Skip cooking, sometimes

Last weekend we wanted to get away from our kitchen chores. Surely this happens to all of us. We visited the BF market and dropped in on our suki Aling Juling, who never fails to surprise us with her home-cooked viands, sweets and kakanin. She and her sister Fely are always deluged with orders for their oh-so-good dinuguan with lots of finger chilis. To get this, you should be there very early, before 7 a.m. Should you want to pair this with the famous Biñan puto, you can order special from Nila’s a day before and Aling Juling will have it ready for you. They have the perfect ginataan, with the traditional sangkap of saba bananas and bilo-bilo. That day the new offering was tilapia cooked in coconut cream, fresh mustasa and slivers of ginger. At P50 per, this was enough for three of us. We had it with ginisang puso ng saging, also in gata, at P30 per container of about 120 gms. She also has embutido, pancit palabok, various vegetable ginisa, leche flan, ube jalea and even foot long sausages. With her selection, you can even host a party with no trouble at all.

Can you imagine crispy bagoong on your crackers? At lunch in a friend’s house, the hostess had this among the starters, done so well that it was not too salty. Likewise there were adobo flakes and pork fritters, a novel interpretation of chicharon. Now we know where to find all these and more: at Abby’s House in Magallanes Village, which pioneered bottled dulong. Among their new products are small lumpias–cheese and garlic (P80), taquitos (P90) and chorizo (P100). Bagoong caviar (P180) is with mushrooms and herbs.

At another lunch, we were served melt-in-the-mouth cheese rolls, soft and creamy. We traced this to a lady called Mary Grace, US-trained in baking who harnesses her kids to help her put her products in boxes. Her ensaymadas have practically no equal. Cunanan’s are also super, but each offers a different epicurean experience. Mary Grace products are found in her home in United Parañaque, at Food Choices in Glorietta 4 and Rustan’s Power Plant. Twelve cheese rolls in a box cost P240 while a dozen ensaymadas go for P395.

The sauces sold by various individuals are a great help for those who want a break from the routine of cooking. This makes the chore less complicated, since no slicing/cutting or sautéing is involved. However, as we advised one homemaker at a recent bazaar, it is always better to sauté some garlic in olive oil before pouring any prepared sauce to a pasta dish. The Marikina-based K Sarap produces Caesar’s Salad dressing, Sesame Seed Mango Dressing and Pesto Sauce. Farm n’Deli which we miss at BF has a good line as well, like cheese flavored dip. Love’s Recipe has innovated on spreads, including garlic and herbs (P160) and pesto sardines (P190).

Often breakfast is a hassle, and if you don’t go for sinangag at tapa, etc., spreads are perhaps the best choice. We found Uncle Marque products in one bazaar and they have some interesting offerings, including bottled Beef Stew, Steak and Chicken Adobo.

A pizza is a pizza is a pizza. But when some 200 outlets do their thing, one is likely to get the most unique topping for that round pastry, either thick or thin. Greenwich opened its 200th outlet and had a Pizza Pageant, making the judges try no less than 50 finalists. We thought Mango Surprise was perfect for dessert and Nacho Chip-topped Tortilla just right for our taste. Just as well, they were the winners, together with the Fat Free Tuna entry. We felt a bit of nostalgia during this event. Greenwich was perhaps the first local brand of pizza in the country; the other outfit was called 3M. It had that small place at the entrance to the old Angela Arcade (now Glorietta 4). That was where we’d buy snacks for our toddlers. If we remember correctly, it sold for about P2 a slice. It has come a long way, indeed.