Steamed Cake: Puto Espesyal

Puto is a very popular dessert in the Philippines, commonly served during gatherings, festivals, parties, breakfast and snack ( merienda). It can be eaten with fresh grated coconut or butter. The recipe is so easy to prepare. This recipe is made of all purpose flour and I have another recipe made of rice flour, you can check it here: Puto ( Rice Muffins)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsps baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup soften butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup evaporated milk or fresh milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup grated cheese
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg(optional)

Directions:

1. Sift together all the dry ingredients.
2. Cream butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well as you go on. Pour in milk and vanilla. Mix well.
3. Fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until evenly blended.
4. Fill the puto molds 2/3 of the way up with the batter and top with shredded cheese.
5. Steam for 20-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Serve warm with grated coconut or butter.

Cheese Quessadillas

I learned to love Mexican food when I moved to the US. American food is not complete without the Mexican food. They are so easy to make with just few ingredients. I just wonder how is American cuisine without the Mexican food and Italian food around. Honestly most American food are unhealthy and greasy junks like french fries, burgers and the taste is so bland.

Quesadillas is a very simple and easy to make dish that is made of tortillas stuffed with cheese, and grilled. You can serve it with salsa and sour cream or beans.

Salsa is actually just a sauce, made with a mixture of red or green tomatoes, onion, chili and cilantro (coriander) served as a relish or a dip.

I did my own version of Quesadillas and it was okay but instead of grilled, I used the pan to heat the flour tortillas. I used cheddar cheese and mozarella cheese combination.

Ingredients:

• Flour tortillas
• Grated cheese, either mild or sharp cheddar, or any cheese of your choice.
• Sour cream
• Salsa

Direction:

1. Heat pan to medium heat. Take one flour tortilla and place it in the pan. Flip the tortilla over a few times. Air pockets should begin to form within the tortilla. 
2. When air pockets begin to form, sprinkle a handful of cheese over the tortilla. 
3. Top with another tortilla.
4. Reduce the heat to let the cheese melt and not to burn the tortilla. When the cheese is melted, flip over the other side to heat the other tortilla. Remove from pan and cut into wedges.
5. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Chobani Greek Yogurt

What is Greek yogurt? Is yogurt which has been strained in a cloth or paper to remove the liquid whey, hence it has a thicker consistency than the regular (plain) yogurt. Greek and plain (regular) yogurt are made by fermenting milk with live bacteria cultures. The only difference is that Greek yogurt has a thicker consistency and creamier taste. When it comes to the nutritional values, both are healthy, a good source of calcium and protein, and help aid in digestion therefore they should be included in the diet regularly.

Crispy Hash Browns

Hash brown is a breakfast simply made from pan fried shredded potato. An easy to prepare breakfast without fancy ingredients. My kids loves hash browns from Mc Donald but they also like my own version. I made mine crispy so my youngest named it "crispy potato". Crispy potato has been our household favorite breakfast except for hubby who still insists on Mc Donald Hash Browns. Mother should try this easy to prepare food.