Sumptuous breakfast

When a six-course fare is laid out on the table for the day’s first meal, we call that sumptuous. That was what we had one Sunday morning with friends Sonia and Blanche in La Vista after a sleep-over (the sleeping came at 1:30 a.m.) and a long-planned visit to the market behind the Lung Center in Quezon City at 6:30 a.m. the next morning. Actually what we had was a degustation of sort, as we tried suman at kalamay, laing, dinuguan at puto/kutsinta, sisig at sinangag, bibingkang galapong, tamales with brewed coffee/tea. Quite a fare, but we could not resist all the offerings at the market.

The market has an overwhelming array of products, ranging from P50 t-shirts to plants and of course food–fresh, cooked, bottled, packaged. We were cooking a Sunday meal of lumpiang hubad, cocido Español and paella negra so, before we got distracted, we concentrated on the ingredients we needed. But, of course, we couldn’t help getting other things for our week’s supply of fish, prawns and squid. Our friend’s sukis include Nida for seafood, Nora for laing, Joey for vegetables, Archie or Manong for cooked food. Some items cost as much as elsewhere, but some are less expensive. But the real bargain was Connie’s maliputo (a fish unique to Batangas) at only P300 a kilo. A sibling has yet to sample this to ascertain that it is the real thing. The squid we bought for P180 was strangely tasteless, inspite of seasoning. We got the small, dilis-size tawilis (ideal to fry crispy) for P80 a kilo while apahap (there were two kinds, the regular gray and the yellowish) was at P250 a kilo. From Archie, we got part of what was laid on our breakfast table, dinuguan for P50 a tub and tamales, ginataan at P75 which we reserved for dessert, sisig at P50 and suman for P20.

It was raining that day, but we did not mind the pools of water (and mud) as we resolved to go around the whole market. Thus we found Joy’s Swiss-style ham. De la Rosa’s Deli was also selling ham and the new vegetable burgers made of rolled oats, mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, milk and eggs. They are good. In the vegetable section, firm, big tomatoes were selling at P30 a kilo. Among the fruits, mangoes went from P70 to P80 On our way out, we got some of the fresh juices from Jambalaya. We moved to Rustans on Katipunan Avenue, but were disappointed that we did not find the spices they carry in Makati, specifically saffron for the paella. Inspite of that we had a truly delicious dish, plus great bonding with friends, like Jetka, Josie and Olga who came by later to share the meal.

Trade fairs always fascinate us, even if we see the same exhibitors all the time. Premiere Events always mounts a good one, the latest being World Food Expo 2006 at the World Trade Center earlier this month. These events showcase companies that offer franchising, which means giving opportunities to would-be entrepreneurs. The siopao store Ling Nam has gone into bottled sauces, while Holand has a variety of rice cakes. Uni-Pak’s small tins of sardines done with black beans were selling well, while Prestige’s Helen showed us their new cake tray base in three sizes which is the ideal alternative to cartons. For those not quite content with fragile plastic spoons and fork, look up the heavy duty disposable cutlery from Prestige. There’s also the new sauce brand Taipan, which offers sugar-free barbecue sauce, sweet and spicy sauce and ketsup.

We associate paisley prints with clothes, but a young lady named Gina has coined the phrase Paisley Pastry for her home-based entrepreneurship. Her cakes come in lovely boxes with paisley prints in the coolest shades of green and blue. Needless to say, her concoctions are to die for. There’s Carrot Cream Dream (P750) topped with heavy cream cheese, Gooey Fudge Cake, a slow cooked chocolate number (P650 and P850). She can arrange a yummy dessert buffet. Call her at 850-9917.

Should you be in the Mall of Asia or Blue Wave and are craving for Italian food matched with wine, you might want to dine at Plato Platina (Second Level, South Wing Mall). Owner Ces has concocted Paella Romana, a surprisingly flavored dish with basil and spicy Hungarian sausages and tuna at P380, good for four. Her pizzas, from P130, has the thinnest and crispiest crust.

Have a great gastronomic Sunday!

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