Favorite Filipino Christmas Food Round Up

It's that time of the year again when everyone's busy cooking! I've been receiving emails from PiTCC's Filipino readers asking if I have recipes of this and that, so I decided to make this Favorite Filipino Christmas Food round up to make it easier for them to find the recipes they want to include in their Christmas Menu. 

Hope you'll find what you're looking for! Happy cooking everyone! Have a very merry Christmas!

• Beef
  Beef Morcon    Beef Caldereta

• Chicken
  Chicken Afritada      Chicken Estofado     Chicken Pastel
  Chicken Sotanghon Soup     Pininyahang Manok

• Pork
  Embutido     Lumpiang Shanghai     Pork Afritada     Pork Menudo

• Seafood
  Easy Paella     Baked Rellenong Pusit
  

• Pancit
  Pancit Bihon     Pancit Canton     Pancit Palabok     Pancit Puti
  

• Pasta
  Baked Macaroni     Baked Spaghetti     Filipino Style Spaghetti 
  Macaroni Sopas      Filipino Style Chicken Macaroni Salad
  

• Desserts
  Brazo de Mercedes    Buko Pandan     Cathedral Window   
  Chocolate Crinkles    Custard Cake     Egg Pie 
  Food for the Gods     Halayang Ube     Filipino Style Fruit Salad
  Pastillas de Leche     Peach Ref Cake   Leche Flan    Mocha Cake 
  Mango Cake    Polvoron     Sansrival     Ube Macapuno Cake
  

• Kakanin
  Bibingkang Malagkit    Biko    Ginataang Halo-Halo     Kalamay   
  Kutsinta    Sapin-Sapin

Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake and Being #CartonSmart

I'm pretty sure that just like me, you've noticed that more and more products in Tetra Pak® cartons (from beverages to broths, soups, sauces and even dog food) are filling the supermarket shelves. Well, that is the result of manufacturers embracing Tetra Pak® containers  because of their environmental friendliness and portability. And with more and more consumers realizing that this form of packaging is highly functional because it provides easy handling, easy storage and easy consumption, we can all expect to see more products in Tetra Pak® cartons.

So what exactly are Tetra Pak® cartons and what are they made of? Well, Tetra Pak® cartons are containers which are intended to keep products fresh and delicious for a long period of time without the need for preservatives. They were first launched in 1952 by the Swedish food packaging and processing company, Tetra Pak. They are widely used around the world and was introduced in the US in the early 1980's. 

Tetra Pak® cartons give products long shelf life through their special layers which include the following:

1) Internal polyethylene layer which seals in the liquid

2) Polyethylene layer which is needed for lamination process

3) Aluminium foil which provides a barrier to oxygen, flavours and light
4) Polyethylene adhesion layer which is needed for lamination process
5) Paperboard which gives stability and strength
6) Polyethylene layer which protects food from external moisture

Tetra Pak® cartons are made of 70% paper, a renewable resource, from selectively harvested, re-grown trees that are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified. They are recyclable and in fact result in 60% less landfill waste than cans. The goodness of this type of packaging doesn't end here. They are also light and compact and offers greater packaging efficiency, holding 96% contents in just 4% packaging. So products in Tetra Pak® cartons ship more efficiently, requiring fewer trucks which means less fuel and energy, resulting in reduced CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. A lot of consumers prefer them because they are very easy to handle and they are easy to stack and store in the pantry. And the best thing is that they keep the food in its original flavor and free from metal taste that canned foods have. Considering all these, it's clear that choosing products in Tetra Pak® cartons is a way to live smart. Not only are you helping the environment in your small way, you are also making sure that you are eating fresh tasting and BPA-free food.

Banana Cream Trifle

Next to Christmas, New Year's Day is the second most celebrated holiday in the Philippines. We, Filipinos make lots of preparations for it, and there are some traditions that we follow in the belief of ushering in a prosperous New Year. We literally celebrate this day with a BIG bang! At the strike of 12:00 midnight, you can hear church bells ringing, firecrackers banging and booming everywhere, children making sounds with their torotot (horns), car horns tooting and empty cans dragged all around. These things are done to make lots of noise which is believed to scare away evil spirits. After all the noise making, a midnight meal called Media Noche is shared with family members. This feast symbolizes family union and celebration. It is believe that when we put lots of food on the table, we will have food all year round. I grew up practicing these things, and I have always loved the sight of fireworks display and abundant food as we welcome the new year. 

Now that we are in Texas and firecrackers aren't allowed here in our area, we just content ourselves in watching fireworks display on TV. But we still blow our colorful horns as the clocks strikes 12 and we fill our dinner table with lots of food. But let me tell you a secret --- for some reasons, I don't enjoy spending too much time in the kitchen on this day. I guess I don't want to be spending the whole year in the kitchen so I'm thinking that I'd better be out of there when the clock strikes midnight. LOL. So it's either I serve food that can be prepared ahead of time, or I make easy to prepare ones. This dessert that I am sharing with you today falls on both categories...it can be made the day before and it is also so easy to prepare. :)

I want to end 2011 with this Banana Cream Trifle - a very simple yet beautiful and truly delicious dessert that my family and I love so much. There's no cooking involved and can be easily whipped up in minutes, so this is perfect for any occasion!

Ryan's Roast Turkey

Just 4 days before Christmas and my birthday! As always, my family and I are excited preparing for this special day. It's the time of the year when we have a back-to-back get together with our close friends to celebrate not only Jesus' birthday but my birthday too! We have two consecutive parties on the 24th and the 25th...we host a Noche Buena feast for our close friends at home on Christmas Eve, and then on Christmas Day, we have another party at a friend's house where we bring some food as part of my birthday celebration.

Last Friday, I shared with you our Noche Buena Menu which is a combination of Filipino and American favorites. The said menu includes Roast Turkey which is something Ryan (the hubs) loves making for special occasions. This morning, I got a comment from a reader asking me to share the herbs and spices and the procedure for roasting turkey. I know that many of you also want to have roast turkey as part of your Christmas feast, so today, I want to share with you Ryan's way of roasting turkey. He has been doing this for the past 7 years, and I must say that his roast turkey has already achieved perfection. It's not only flavorful, it's also tender, so moist and juicy --- something that a Holiday Roast Turkey should be! 

Ryan's Roast Turkey has always been a big hit on our Thanksgiving and Christmas table...and today, I'm proud to share with you his recipe. Hope you will find this helpful...