Mussel soup from my kitchen

I told you I'd make my own mussel soup - like the unforgettable one I had in my trip in Lake Como, Italy. It's a local version with chili leaves and done the usual "Pinoy ginisa" way. So it's very easy. I had local mussels, tomatoes, chili leaves, garlic, oyster sauce, red sugar, some basil dried leaves, olive oil, onions, and I did put some balsamic vinegar coz I like it to be a bit sour. Add some salt or soy sauce to taste.

I merely sauteed the garlic, onions, and tomatoes in olive oil, put some oyster sauce to create a nice golden brown sauce. It should be just quick. Then I put the mussels and some soy sauce until the juice comes out and the shells opened up.

My unforgettable Italian meal

There was this unforgettable mussel recipe that I have tasted and which I am really dying to replicate. I don't even remember the name, I know I listed somewhere but the ageing me could no longer locate where it is now. Anyway, if you happen to go and visit Lake Como in Italy, the restaurant where I found this is called il Vecchio Borgo, I hope that's the name. It is located just to the right of the Como Lago train Station.

Anyway, it was portrayed in the menu as soup so I ordered it because I'd like to have soup and salad. We were famished after going around Lake Como station, the funicular ride, etc. But I became so excited to see a large plate of mussels in a reddish sauce. I loved it too much I went over the Net to see what I can do to put it back to life. So I found one, hopefully, it will be as exciting as the il Vecchio Borgo mussel soup.

Quick Pasta Tuna

Working moms have very limited time to cook. So quick and easy recipes are such life-savers for us. Here,
I'm sharing my 15-minute pasta tuna. I did it to liven up that rainy weekend afternoon when my sons are bored staying just inside the house.

Living in the suburbs, we don't get as much chance to eat out or buy those delectable eats available in malls and restaurants so I always make sure I can create something out of what we have at home. Here is one of our favorite snacks - the tuna spaghetti.

Ingredients:
   Spaghetti pasta, cooked aldente
   Tomato sauce or any spaghetti sauce (Tomato and cheese is recommended)
   Tomatoes, sliced
   Garlic, sliced
   Century Tuna light
   Basil
   Cheese (I used quick melt, any will do, should be same amount as that of the tuna)
   Butter
   Salt

A day's fix

I had the luxury of time to give our kids' study room a fix last Sunday. I badly wanted to because of the mess that is almost incomprehensible. The kids, and adults, just shoved things here and there allowing this unsightly thing to transpire. Tapes are everywhere, I do not know where to find this and that, my kids keep asking about their stuff. It's becoming time consuming and stressful to just locate a sharpener or paint brush.
So how did we do it? First, we took out everything, throw a lot of papers away, sort and sort, took some containers, and done quite a lot of labeling.

Throw away. I asked the kids to check which toys can be discarded. We can donate those that are still okay and throw the rest away. I also went into the piles of school works, old quizzes, and projects. I did threw most of them after consulting my kids. It's so nice that they cooperated and participated in the sorting. They actually did not realize how many small things they got.

Smart saving starts at home

In these times of uncertainty and economic difficulties, the need to save is most essential.  There are actually many ways to save here and there, but the home is the best starting point to learn the discipline. Here are smart tips that can be easily done at home to help you ease the effects of economic insecurities.  

Avoid unnecessary expenditure. 

Do not buy things you do not need.  Whenever you are confronted with the shopping question “Do I need it?” think 5 to 10 times before making a decision.  Also, buy only the amount of food you can consume. Did you know that in the US, 33 million tons of food waste was thrown away in landfills and incinerators in 2010? According to the Environmental Protection Agency website, food waste forms the single largest component, 34%, of municipal solid waste discarded. In Canada, the residents of Toronto throw away 17.5 million kilograms of food every month, according to the World Vision Canada.

Are you ready for pets?

Whether to have pets or not is a household decision. Your kids may definitely like the idea but are they ready for it, or are you? The responsibilities that come along with pets and the physical requirements (like pet's home and where to put it) are just some of the things you need to think of before deciding. If your kids have allergies, you might need to think not just twice but many times.
We had hamsters last year, the female one even gave birth to 3 cutelings at New Year's Eve. But then because of the difficulty in leaving them when we as a family go someplace, we decided to give them away.

As a mom, I look for ways to train my kids to do their tasks and responsibilities so when we got the hamsters from the province, I assigned my kids some tasks related to caring for our new pets.But my younger one has this over giggling towards the cute hamsters. One day, I suspected that one of our hamsters suffered from broken bones because it could no longer stand up. Later that day, he died. Poor thing.
So here are some things to consider and discuss with your kids before you let those pets into your household.

Food Trip: Native Cake in a Bamboo

Back in our humble province, we call it "Tinubong." Forgive me for I could not find the most fitting translation. It's an Ilocano term for putting something inside an elongated object called "tubong" or the bamboo. It's made of ground malagkit (glutinous) rice and other ingredients. It is a native delicacy in the Ilocos Region. It is quite sticky but delectable and matches well with coffee. 
Although it can be bought all year long in certain areas, this delicacy is most well-loved during Christmas season. It is like puto-bumbong and bibingka here in Manila and the Southern Tagalog. It is contained inside the bamboo and grilled in a very meticulous manner of manually turning over the bamboo while wiping it with wet cloth (so that it won't get burned) until it is cooked. If you can see from the photo, the cake is a bit darker under, on the part that touches the bamboo but I tell you, that is the most delicious part. The basic ingredients are glutinous rice, young coconut meat, sugar, cheese, margarine. The producers make use of young bamboo or what we termed as "Bulo" - the thin kind of bamboo wood. The only way to open the tinubong is by slicing the bamboo  lengthwise to reveal the delicious tinubong inside.
Check other Ilocano dishes like Miki, Ensaladang Bagnet, and Igado.
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Your Christmas Budget

How much should you spend this Christmas? Or have you thought about it? If you haven't experienced any problem with money before, then this article may not appeal to you. But for those who have, it is highly recommended to create a budget as early as now. Some people can really get overwhelmed with the Christmas hype and spirit that they don't realize they are spending way too much than they should be. If you say that since it is Christmas, it is alright to overspend, think again. Would you really want to be broke come New Year's time?


Here is a sample list of expense items that Filipinos normally buy during Christmas time.