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From pancakes to crepes

November 19, 2008 By Gay Leave a Comment

The coconut pancakes I made a few months ago were a big hit, but my original plan is to actually perfect making coconut crepes. Or just crepes in general. I’ve always been fascinated with crepes ever since I got my first introduction to crepes in Old Quebec. I have this old pocketbook on crepes which I usually read before sleeping. What makes it difficult to make, for me at least, is that we don’t have any of the non-stick flat pans that makes life easier when making crepes. At home, the pans are all cast-iron wok-type ones. But I do manage. One thing I’ve noticed though is that if I am to make the perfect coconut crepes (with coconut milk in the batter) is that I’d better get the non-stick pan. Somehow, the addition of coconut milk changes the chemistry of the batter (maybe too much fat), that the crust tends to separate from the rest of the crepe. Anyway, after several mishaps, I start to churn passable crepes that when mix with the grated coconut filling and sauce makes a wondeful and filling dessert.


Coconut crepes

1 cup flour
2 cups coconut milk
1 tbsp sugar
1 egg

Mix everything together to make a smooth batter. Strain the batter then refrigerate for at least an hour.  A non-stick pan is preferable for cooking crepes. Grease the pan lightly and heat. Once heated, add about 1/4 cup of batter then gently tilt the pan so that the batter covers the surface of the pan. Heat a few seconds till crepe is set then invert. Heat the other side for a few seconds then remove crepe from pan. Repeat the same process for the rest of the batter.

Coconut cream sauce

1 cup brown sugar
2 cups coconut cream

Mix sugar and coconut cream in a sauce pan and gently simmer over low heat thickened. Stir occasionally to prevent lumps from forming.

To assemble crepes:

Place a crepe on a serving plate. Place 2 tbsp of grated coconut across the center. Fold both sides, one on top of the other. Drizzle with coconut cream sauce and serve. Alternately, you fold the crepe into quarters. Top crepe with grated coconut and drizzle with coconut cream sauce.

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Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: coconut, coconut milk, crepes

Binatog

November 12, 2008 By Gay 14 Comments

Binatog is a Laguna delicacy made of warm boiled corn and grated coconut. I got my first taste from a neighbor who sells this delicacy in our place. She would go down the street and shout “Binatog”. If we want to buy some, we’d shout “Binatog” as well and she would come at the gate and we’d get our fill.

I haven’t had binatog for several years so it was a pleasant surprise to find a vendor selling binatog during our visit to the Sta Cruz palengke. I wasted no time buying and eating and interviewing the vendor how she made it. First the corn variety are the white sticky ones unlike the yellow sweet corn favored by most. The kernels are dried then boiled. In between these steps is treating it with apog to whiten the kernels as well as to soften the skin of the kernels. To assemble the binatog, the vendor shapes a piece of banana leaves into a cone, scoops the boiled corn kernels till the cone is filled, adds a dash of salt and tops it with grated coconut.

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Filed Under: Asian, Filipino food, Food

Old-school Pork Chops with Apples and Tarragon

November 11, 2008 By Gay 7 Comments

When I saw this recipe for Old-school Pork Chops with Apples and Sage from No Special Effects, I knew I just had to cook this at home. The only modification I made was to use tarragon instead of sage as I couldn’t get hold fresh sage. Tarragon, though,is a mainstay in my cooking since it grows profusely in the garden. I usually substitute it for sage such as this garlic chicken roast. Getting back to sage, I hope I could get a seedling soon so I can cultivate it at home. I’m beginning to get curious about how it tastes and smells like.  The lightly fried apple slices are perfect foil for the rich pork chops.

Old-school Pork Chops with Apples and Tarragon

I’m sharing this post to Grow Your Own hosted by Ning of Heart and Hearth. Check out too, my sister’s Grow Your Own post – Chicken Adobo sa Gata (chicken adobo in coconut milk).

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Filed Under: Blog events, Food, Meat, To market Tagged With: pork chops

Farmers’ market adventure: Exploring the palengke at Sta. Cruz, Laguna

November 11, 2008 By Gay 4 Comments

Sta Cruz is the provincial capital of the province of Laguna in the Philippines. Hence it is a busy town with the palengke busier than most of town markets in the province. Every Thursday is market day or tiangge, where products from all over the province are brought to Sta Cruz by farmers. The streets are lined up with food, clothing and other merchandise. My sister and I were there several Thursdays ago to go through the market and check out what were on sale. The following photos were taken inside the public market itself. These items are commonly sold daily in public markets in Laguna though the Sta Cruz market has more choices in terms of fish, vegetables and delicacies.

Karpangus or a cross between karpa (carp) and bangus (milkfish). Much like tilapia with a lot of bones

Crabs or alimango

Freshwater snails

Assorted vegetables

Karpangus (again) which you can buy whole or sliced (see above)

Dried fish/tuyo

Smoked fish or tinapa

There is also a section that sells rice

I have been remiss in maintaining my To market, to market… blog event but I am getting it back up again. Do you have any farmers’ market adventures to share? Post your entries until Nov 15 and link back to this post.

Filed Under: To market Tagged With: farmers' market
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