Malaysian Food @ Nuvali, Laguna

There is a commercial strip in Sta. Rosa, Laguna and it is called Nuvali. Tulad ng love life ko, the whole place was gloomy since it was drizzling but I still had fun. I'd equate the appeal to MOA's bay area... minus the bay.

What they have is a man made lake infested with flesh-eating koi fishes:

Those laughing in the background are the angels of death. Nakakadiri, para silang mga uod haha. Imagine this sight happening inside your stomach. XD

Aside from the feeding the lake critters, you can also rent bikes so you can go around the place (the place is nice, trust me), you can also take a boat ride, check out the bazaar (Valentines theme), other attractions (a mini stage was set-up in the central plaza and they sang love songs) or try out some interesting restos.

We tried Johnny Bamboo. They serve Malaysian food. Here are the stuff that we tried:

Pina-sosyal na kropek. In English, socialized cracklings. In sophisticated Asian fusion cuisine, "Asian Cracklings" haha, de pota!

Malaysian Spring Rolls with sweet and sour dip

Tilapia in some tangy sauce

Malaysia's Famous Nasi Goreng

Assorted Skewers that came in a very "Asian" grill box.

Kangkong with what appears to be peanut brittle. Haha!

Something that resembles deep fried quesadillas but this one is all meat.

Nuvali is really a breath of fresh air. I will definitely come back... when it's sunny. So that also means, I'll come back with a lover LOL! And oh! There's Conti's Bakeshop as well! Watch out for me, Mr. Mango Bravo!

I heart cakes and pastries!

Tofu Tortilla Wrap

Hey! Remember my Tofu Tacos? If you have flat breads like pita, naan, tortilla or a tasty bread you sat on then here's another fun way to enjoy tofu!

This is the Tofu Tortilla Wrap!

The sticks I used to hold the wrap in place are from a hospital ear bud. Don't worry, I washed them.

Here's how I did it:

1. Follow the instructions on how I did the tofu here.

2. After heating your flat bread on a skillet, from an oven or from a fire type pokemon...

Char! Char! Char lang, teh! Haha XD

... place a good leaf of lettuce and your favorite spread. It could be tuna, cottage cheese, liver spread, whatever. Lay out the tofu and drizzle a good amount of extra virgin olive oil.

3. At this point, you can add whatever you like. You can add shredded cheese, veggie strips like cucumber, plain or flavored yogurt, etc.

I used tortilla and they are best served cold. Chill them in the fridge for about 5 -10 minutes before serving! Best with iced tea or lemonade!

Potato Pancakes

Potato pancakes are usually shallow-fried pancakes of grated potatoes but I did a different method and added other ingredients. For this one you need:

1 regular can of corned tuna (drained really really well)
4 medium-sized potatoes (boiled to perfection)
1 medium-sized onion (put it whole..... lol just kidding... finely chop it)
1 egg (the one that came from a chicken)
grated cheese (lots and lots of 'em)

So basically, this will be a mashed potato pancake. If you have leftovers from last night's barbeque party or if a potato stand in a nearby market is rammed by a truck... you could use 'em for this recipe.

So there, put everything in a bowl and mix it well to the tune of Ke$ha's "Tiktok". By the way, you can add flour to the mixture if you want. I seriously forgot to add some in mine, haha.

When it's all mixed up, scoop about a tablespoonful then roll it into a ball and pretend that you are a pro - juggle the ball to remove the air pockets inside. By the way, make sure you washed your hands before doing this. I seriously forgot to wash mine, haha.

Then fry away!

Nice, huh? You can eat it on its own or with your fave dipping sauce. Ketchup is nice, too!

Tofu Tacos

So I had this crazy idea of replacing ground beef with tofu. I thought it would never work but to my surprise, it did! So I'm gonna share this delicious recipe!

By the way, I tweaked the traditional taco recipe so if you're looking for authentic tacos, try Google. So here are the ingredients I (unfortunately) used. ^^Of course, taco shells, onions and tomatoes, Chinese cabbage, firm tofu, McCormick Pesto pasta mix, Maggi magic Sarap seasoning, olive oil, Italian seasoning, pepper and other seasonings that you think will add flavor... the gayer, the better!
Mince the onions and tomatoes and sit fry them in olive oil... when they become soft, add in your seasonings. I added Italian seasoning, it made the onions and tomatoes very aromatic! Then continue stir frying for about 5 minutes then set aside.
Crumble the firm tofu until you achieve the texture as shown above and with a good amount of oil, fry them. Stir occasionally. Basically, this will be your meat and since i don't wanna change the natural and subtle taste of tofu, i just added Maggi seasoning and a little bit of soy sauce. Add a bit of oil when it runs dry. Repeat the process until you achieve this:
Tadah! See how it resembles ground beef? Cool huh? In doing this one, I suggest you use a non stick pan... if you notice i changed pans LOL!

And for a really tangy dressing...
Look for this:
Add 1 tablespoon of this to 1/4 cup mayonnaise and add a splash of lime and a pinch of salt and pepper. This is the real deal, baby! You can also use this dressing for sandwiches or use it as a dip! ^^

OK now we have everything ready...
Let's assemble a taco! Hmm... it doesn't really matter which one should be placed inside first, it's all gonna go down anyway! Haha!
So there you go... tacos... Mikuru style! Let's eat! ^_^

Corned Tuna Kimchi Sandwich

Everyone in our family loves corned tuna and kimchi so I decided to share my Kimchi sandwich recipe made healthier with San Marino Corned Tuna!

So what do we need here:
2 tablespoonful of San Marino Corned Tuna
1 small fresh cabbage leaf (boiled or as is)
1 tablespoon of Chinese Cabbage Kimchi
sandwich spread
mustard
salt or sugar to taste (optional)

Okay so let's get started! =)
Spread one slice of bread (or both) with sandwich spread then arrange the cabbage as shown above. Make sure that your cabbage is drained very well if you had them boiled.
then top the cabbage with San Marino corned tuna and on top of that, arrange your favorite Chinese Cabbage kimchi brand. Make sure they are also drained very well, otherwise you will end up having a soaking wet sandwich! =)
Then finally drizzle a good amount of mustard, salt and/or sugar to your desired taste!

Protein from corned tuna, vitamins and cholesterol-lowering benefits from cabbage and kimchi, etc. This easy to make and healthful sandwich is definitely an energy booster!

Pinoy Scramble!

Ice scramble, ice crumble, i-scramble, iskramble... whatever you call it as long as the schwa is there and a wonderful sight of this amazes you:

They say this delicious treat originated from Iloilo. It's basically shaven ice mixed with either artificial or natural flavours and topped with a variety of sweets like - chocolate syrup, strawberry syrup, powdered milk, chocolate chips, colorful sprinkles, mallows, rice crispies, etc.

It is very popular among kids and adults alike, specially during the summer! Iskrambol is now enjoying a makeover since 2010 - affordable food franchises and food carts are taking this unique pinoy treat from the streets to malls, amusement parks, cinemas, etc. and nostalgic patrons line up for a cup of their childhood memories.

Bulalo in Tagaytay

There's something about Tagaytay's bulalo.

This is a soupy dish that consists of boiled marrow-rich cow's leg bone (preferably that of the foreshank or hindshank) with cartilage and few meats still attached on it and also has some potatoes, whole onions, string beans and cabbage.

Not all that glitters is gold. Sometimes, it's bulalo. =)

My brother said Tagaytay's bulalo has a distinct and unique flavor compared to other bulalos and indeed it is! I don't know if the cool weather and other living conditions of cows have something to do about it, but this is a very hearty dish!

Nature's cannon ball is definitely refreshing!

I ordered Buko (coconut) juice immediately when I saw it on the menu (I need a break from iced tea) and to my surprise it was served with the jelly meat in the shell! So cute!

We also had tawilis, it is more or less the size of your middle finger. Sardinella tawilis (sometimes obscurely referred to as the Freshwater Sardinella) is a freshwater sardine found exclusively in the Philippines. It is unique in that it is the only member of the family Clupeidae that is known to exist entirely in freshwater.

It was lightly battered then fried and served with achara. My brother taught me how to eat it the right way - hold it by the tail, dip in soy sauce (or whatever) and eat it whole!