It's got to be Strawberries!

To our family in Pampanga, siyempre, I'm writing this post for you. I wish you are here to experience the fun. 


Growing up, strawberries are not one of the common fruits you'll find in our household. Although, they can be enjoyed if you go to Baguio or purchase some in grocery stores at the mall. That is if you want to spend a fortune as they are expensive.


On Wednesday, we went to the Howe Farm at my in-laws. It's about a five minute drive from where we live. Olivia was excited. She's always excited to see Gma and Gpa. We geared up with 4- 1 gallons of ziploc bags. Grant and I are excited to see our small, vegetable garden as well. 


Picking strawberries is a lot of work but its worth the work. We came home with three,half- bags full of strawberries. I really don't know what to do with them.Olivia loves to eat them with some honey. I froze some to make smoothies. Sure, I'll be using some for baking. There's one idea that I thought of. Use them for an Adobo marinade. Adobo is a popular Filipino dish that consists of vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and black pepper as the main ingredients. These are then added and cooked with any seafood, meat or vegetables.

strawberry patch up-close

I was hoping the entire time not to encounter a snake. LOL. :)

Eat -as- you- Pick method by Olivia Howe

Beauty!

Reading baby Strawberry shortcake before nap. How appropriate!

If you want to learn how to make the Adobo Marinade with a Strawberry twist. Here is the recipe.

Flank Iron Steak

Any meats of your choice can be used i.e pork, chicken, beef. You can also use it on your greens like Spinach, Arugula, Swiss chard, whatever you can think of. Get crazy and creative!

A clove of Garlic 

If you love garlic, by all means, use more than just one clove.

1/2 Cup of Soy Sauce 

1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tablespoon of Sugar (optional) i like my Adobo sweet

1 teaspoon Sriracha (optional)

1/2 Cup of Mashed or Pureed Strawberries

Combine all ingredients and mix together.

Place the Flank Steak in a bag and pour the Adobo marinade. Let it marinate for 2 hours or better yet...24 hours for better flavor. This can be grilled, sliced up and put in tortillas. Put whatever toppings or fillings as you prefer to have in your tacos.

 It will definitely be served with rice and vegetables. 

A Word and A Sentence

Technology is awesome! While browsing a magazine one afternoon, I noticed that there are more ads than articles in it. Out of annoyance and boredom, I got my phone and started taking pictures of words. What comes to your mind upon seeing these? 

friendship

food

lengua

dreadful

mine

done

bacon

I think it's crazy trying to make a burger gourmet version. It should  be left alone plain and greasy!

it nourishes

Food.Design.

A Moroccan dish

my shopping list? Had gone digital. Lovin' it!

Summer Italian Salad

Is thankful of Farmer's Market. Do you like going? It's just one of those activities that makes you feel good. And it's a good way to support local growers and also promotes healthy eating. I'm one of those people who like to cook or make a dish who don't follow a recipe. Yes, I'm stubborn like that but for some reason the final dish ends up tasting good. lol. It must be a combination of luck and hunger.

This salad was made by my mother-in-law, Roxana. It's easy and delicious. I couldn't resist the beautiful tomatoes at the Farmer's Market plus I had all the ingredients to make it.  To Ma, I know you wanted to learn how to make salads. Well here's an easy one for you.

NOTE: I don't have exact measurements. The key is 'taste as you go' and just 'eyeball' it. If you don't know how to cook the 'key' may not work well for you.

Croutons

A bunch of fresh basil

Small onion (you can put more or less, depending if you like it oniony)

A drizzle of Olive oil

A splash of Balsamic Vinegar

Salt and Pepper 

Chop the tomato. Slice the onion. Combine all the ingredients together. 

Serve and Eat

Enjoy!!!

Writer's Block, Pictures Flow

There are so many things that I want to write about but is experiencing a writer's block. So, I decided to use pictures for this post instead. 

Favorite Quote of the week: ‎'A person without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.' - Marcus Garvey

Olivia sentence of the week: 'It's gonna be ok mommy'!

Music of the week: Reggae and Price Tag

Olivia: look what I got from the pre-school fairy. 

 Day 2 with Ms. Jimenez playing instruments.

Happy 32nd birthday Grant

found a lake in KS

our own little beach

went to see Kung Fu Panda. 'Inner Peace'

1968 Travel Magazine

Johnny Mathis. Believe it or not I listened to his music due to my Gma & Gpa's selection of songs at home. Rap or alternative music were rarely allowed. Makes me appreciate different genres of music.

Olivia's hospital bed.Totally vintage. Still needs some loving  to make it look new.

What a beauty!

An old Samsonite luggage. A great accent and magazine storage.

Tirador/Slingshot, I enjoyed using as a kid. This one has a moose perfectly carved on it. The one I remember using was  simple and raggedy. 

Red Carpet? It's a curtain that needs to be altered.

Word of the week: VINTAGE!