Lumpiang Sariwa

It's been months since we had lumpiang sariwa in the house.  There is this one food that Hubby discovered-- its called popiah (pȯh-piá ) a fresh spring roll known to Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, Cambodia and Thailand which is very similar to our lumpiang sariwa. It tastes good except for its wrapper which we can equate with our fried lumpia wrapper but I am more inclined to a soft and smooth crepelike wrap. Actually lumpiang sariwa is more like a crepe without the sweet taste and on my bias opinion tastes even better than popiah!


LS is basically made of stir fried vegetables and meat.  I even tasted one with buko (young coconut) strips though the buko made its stand on the texture but not the taste and adding one would be a bonus.  I was suppose to include this into my recipe but due to buko grabbing today,  non of it exist in the store nearby {sigh}.


But the good thing about cooking or baking, you can have alternatives. If one ingre is missing, go for the alternatives and you will be surprised on its outcome.

Peanut Sauce

PEANUT SAUCE

Ingredients:
2 cups water
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp Superior Light Sauce **
3/4 pork cube
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 garlic head, crushed and minced

** you may adjust to your preference

Method:
Mix all the ingredients (except the peanut butter) and simmer with constant stirring over medium heat until the mixture becomes thick and transparent. Add peanut butter and whisk to thoroughly incorporate the butter. Cool and set aside.

Lumpia Sariwa Wrapper

What is healthy and what is not? Let's not attempt to debate on the subjectivity of this matter. For all we know food is food! =)

Fresh lumpia or lumpiang sariwa, as a few may claim,  is a healthy way of eating rolls as compared with the fried  ones -- lumpiang gulay (fried spring roll) and the lumpia shanghai (fried meat roll) as we call it.  But I love the crunchiness of fried foods, so if you argue with me about oils?... that's inevitable.  Healthy?... well, how about--- let's eat and not talk about it {wink, wink}. 

The thing is, you can't even assure that what you are having outside the confines of your home is presumably healthy -- unless you cook it yourself, right?  The ingredients and the method is always in question.  BUT, there is no harm in trying several things, in fact-- varieties make the world very interesting so why not explore and taste everything for a start. And, when you build a liking to it then its time for reflections.  

Wait, before you do that let me share this recipe first.

Chocolate Eclair Bars

I have been wanting to make eclairs but I still have slices of chocolate cake from our kids monthly birthday and fridge is still packed with ingredients.... tsk, tsk, tsk...

But wait! Small slice won't hurt.  Let me give justice to these cakes (nom, nom, nom). Now, cakes are out and eclair is in!  Yey! So again, here is another day of dessert--ing.

Vanilla Pudding

There are times when instant ingredients are not readily available when you needed them those kinda " boxed " type of rescuers but thanks to the conventionals that never fade, I can still make and remake recipes. Use your creativity and you'll never know your's is even better. You can actually use instant pudding by Jell-o, but i want to share this recipe in case you are into the same predicament as I am now =D.

Slow Cook Chicken Mustard

Recently our daughter Paige and son Kai is exhibiting the liking for good food. This means good for them but a challenge for me and daddy Bart. But I would rather look at this in a beneficial way rather than with pessimism... wink!

I remember way back home: our kitchen is my favorite hang out, the pans are my desired gadgets and food is my hobby, I turned our humble abode into a small resto where members of our family had a say on the days menu from breakfast down to midnight snack. On some occasions, our brother will call me from the hospital asking "what's for lunch? or please bring me food" or requesting for potluck while the other siblings order theirs or simply says "kahit ano, kung anong meron."  On gatherings, I can't call it party since this is a huge word for us we would rather call it "Salu-salo" as our frequent event.  It's like fiesta in one roof!  Aside from getting my hand dirty,  my favourite part is when I get to go with our Mamang or our sibling sponsoring the salu-salo for marketing. It's like a whole package for me! Everyday is a food adventure without me knowing it.  Eventually, I was exposed to greater food, posh dining and eclectic gatherings further widening my horizons. And I love every single moment of it! =)

Now, it's our children's era... things are not different. Paige is like living in a resto, she orders her meal and snacks, sometimes she has a hand on it.  Lucky for her ingredients come in handy so she always gets what she desires.  As for me, here I am... still enjoying my sanctuary with my very own family. =)

So from my kitchen to yours here's good food...