QUEEN VICTORIA'S GARLIC ROASTED CHICKEN

 by: MisS VictoriA DaviD

I like eating delish meat!

Cooking food at home is my magic wand and they all appreciate everything about it; from the preparation of ingredients to eating together. This is one great reason why I don't buy processed food or indulge myself in buying instant products at the supermarket. It doesn't mean I dislike them!

I have eaten Roasted Chicken that was cooked and bought from the supermarket, in particular, Garlic Roasted Chicken. The taste was really finger licking good; scrumptious!

When I was at the supermarket last time, I bought a whole chicken and challenged myself to cook my own recipe version of Garlic Roasted Chicken.

Sauce Ingredients: 

• 5 cloves of garlic, crashed 
• 2 slices of onion, chopped 
• 3 tbsps. of Wine Vinegar 
•  ½ tsp. Ground pepper 
• 2 tsps. of honey 
• a pinch of mixed herbs 
• 3 stalks of lemon grass, cut each into 2 (ginger is an option) 
• salt to taste

Sauce Preparation:

1. Mix the garlic, onion, vinegar and honey in a saucepan. Stir well.
2. Add the pepper and mixed herbs. Stir well again. 
3. Add and soak the lemon grass in the mixture. 
4. Once all mixed, bring it to the boil for 3 minutes on a moderate heat. 
5. Let it cool for 5 minutes before adding it to your chicken.

Main Ingredient:

• A whole chicken (free range, if possible as the extra flavour is worth the money)

Marinating Procedure:

1. Wash and rinse the chicken. 
2. Prepare a container and lay the meat in it. 
3. Use a spoon to pour the sauce mixture over the meat. Turn-over and do the same. 
4. Cover the container and leave it for a night (marinating process). 
5. After marinating the chicken, don't throw the sauce mixture. Bring it to the boil and use it as a greasing ingredient when roasting the chicken.

Roasting Procedure:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. 
2. Prepare a roasting tray with rack on it and lay the marinated chicken. As we are using an oven, the tray will hold the excess oil while roasting. 
3. Roast it for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown. 
4. Check it every 25-30 minutes and turning it occasionally. Brush the chicken with the boiled sauce mixture.

This is a flavoursome way of roasting a whole chicken and an addtional recipe to be served on the table for your loving family and closests friends this Christmas season as well as the New Year!

MY KITCHEN, MY RECIPE!

 by: MisS VictoriA DaviD

Ten years ago I only weighed 40 klgs. with a waistline of 2_ inches. Wish I still was but I will leave it to all of you about the measurement of my waistline. 

I could still vividly remember that I used to buy my clothes, most of the times, at the children's department; which were a lot cheaper. I was that tiny and slender before and knew the meaning of hardship when I was living in the capital city of the Philippines. Literally speaking, it would take me about 3 hours to reach my destination when I used to commute from my sister's house to work and vice versa. I have to say that my physique and most especially my booty benefited from all of the hardship. I commuted for 6 days in a week during which I had different time schedules and used 3 types of self-powered motor vehicles. Imaginatively, I was the walking superwoman version of my favourite fictional character superwoman (Lol!). After all, it was the joyride of my life! 

Those memories are now well kept in the left hemisphere of my brain which I frolickingly treasure: from time to time and will until my last day on Earth. Psychologically, it isn't very good to live in from past recollections and then, as we may just completely abandon how lovely it is to be in the now. After all, who we are today is the by-product of our colourful past?

Inevitably, I missed my waistline more than my weight and its because it was very very small. My love for cooking and eating, in general, supplemented my weight with another 10 klgs. and buttressed my waistline to a grown-up woman. Yes, I do miss my waistline (what a picayune!) but the additional klgs. means, given my height that I belong to 'Healthy/Normal Weight' category as per the Body Mass Index (BMI) calculator. I am happy to say!

You are what you eat... 

Having my own kitchen with a great selections of ingredients within a hand's reach and then, cooking without restrictions has led me to love the art of preparing food. Which is why, from altering the ingredients, to cooking the dishes in my own ways has become very enjoyable. Undeniably and of course, the eating with their distinctive and delicious flavours. 

Without further ado, here are my versions of Filipino (mainly) dishes as an efficient cook...

(Superfood Shake)

 

(Cassava Cake: Before and After)

   (Coconut Milk Marinated and Oven-Grilled Pork: After and Before)

 (Classic Cascading Beef Lasagne)

  (Coconut Milk Marinated and Oven-Baked Pork: Before and After)

(Pork Adobo and Bicol Express)

(Seafood Paella)

(Pinakbet and Savoury Scones)

  (Chopsuey and Pizza)

(Sweet, Savoury and Meat Muffins)

      

(Meat Siopao)

(Beef Adobo and Garlic Oven-Grilled Chicken Parts) 

  (Garlic Oven-Grilled Pork and Chicken Sopas)

 (Chicken/ Vegetables Steamed and Oven-Baked Muffins)

(Rellenong Oven-Baked Baguette) 

(Pineapple Topped Coconut Macaroons)