without it. It becomes almost unbearable to stay most days during the months of March to May yet we force ourselves to leave our air-conditioned cocoons and surge bravely into the sticky humidity to fire up that grill and flip those burgers while beads of sweat form a river down our spines.

And we did just that two Sundays ago. Anticipating a hot day, I had first thought of making some fruit shakes with all the fruit I had at home. At the last minute though, I decided on making this watermelon granita for a change. I found a simple recipe online and the result was exactly how I hoped it would be: light, absolutely refreshing, cooling and so so good.

Alas, it didn't make it to the party. Thinking I could make it in the morning for a 3 pm party was a mistake. I should have started it the night before. I did not take into consideration the fact that I do not live alone and hence I am not the only one that opens and closes the freezer door. By the time I had to leave, it was still this tray of half-frozen slush. Thankfully, I also had some pineapples for the grill so I didn't arrive empty-handed. Because the party had lasted well into midnight, we cranked out the blender and made sangria slushies instead.

When I checked my icebox that night, the granita was good and ready. So for days after, I enjoyed a glass of watermelon granita in the warm evenings while I daydreamed of palm trees and and blue-green waters.

Watermelon Granita
recipe & instructions from foodnetwork.com

1/2 seedless watermelon
1/2 cup white sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Cut up watermelon flesh into chunks and then puree in a blender. If your watermelon isn't seedless, make sure to remove the seeds first before putting in the blender or you'll get mashed up seeds which may taste bitter.

Combine the watermelon juice with the sugar and lemon and mix well. Pour it all into a shallow wide pan and freeze for 1 hour. When the mixture is frozen, remove from the freezer and rake with a fork all the way through. Return to the freezer for another hour and then rake again. Return to the freezer for one more hour. Rake again with fork then serve. Add a sprig of mint to up the coolness factor!

Have a great summer everyone! (or Spring or Fall, use whichever is applicable to you) :)

WS #30: Honey-balsamic glazed fruit cup

I love my fruits. Tropical fruits, exotic fruits, fruits of the forest; poached, baked in pies, stuffed in crepes, preserved in jars, blended in smoothies, flambeed with rum, tossed in salads, love them all! But not as much as I love them raw and pure. Straight from the tree, or bush, or from wherever it is your favorite fruit is grown.

I recall reading somewhere that when Mother Nature can no longer contain her joy, she bursts forth in flowers. If that's the case, then she must unleash her love with fruits!

And while I love to grab a nice ripe peach or mango and sink my teeth into the flesh letting the juices dribble down my chin and and arms, I also like chopping them up into a fruit salad (in this case I used strawberries, mangos and bananas), tossing them with a honey-balsamic dressing for a luscious treat. But when I'm feeling decadent, I'll ditch the dressing for some condensed milk. Yum! :)

Note: Proportion of glaze is about 1/2 cup honey to 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar.

Click on the WS icon above to join the weekenders, and click here to see the other entries for WS #30.

Simple strawberry trifle

I am a huge Friends fanatic, one of those that owns all 10 seasons on dvd, has watched each episode at least 4x so far and has never recovered from the show's end. It still elicits big belly laughs from me and I don't think the humor could ever get old, at least not for me. As much as I've watched the show though, I such at games like Friends Trivia and Scene It Friends edition (both of which I've played with my own bunch of goofy friends who are not unlike the characters of the show in their own way) because I have a horrible memory for details. But I can run full scenes in my head on demand.

One such scene, one of my favorites, is the one where Rachel - who is seriously lacking in the domestic skills department - attempts to make an English Trifle for Thanksgiving. When it's time for dessert, she proudly presents the trifle and when asked what it is, she answers (and I'm paraphrasing here): "It's a trifle, see it's got all these layers - ladyfingers, then jam, and custard, and raspberries, and more ladyfingers, then beef sauteed with peas and onions, and more custard...". The rest try desperately to hide the horror from showing in their faces. They soon discover that some of the pages in the recipe book Rachel used are stuck together, and half the English Trifle recipe merged with half of a Shepherd's Pie.

But that's not the best part. The gang didn't want to hurt her feelings by telling her she messed up, seeing that she had worked so hard on it. So they force themselves to eat it and pretend to like it. When Rachel leaves the room, Ross groans saying that it tastes like feet. Joey, on the other hand, is scarfing it down and announces that he likes it, "What's not to like? Custard? Good. Jam? Good. Meat? Gooooood!"

Heehee. I love it! And I love trifles. Joey's right. What's not to like? Custard, jam, fruits, all good! So because I still had half a bag of broas (ladyfingers) from a recent trip to Bohol I decided to pair them up with the strawberries I bought. This time though I kept it simple and just used sweetened cream and leftover strawberries from some jam I made. It's so easy, not even Rachel could screw this one up. And even if she did, we'd forgive her because we all have a little Rachel in us. That sweet, thoughtful friend with only the best intentions who messes up once in a while but is loved no less for it. :)

Simple Strawberry Trifle

250 grams fresh strawberries
4 pcs ladyfingers or broas (you may also use pound cake)
3 tbsp white sugar
1/4 cup strawberry jam
1/2 cup whipped cream
1 tbsp condensed milk (optional)

Slice the strawberries into thirds and sprinkle with about 1 tbsp sugar. Mix thoroughly and set it aside for about 20 minutes to sweeten.

Whip the cream until it soft peaks form then add 2 tbsps sugar. Whip again to combine. You may also choose to add a spoon of condensed milk into the mixture. If you do add it, lessen the sugar to 1 tbsp. or your cream will be overly sweet. Most of the sweetness will come from the strawberries and the jam.

You can arrange the layers in a trifle bowl if you're making a large batch. But because I was only making for 3, I used my Irish coffee mugs to make individual servings. Start with a layer of broken-up ladyfingers. (If using pound cake, use a small round cookie cutter to shape the layers). Spoon some jam on top of the ladyfingers then assemble the sliced strawberries on top. Add the sweetened cream then repeat the layers. Refrigerate the cups (or trifle bowl) overnight to set and allow the flavors to mingle.

Not only is this super easy to make and great for hot summer days when the mere thought of turning on the oven causes you to break out in a sweat, but it's delicious. Just ask Mr. Spoonman from the photo, he looks mighty happy! :)

I'm off in a few hours and headed for the beach with family and friends so I'd like to wish you all a Happy Easter in advance. See you next week!

Chunky guacamole

When I was younger, I only really knew avocados as a sweet treat, served with milk and sugar in a bowl or blended into thick green shakes. It was only later that I began to discover this fruit for it's more savory potential, where it lends creaminess to dishes such as sushi, salsas, salads, sandwiches and of course dips like guacamole.

In Aztec Mexico, the avocado fruit was highly-regarded because of it's high-fat content and essential to their mainly low-fat diet. But alas, this was not good news for the Twiggys and Kates of the world and their frail disciples. The avocado lost some of its glory and I will be the first to admit that I too tried to stay away for a time. It didn't take long for me to realize though that this was actually good fat, the mono and polyunsaturated kind, and that packed into this fruit are over twenty vitamins and minerals that contribute significantly to overall good health. So there, trump that! :)

So I opened my arms wide, welcoming the avocados back into my life and embracing all it's good qualities and culinary potential. I no longer picked the pieces out from that bed of salad greens and I began slurping those delicious shakes again. Oh and making home-made guacamole too.

Below is the recipe which was based on Rosa's New Mexican Table by Roberto Santibañez and which is the same recipe used at the Rosa Mexicano restaurants in NY where they prepare the guacamole by your table in a molcajete, a traditional Mexican mortar made with volcanic rock. I did use a mortar to make the paste and then tossed everything together in a separate bowl before transferring it into smaller bowls like the one pictured above, incidentally a favorite of mine that I picked up during a trip to Mexico last year.

Although the addition of lime or lemon is not found in most authentic Mexican recipes, I like to squeeze some of the citrus onto the guacamole to add a bit of tang. South of the (American) border, guacamole is traditionally served inside a fresh tortilla but I prefer having it as a dip with salty tortilla chips or crudites.

The result is a fiesta in a bowl! It's rich, lusciously creamy, give-me-lumps-or-give-me-death! chunky, colorful and sshh, are those mariachis I hear?

Chunky guacamole
(adapted from Saveur, Aug-Sept 2007)

3/4 medium white onion, finely chopped
2 whole tomatoes, diced
1 jalapeno chile, finely chopped (if you have Serrano chiles, better)
2 medium-ripe Hass avocados
fresh cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lime
salt to taste

The most imporant step in making good guacamole is to grind the onion, cilantro, chile and salt in a mortar until you've achieved a nice paste. You have to really get down and grind like your life depended on it. This will allow the paste to enhance the flavor of the avocados without overpowering it.

Next, cut the avocados lengthwise and twist to separate the halves. Remove the pit with a knife and make 3 or 4 lengthwise cuts through it's flesh down to the skin. Then do the same crosswise, like you would cube a mango. Scoop all the diced avocado flesh out and into a bowl.

Scrape the chile-onion paste from the mortar onto the avocados and gently fold the avocados into it, careful to keep the avocados intact. Add the tomatoes and more chopped cilantro. Squeeze the lime onto the guacamole and season with salt. Fold together all the ingredients and serve immediately.

Bonus trivia: Guacamole dates back to the Aztec period where it was first known as ahuaca-mulli, loosely translated as Avocado mixture. Learn more about the origin and kinds of avocado here.

Mango & Tomato salad

It's finally becoming a little cooler these days, I wasn't sure how much longer I could take the heat we've been experiencing. What I don't like about such extreme climes is it makes you lazy, or at least it makes me lazy. The heat zaps my energy and for as long as I'm within city limits, I'm imprisoned indoors in the comfort of airconditioning.

Sure we've got electric fans in every room including the kitchen but they're powerless at this point, successful only at recycling the hot air around. And so it was that I stayed away from the oven for the most part of the summer. I was asked a couple of times by friends to make cupcakes but seriously, I'd have to be a masochist to confine myself to the kitchen (which if it weren't for the appliances present I could have mistaken for the steam room at the gym) and work with the heat from the oven.

Salads, of course, are a favorite especially during summer. They're quick and easy to make, and very refreshing. The simpler ones don't require any heat in the preparation, and hence no sweat from our pores. This particular dish could be classified both as a salad or condiment because it's great on it's own or added to complement a major dish such as fish. It's also a great alternative to chutney in tempering hot curries. The original recipe calls for green or unripe mangoes but I like to save those to be eaten with bagoong (shrimp paste). And since we are never without ripe mangoes at home, I can make this everyday if I wish.

I got this recipe from my sister, Ginny. It's excellent! I am really a big fan of the distinctly Asian mix of fish sauce, vinegar and sugar. The way it works together in a sweet, salty and sour burst of flavor is simply ambrosial. Then you add the juicy sweetness of my favorite fruit, the mango and the crunch from the tomatoes, and you have one mind-blowing experience. Chalk another point for simple, no-fuss and absolutely delicious food.

Mango & Tomato Salad

2 ripe mangoes, cubed (you can also use green mangoes if you wish)

2 juicy red tomatoes, coarsely chopped

Start with 1 tbsp each of red cane vinegar, Thai fish sauce or patis and brown sugar

Coriander leaves, chopped

Adjust dressing to taste

The easiest way to cube a mango is to slice it in half on either side of the seed. Then with a knife, make a checkerboard pattern on the flesh of each cheek and then scoop the cubes out. You'll be tempted to scoop them straight into your mouth, be strong and try to resist! Combine the mango with the tomatoes and toss with vinegar, fish sauce and sugar.

If you use green mangoes, use less vinegar to compensate for the sourness of the fruit. For a variation on the dish, and one which would make it more Thai, add some chili powder to the mix!



Thank you to Alanna of A Veggie Venture for this cute image of Blush the Sweet Tomato, and for her efforts in promoting produce from hometown farmer's markets!