Che's 31st Birthday

It was Che's birthday yesterday so I took a leave since Monday. Last year, I was guilty for not doing something special for him and so I tried to make it up to him this year. I initially planned a surprise party at a function room in my friend's condo in Greenbelt but the thought of having to prepare for many guests scared me. You see, I am not a cooking expert so I should better start with a simple celebration at home! Che also doesn't want too many guests as that means entertaining and drinking until late at night.

So with the help of my mom (haha, yeah, mom is someone you first call during emergency, right?!), we prepared for a dinner with the following menu:

Maja Blanca
Kare-Kare (mom's specialty)
Bangus Sisig
Chicken Kebab
Siomai
Lumpiang Shanghai
Pasta Puttanesca
Banofee Pie
Mango Bravo from Conti's

Well, well. Mom did the cooking but hey, I wrapped the siomai and fillet the chicken breasts! Talk about efforts, right? I am also very proud to have done a delicious Banofee Pie and the Puttanesca! Ok, I have to be honest here. For the puttanesca, I did asked mom to taste it and add some salt and pepper. I was scared to fail considering it's my first attempt to do puttanesca. But boy, it was easy!

Here's the recipe in case you may want to try. Promise, it's yummy. The Banofee pie tastes better than the Mango Bravo from Conti's. Both the Banofee and the Puttanesca were smashed!

Banofee Pie



Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of crushed Graham Crackers (equivalent to a pack of crushed crackers available in grocery stores)
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup melted butter
3 tsp ground ginger (optional- i didn't include this)
1 can of condensed milk
3 pieces of bananas (i suggest you add more)
4 tetra pack of Nestle All Purpose Cream

Mix graham, sugar, butter until well blended. Press in a pan. Cool in ref. In saucepan, boil the unopened can of condensed milk for 3 hrs. Make sure you check if the water is enough (should fill the top of the can or at least up to 3/4 level). Set aside and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Open the can and spread it on top of the crust. Layer with bananas and add the whipped cream. Put chocolate syrup and spread with grated chocolate. Keep in the freezer until ready to serve.

Pasta Puttanesca


This is Rachel Ray's recipe in Food Network.com. But more or less I used the following:

Ingredients:
500g spaghetti
1 can (28oz) Hunt's Crushed Tomatoes
1 can (28oz) Hunt's Diced Tomatoes
1 small jar of flat anchovy fillets
1 1/2 small jar of black sliced olives (the more the better)
3 tbsp of capers (i used up about half the small jar)
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3-4 cloves of garlic (in recipe, it's 4-6 cloves, so up to you)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
grated parmesan

Cook the spaghetti until al dente. Set aside. Saute oil, garlic and anchovies until anchovies melt and garlic is tender. Add olives, capers, tomatoes, black peper and parsley. Put some black pepper and salt. Bring sauce to bubble and simmer. Toss the pasta into sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan. Serve with buttered slice of bagette.