Red Wine Braised US Beef Short Ribs

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


As the sort of food shopper who cannot afford to buy US beef on a regular basis, Filipinos had quite forgotten that imported Bone in Beef went away. A lot of people in our family got sad when US beef became unavailable. We had to find other ways. And when the ban on US beef is being  lifted in different parts of the world. Many of us cheered!

And they are back, what's not to like about US Beef anyway, especially one that still has the bone on? It is buttery, tender, flavorful, all that beef ought to be.

Chicken Claypot Rice

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


I would consider Philippine cuisine to be still in immaturity. Sure, we have great and unique dishes and we have so much untapped regional specialties, but there seems to be a lack of identity which is distinctly us. There is hope however for the rebirth in our local cuisine. With cooking schools mushrooming , TV programs from the Food Network and Asian Food Channel, and the hundreds of restaurants featuring food from all over the region and the world, our local Chefs surely won't take the culinary invasion sitting down and watch all these progress takes place. That's why many of them are fusing local  ingredients and cuisine with  western techniques to produce world class dishes yet we can all call truly ours.

Basic Beef Stock

Making stock for pho bo (Vietnamese rice noodle soup with beef). For more, see here: Blue Lotus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


One of the most important components of French dishes is the sauce. Whether it be cream based, finished with butter, mixed with tomato paste or puree, or be it a simple reduction, sauces make the dish.

In cooking school, aside from knowing where and how ingredients are used, one of the most basic skills taught was making a good stock. Stocks serve as the base of almost every sauce in cookery. Beef and veal stock, chicken and lamb, fish and shellfish, all these stocks had to be mastered before moving on to real cooking.

Darling in the Kitchen

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


I remember the summer after I turned 11 years old. I had been watching my mom bake and cook for years. Sometimes she would let me help. But that summer, I made my first solo attempt at baking. When I proudly presented my orange chiffon cake for my brother to taste, he sincerely complemented me with "This is the most delicious banana cake I have ever tasted!" Challenged by my brother's unintentional put down, I begin to practice often.

How To Make Wonderful Coffee At Home

Animation of cream being poured into drip coffee. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By John Handle

You can brew your mug of coffee in an assortment of manners and ways. Each approach has unique qualities to match various tastes, preferences, and lifestyles. But what all coffee makers have in common is that they brew your favorite beverage without the requirement to boil coffee in a separate container. The filter size, the water tank and the container combined shall determine the quantity of coffee that you are able to make with your machine.

Low Calorie Cookies

Snickerdoodles. Falmouth Maine (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw

Sometimes we wonder if we could cook low calorie cookies and that is the absence of sugar and butter. What? These ingredients are the cornerstones to a yummy cookie, and in all honesty, leave them out of the equation and you come up with a product that pales in comparison.

The usual thing to be done is to substitute lower fat ingredients in place of their full-fat counterparts. But low-fat or skim milk, in place of whole milk, doesn't have much of an impact on a finished cake, since it only reduces the fat content slightly.

How To Cook Like A Great Chef

MANDATORY CREDIT PHOTO BY DAVE M. BENETT/GETTY IMAGES REQUIRED) (L-R) Mark Hix, Mark Edwards, Richard Corrigan, Giorgio Locatelli and Peter Gordon attend the Who's Cooking Dinner? charity event in aid of leukaemia charity Leukaon, at the Langham Hotel on March 8, 2010 in London, England. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

By Carina Helen Sanchez

Having a meal is a favorite time of the day for all people. This is especially true if the meals are being prepared by someone who knows their way around a kitchen. The following article will describe techniques that anybody can take advantage of, from amateur to expert.

If you are cooking for someone you want to impress, cook something you already know how to make. Cooking a new recipe is a bad idea since you have not yet worked out any quirks in the recipe. This can lessen the stress of your cooking.

Nutrition Tips For Keeping Your Children Healthy

Healthy eating pyramid similar to that of the Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health. Temporary image as original is non-commercial use only. If you have a better image please replace this. Thanks. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Megan Leiberman

Nutrition is important for our daily lives. Nutrition requires us to think about what we eat and drink and how they will maximize our bodies to perform at their best each day under multiple conditions. The following article will give you nutrition tips to help your body perform at its maximum.

To get the most nutritional value out of vegetables, be careful to not overcook them. A light steaming keeps vitamins in broccoli, carrots and other veggies better than a boil that will wash nutrients out. They'll also be much more appealing prepared this way, with a satisfying crunch to them instead of a soggy mush-like texture.

3 Reasons Why You Should Switch to Eating the Mediterranean Way

Mediterranean diet (close up) (Photo credit: grobery)

By Ray Darken

Why must you trade your regular diet with the Mediterranean diet? Why should you venture into the unknown arena of Mediterranean cuisine where you would doubtless need to develop a liking for everything which has once been foreign to you? Why should you just give everything up, including those foods that your taste buds once loved? Well, I can think about many good reasons why you definitely should but let me share with you simply 3 of the most important benefits it's easy to get from this incontrovertibly healthy diet or you can register and learn lots more on this page.

Menudo Shepherd's Pie with Raisins

Cottage Pie (Photo credit: jayneandd)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw




Growing up, we have been taught to celebrate milestones, those once in a lifetime occasions that symbolize we have successfully completed something, for example, a birthday, a graduation, a promotion. There is absolutely nothing wrong with celebrating these wonderful moments. However, you must also remember that the everyday matters as much as the special days. So, as you look forward to the next big thing in your life, do not forget to appreciate the daily tasks that lead to the big occasion, i.e. if you are about to get married, enjoy the months of preparation. If you have a child that is about to graduate soon, remind him or her to savor the last few months with friends he or she grew up with.

Summer Salads

A salad platter. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


Cooking lessons used to be given at home by Moms or Lolas or an Aunt...relatives in the clan known for their cooking/baking prowess or by someone who just came from cooking school abroad.  The cooking lessons learned from them are considered priceless!

Summer is definitely here in the Philippines, cooking lessons are in season. Go. It's time to learn things you'll never unlearn.

Quick Breads in a Wink

Deutsch: Brot- und Backwaren (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


Most bakers love doing quick breads because they are fast and relatively easy to bake. Loaf and pan breads, muffins, biscuits, and scones are the general types of quick breads. Quick breads being versatile, one can experiment with various flavors and textures such as adding fresh fruits (bananas, berries and mangoes), dried fruits (cranberries, apricots and mangoes), or shredded vegetables (grated carrots and zucchini). But what exactly makes quick breads bake quick? Unlike yeast breads which require at least five to 10 minutes of kneading, quick breads need none at all because they aim for a tender texture rather than a chewy one. Quick breads are actually more like cakes than they are bread!~

Multigrain Buttermilk Waffles with Poppy Seeds

Liège waffles. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


Is this the year you will kick-start your career as home-based baker? Are you finally saying goodbye to those nagging ten pounds? Is this the year you will kick a bad habit? Many of us make promises like these to ourselves at the start of every year, spurred by hope and great expectation. Yet as weeks pass, the enthusiasm to stick to our promises slowly wane and old habits and mindsets start taking over again. Next thing you know, the realization of the possibilities you initially thought look dimmer and dimmer.

Homemade Tips for Parents

Fruits and vegetables (Photo credit: nutrilover)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


For the more hands-on parents, here are a few quick homegrown tips  shared to me by an expert mom on making children's meals more nutritious yet fun.

How To Make Apple Crisp

This was AWESOME (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw




In these days of rich, multi-layered cakes and sophisticated chocolate desserts, it's hard to imagine a time when desserts as simple as the apple crisp were considered an elaborate meal. Although this simple treat had its humble beginnings more than two centuries ago, it remains to this day a timeless dish in classic American cookery

The health conscious will delight in  the fact that this rustic but sensational dessert is low in sugar and fat and contains a significant amount of fiber. You can have this apple crisp recipe tested. Enjoy!

Color Your Palate

Garlic pierced roast (Photo credit: Happy Sleepy)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


Amazing things happen when you go for healthier choices. These recipes start with a splash of colors from the food pyramid: red, yellow, orange, violet, white and green, ensuring that everybody in the family gets an abundant heaping of vitamins and minerals straight out of your kitchen.

The Omega 8003 Juicer Offers Many Advantages

Oranges and juicer in chiaroscuro (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Chris Mueller

Omega 8003 juicer offers quick and easy nutrition for people on the go who are still interested in eating right. Having the time needed to prepare and eat the servings of fruits and vegetables your body needs to be its best may be a real challenge. The good news is that there is an easier way.

With a glass of juice you can make use of the same nutritional content as you could from the fruits or vegetables themselves. Easier to prepare than a salad and able to be enjoyed in less time this can be the perfect addition to balance any meal. Taking a glass on the go can be a great snack as well.

Tipsy Leche Flan

Leche Flan (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Juvy S. Iliwiliw


       Caramelizing sugar for a flan used to be an elementary task. All you had to do was to pour the required amount of sugar into a thick-bottomed frying pan or copper pan and place it over low heat. Some bakers would pour the sugar straight into the required baking pan and position it directly over an electric or gas stove set on low. Next step would be to wait patiently for the right shade of brown before adding flan mixture or a cake batter. According to my grandmother, stirring was strictly prohibited. Lola Citas would always do her best to stop me from stirring the sugar in the pan, as this will make the sugar crystallize, preventing it from melting to a sweet, liquid amber.