A Light Mother's Day Menu

Yup, the official recognition of your and my Mom is just around the corner.  I'm sure though that many will opt to go treat one's Mom out for that day, but in case you prefer a simpler, laid back celebration, why not prepare a brunch for her?  

I am sharing my recipe for crustless quiche with leek and gruyere cheese.  I had this on offer for my friends and former officemates when I prepared their diet lunches before.  Without the crust, that would mean you get to enjoy a filling meal that will cost you only 260 calories, instead of 460.  

And for dessert, a recipe for cream puffs filled with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.  This, however, is a regular recipe so it'll give one a whopping 335 calories for each medium-sized puff.  But you can lessen the guilt by using sugar-free vanilla ice cream for the filling, and there you have a compromise.  :-) Serve with a bottle of prosecco or your choice of bubbly, and you have quite an elegant spread that will make you and your Mom pampered.  

Profitez!

Crustless Quiche

3 medium stalks leeks
1 Tbsp. olive oil
   salt and pepper
6 large eggs
2 1/2 cups whole milk 
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup shredded gruyere cheese

1.  Preheat oven to 350 deg. F/180 deg. C. Grease 10-inch quiche dish, if you have one, or a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate.  Cut off roots and trim dark green tops from leeks.  Discard any tough outer leaves.  Cut each leek lengthwise in half, then cross-wise into 1/4-inch-wide slices.  Rinse leeks thoroughly in large bowl of cold water, making sure sand is removed.  Transfer leeks to colander to drain, leaving sand in the bottom of the bowl.  Repeat this process of cleaning the leeks until vegetable is completely free of sand.  Shake colander to remove excess water.

2.  In a large non-stick skillet, heat oil on medium heat for 1 minute.  Add leeks and 1/4 tsp. salt, and cook 12-14 minutes or until leeks are tender and browned, stirring frequently.  Transfer leeks to prepared quiche dish or pie plate and spread evenly.

3.  Meanwhile, in a bowl using wire whisk, beat eggs, milk, cornstarch, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper until well-blended.

4.  Pour egg mixture over leeks in dish carefully so as not to displace the arrangement of leeks.  Sprinkle gruyere cheese.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes.  Good for 6 to 8 people.

Serve with a salad of mixed greens, apple slices, walnuts and sliced parmesan cheese using a dressing made from a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey to taste.

Cream Puffs

For the choux pastry:
1 cup butter
2 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 eggs

1 container vanilla ice cream

1.  In a medium-sized sauce pan, melt butter in water.

2.  Add salt and flour, and stir until a sticky batter is formed.

3.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, until batter is smooth.

4.  Preheat oven to 400 deg. F/230 deg. C.  Grease two baking sheets.

5.  Spoon the prepared choux dough into 24 small rounds on each baking sheet, or 12 medium rounds for bigger puffs.  Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes until each pastry puffs up and turns golden brown.

6.  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on wire rack (around 20 minutes) before filling in with the vanilla ice cream.

7.  To fill the pastry, cut the puffs in half crosswise.  Place a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the bottom half secure the top half of the pastry on top of the ice cream.  Repeat with remaining pastry puffs.

8.  Place filled pastry in freezer for at least 3 hours.

For chocolate sauce:
3 squares or 1 oz. or less than 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate
2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 cup all-purpose cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted to free from lumps

1.  In a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat, stir the chocolate pieces and the butter until they are completely melted.  

2. Remove from heat and, stirring constantly, add the all-purpose cream in a thin steady stream.  

3. When mixture is smooth, stir in the confectioners' sugar and beat vigorously. Stir in vanilla and let cool slightly to thicken a little.  Take out the cream puffs and pour the icing over each pastry.  Serve. 

** You can serve the extra chocolate sauce on the side, or use it for other confections later, just heat it up a little.  The sauce can last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

   

Breakfast Made in Marikina - Rustic Mornings by Isabelo

What better way to start a holiday morning than have a hefty breakfast?  Thus, I gathered my husband and daughter and trooped down from our mountain to the valley that is Marikina to try out Rustic Mornings by Isabelo, the same place that is also otherwise known as Isabelo Garden Restaurant that operates in the evenings for dinner by reservations only.  The things that intrigued me about this place are, first, the fact that its just near where we live.  Second, upon visiting its website, I thought the pictures of the dishes on their menu looked sumptuous, and third, the place itself had the right ambience for a leisurely meal. 

 

 

Finding Rustic Mornings was a bit easy since it is near the Church of Our Lady of the Abandoned, and actually a close neighbor of the Marikina Shoe Museum, both of which are famous landmarks of the city.  (For a detailed map on how to get there, you can visit the link here.)  It is named after the road where it is found, Isabelo Mendoza Street in barangay San Roque.

 

 

While dinners at Isabelo Garden require reservation, breakfast and lunch are open to walk-in customers.  Nevertheless, I took the precaution to reserve us a table a day before, which was a good thing because when we arrived at the appointed time (9:30am), the attendants could not give us our table in the garden.  This was due to the previous diners who were actually walk-in clients, but refused to leave despite the fact that they already asked for the bill and paid for it.  Well, I can't really blame them for not leaving right away and being insensitive to the people who actually took time to reserve a table, dining in the garden is such a treat - surrounded by lush greenery additionally made charming by embellishments such as country-style bric-a-brac and capiz shell curtains strategically located so that even if there were several diners out in the garden, you still get substantial privacy with which to enjoy your meal and the company you keep.

 

 

So for the people who came in without reservations, the wait for a table was a bit longer at this time.  For us with reservations, it took us 30 minutes to be finally seated in a location we didn't like, however equally engaging the indoor dining area was.  My idea of a relaxing breakfast has in fact gone haywire because the place was really busy and getting the food served was a challenge to one's good disposition (the three of us were quite hungry already at this time).  The attendants were very patient, however, so that was one thing going for them, and the other was that when our food finally arrived, I found out why this is becoming a favorite place for visitors and Marikenos alike.

 

 

The Corned Beefsilog was very savory served with 2 eggs (my husband had the 2 eggs cooked different ways), although, I detect that the corned beef used was the garlic and chili variety of Delimondo, a favorite.  The fried rice was mixed with herbs and garlic and was cooked to make you want more.

 

 

My daughter's waffles were huge.  Toasted well on the outside and creamy on the inside.  Pairing it with bacon is a classic choice.  I, on the other hand, had the waffles served with buffalo chicken with chipotle sauce and salad greens - a good choice for brunch.  Their coffee (or Americano) comes with unlimited refill and satisfies a Filipino palate (a.k.a. mild brew).  In addition to our plates, we had extra side orders of the tawilis, a variety of small fish usually found in Taal Lake (savory and crunchy, it went well with my salad), and a frankfurter. 

 

 

Our entire meal costs us PhP1,271 (and change, or around US$30).  Not bad.  However, I don't think I'll be able to get my husband and daughter to come back with me here.  They didn't like the crowd that were there with us - loud selfies with nervous energies who constantly have an eye out at the entrance to find out if anybody who came in was anybody worth knowing.  One of the older diners was even homicidal, he almost ran over my husband in the parking lot (a small area),  as if the world was going to be on the brink if he didn't get to his table.  He was never even sorry.

 

For my twenty-five-centavos-worth, I suggest that you try out this place on its off-days like when you are on vacation while everyone else is at work.  Maybe you'll get better treatment and you can better enjoy its charms.  Added to this, make sure you make reservations just the same.

Rustic Mornings by Isabelo
11 Isabelo Mendoza Street
San Roque, Marikina City
+63 2 5106914
+63 2 6812461
+63 917 70055810