Be Careful Where you Tread, Dahling

Wow, It's been more than a year since my last post! Amazing how time flies... Anyway, found this very, hmm let's say adequate, poem on the web. Ah, the web, such a magical place! :))

Be careful where you tread,
In this dark place they call a home
For the rotting blackness will envelop
And leave you devastatingly alone.
Be careful where you tread,
Because danger lurks about
Around every corner they're hiding
Waiting patiently to come out.
Be careful where you tread,
They'll ruin all that means anything to you
And you will not be able to escape them
No matter what you might try to do
— Excerpt from "Be Careful Where you Tread" by K.Whitcomb

Newspaper-Themed Nails

I am one of those people who doesn't care if their hands are not manicured. I admire those who have long, polished nails, specially now that nail art is the hype. But unfortunately, I can not grow my nails long nor can I maintain an artsy one. I use my hands a lot and I tend to destroy whatever art it is in my nails in a matter of days. I prefer clean and short fingernails. And yeah, I'm just not comfortable with long ones.

The other day, i found a picture of a newspaper themed nail and I loved it in an instant! So I searched the web, tried the process and wallaaaah! Easy, inexpensive and awesome nail art! It's great for long or short nails too! So here's how I did it:

You'll need:
Base coat polish (You can use any color you want as long as it's light to medium)
Rubbing alcohol
Top coat (clear nail polish)
Patience (for those who doesn't like to wait like me LOL)
and of course Newspaper strips

First, apply a clear base coat to protect your nails.

Let it dry and then apply 2 coatings of your selected nail polish. I used Touch of Beige. You can also use grey, white or any light to medium nail polish.

Pour a little amount of alcohol on a tiny basin or container and then soak your newspaper strips in it.

When your nails are dry, put the newspaper strips on top of your nails and press it onto the nails for about 10 seconds.

Gently peel it off

Remove the newspaper residue by gently rubbing the alcohol on your nails. This will get rid those ugly bumps and when you apply the top coat.

Apply the top coat

and you're done!

How easy was that! :)

How to Clean Your Make-up Brushes

Do you wash your make-up brushes regularly? I know, time consuming and most of the time we get lazy to do this. But did you know how filthy our brushes can get?

Look at all those gunk! 

Our make-up brushes are home to a lot of eew-ness. First off, our make-up. (The foundation brushes could be the nastiest one since we use it with liquid or cream products.) Dirty brushes traps all the bacterias, body oils and dried skin after every use. Don't forget the dust and whatnots in your room. So yes, it's filthy! And you wouldn't want to re-apply that on your face.

Not washing our face is the equivalent of not washing your brushes. Today, I'll share how I clean and disinfect my make-up brushes.  

You can purchase brush cleaners on your favorite cosmetic stores but they could be pricey specially if you're going to use it everyday. You can also see tutorials online on how to do this but they use shampoos instead. That could work. But the thing is, shampoos doesn't disinfect. So here's how you clean your brushes the inexpensive way. Let's get started!

What you'll need:

• Any anti-bacterial dish washing liquid
• Extra virgin olive oil
• a plate

Procedure:

• With the brush side down, wet your brushes under the faucet. Depending on the number of brushes that you'll be washing, squeeze the dish washing soap into the plate. Using this soap alone would dry and damage the brushes so we'll add a little olive oil on the plate. The olive oil will help recondition the brushes.

      (Say you'll pour about 1/2 cup of soap, add 1/4 cup of olive oil)

• Now dip your brush and stir it in circular motion on the plate. Then wipe it back and forth on the palm of your hands

• Set it aside on a paper towel. Repeat the procedure until you finish washing all your remaining brushes.

• Once you're done, again, with the brush side down, rinse it on running water. Wash it gently and squeeze until the water runs clear. DO NOT USE HOT WATER. Hot water will damage your brushes.

• With a regular towel, wipe your cleaned brushes dry. Blot out the excess water with a paper towel.

• Using a brush guard, place your brushes bristle side down on a glass, letting the excess water drip down. Bristle side down always because the water will seep in and loosen the glue on the base that holds the brush together and then the hair would eventually fall out.

• if you don't have a brush guard, tilt your brushes on a plate with a paper towel. Do not use those flat plates because laying your brush flat would also let the water seep in. Make sure that the brushes are tilted but not deformed.

• Let it dry for a few hours

There you go, squeeky clean brushes! Make sure you do this regularly to avoid breakouts and other skin infections. 

Shrimp and Basil Pasta

Apparently, the steamed fish sold out quickly, there's nothing left of it. So again, I have to whip something up for dinner. I'm also expecting my childhood friend to come over.

Like the usual 'ritual' before I come up with something to cook, I stood before our pantry and eyeballed the contents. There I saw one of those ready made pasta sauces. I checked the back of the pouch, read the recipe and checked if I have the ingredients on the fridge. Yay for me coz our fridge got it covered! lol

Without further ado, here's my Shrimp and Basil Pasta! (the tweaked version) hehe

Shrimp and Basil Pasta

Ingredients:

1/2 kg fettuccine pasta, cooked (reserve 1/2 cup pasta broth)

1/2 kg medium shrimps, peeled, deveined but tails kept intact

For the marinade:

1 tablespoon lemon juice/ calamansi juice

1 1/4 teaspoon peppercorns, crushed

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp. fresh basil, shredded

For the sauce:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 cup fresh basil, shredded

1 head garlic, crushed

1/2 tbsp lemon/calamansi juice

1/2 cup olives, sliced

1 pouch DEL MONTE Tomato & Cheese Pasta Sauce (750g)

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese 

2 tbsp. sugar

Procedure:

1. Sprinkle shrimps with 1 tablespoon lemon/calamansi juice and 1/2 tsp iodized fine salt. Press both sides of shrimps into crushed peppercorns. Fry in pan with olive oil until cooked on both sides. Sprinkle with 2 tsp. basil. Remove from heat & set aside.
2. In the same pan,  sauté the garlic, remaining basil and 1/2 tbsp. lemon/calamansi juice for 2 minutes.
3. Add the sauce and the pasta broth. Simmer for a few minutes.
4. Add the olives and season with sugar, pepper (to taste) and cheese (to taste)
5. Add the pasta and toss evenly.
6. Put on a serving dish and top with cheese, shrimps and garnish with basil.

Yummy!

Steamed Fish Fillet in Tausi Sauce

I love my new cookbook! Well that's pretty obvious because I've been trying different meals everyday.

What I did today was, I turned our Sunday family lunch into a Chinese restaurant-style meal at home. I kind of prepared the night before, so inspite of this allergy attack that I've been having for days already, I didn't even break a sweat... Okay, maybe one or two :)

Anyway, you might want to try this very easy and healthy recipe. My family loved it, hope you will too!

Steamed Fish in Tausi Sauce

Serves 4
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins.

Ingredients:

300 grams fish fillet (you can use any of your favorite fish fillets)

For the marinade:

3 tablespoons ginger juice
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons gin

For the sauce:

2 tablespoons cooking oil
3 slices ginger, cut into thin strips
1 stalk leeks, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons black beans (tausi), washed and strained
2 pieces dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked in water to soften then sliced thinly
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 tablespoons gin
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon white pepper

For the topping:

1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup chopped garlic
1 stalk leeks, sliced thinly
1 small red bell pepper, sliced thinly
cilantro

Procedure:

1. In a bowl, combine the marinade ingredients and marinate the fish fillets for a few minutes. (I marinade mine overnight, it was really tasty!)
2. Make the sauce: Heat oil, then sauté ginger and leeks. Add all the remaining ingredients. Simmer for a minute. (I tripled the measurements since I have a family that's... let's just say, shows quite an enthusiasm in eating LOL)
3. Transfer the fish fillets to a heatproof dish. Pour  sautéed mixture over the fish.
4. Steam for about 10 to 15 minutes or until fish is cooked completely.
5. Transfer the cooked fish into a serving platter. Set aside.
6. Now, for the garnish: In a pan,  heat oil and cook the garlic until crispy and golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.
7. On the same pan, Add leeks and bell pepper to the oil you used for cooking the garlic. Saute for a minute. Do not overcook to avoid soggy toppings.
8. Garnish the sautéed bell pepper and leeks onto the fish and top with the crispy garlic and the fresh cilantro.

How easy was that! Serve this dish with an egg drop soup or some Nido Soup, steamed veggies and hot rice. Dee-leesh!

Chicken Oriental

Made this deliciously comforting dish for lunch yesterday

Chicken Oriental

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

1 1/2 kilos chicken breast, cut into strips

6 tablespoons mirin

1/4 cup finely minced ginger

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (seasoned with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper)

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons oil

1 onion, minced

2 tablespoons finely minced ginger

2 1/2 cups shiitake mushrooms (stalks removed), cleaned and halved

1 1/2 cups cubed firm tofu

2 medium green bell peppers, seeded and cut into strips

2 medium carrots, sliced

Procedure:

1. Marinate the chicken in a mixture of mirin and ginger. Put in a covered container and let stand in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
2. Before cooking, add the eggs to the chicken. Mix well.
3. Dredge the chicken pieces in seasoned flour and arrange on a baking tray. Reserve any remaining  marinade.
4. In a nonstick pan, heat 1/2 cup oil. fry the chicken pieces until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
5. Heat the remaining oil in a sauce pan. Sauté onions and ginger. Add chicken, shiitake mushrooms and tofu.
6. Pour in the remaining marinade then bring to a slow boil. The egg in the marinade will help thicken the sauce. Reduce heat to a simmer.
7. Add peppers and carrots. Simmer for 10 more minutes or until vegetables are done.

Best served with steamed veggies, bokchoy and rice

-

Churros con Chocolate

Boredom is very bad for me and my sister because it's either we eat or we cook (which also ends up on eating.) So yesterday, we we're browsing through one of our cookbooks and saw this churros recipe. 

Churros are also referred to as Spanish Doughnuts. They are golden brown and crispy on the outside, but moist and light on the inside. It's best served dipped in chocolate or sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. Whatever fits your taste. So here's a recipe of this fun and easy to make snack.

Churros con Chocolate

Serves 4 to 6
Prep Time: 20-25 mins.

Cooking Time: 25-30 mins.

Ingredients:

For the Churros:

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter

1 1/2 cups bread flour (you can also use any good quality all-purpose flour as substitute)

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

oil for frying

For the chocolate dip:

200 grams semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 cups evaporated milk

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons peanut butter

2 tablespoons butter

Procedure:

1. Place water and butter in a saucepan. Bring to a boil.
2. Lower the heat and add the flour and salt. Stir until the mixture starts to separate from the sides of the pan to form a dough.
3. Transfer dough to a bowl and mix with a whisk until no more steam comes out of it.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. (Make sure that there's no more steam coming out of the dough before you put the eggs. We want to mix the eggs with the dough, not cook it.Remember, we're making a dough, not scrambled eggs) :)
5. Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.

 

   6. On a tray lined with a silicone mat or greaseproof paper, pipe out the      dough. Freeze for 2 hours.

   7. Heat oil for frying. Make sure that the oil is really hot or else, you'll end up with soggy churros.

   8. Drop the formed dough into the hot oil and fry until crisp and golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

For the chocolate dip:

1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. (Double boilers consists of a bowl placed on top of a pan of simmering water)

Double boiler

or you can just put a bowl on top of a pan with simmering water

2. When the chocolate is melted, add the remaining ingredients and whisk until mixture is thick and smooth.

Serve with churros. (Put a little whipped cream on top as an extra treat!)

As an alternative, you can also roll your churros on a mixture of cinnamon and sugar while it's still hot. Just add 1/4 teaspoon (or depending on your taste) of cinnamon on 1/4 cup sugar.

Time saving trick:

Cook and pipe out the dough the night before. in the morning, thaw a bit then fry in hot oil.

My sister and I tweaked the chocolate dip a little since we dont like a super sweet sauce. Instead of semisweet chocolates, we used our stocked Truffettes de France Chocolate (truffles) on our fridge and skipped the sugar and peanut butter. Delish!

Belle <3 Anne (we wouldn't miss piping this!LOL)