Pineapple Cake

Last Friday, I published a post on one of my other blogs, about my adventures with baking banana cake (AKA banana bread) using 3rd class flour. The banana cake turned out so well that I decided to try making a pineapple cake.

The photo is above.

I'll be making this again. We all enjoyed it, and it's quick and easy.

The recipe is essentially the same as a banana cake with a few minor changes. Of course, the bananas are substituted with crushed pineapple. I use white sugar instead of brown, and I completely leave out the vanilla and cinnamon.

Philippines in the 21st Century

Although I'm not particularly fond of the term, I am what is referred to as an expat living in Philippines. We live in a small town, in a rural part of the barangay, and yet, while we are not in the center of things, there are far more isolated areas in the country. Never the less, even here, in an area that one of my brothers might have called Bumfok Egypt, we have access to fiber optic cable television and Internet.

Fiber optic technology definitely puts us into the late 20th - early 21st centuries.

Yet in spite of being in "modern times", often I feel as if I've entered a TARDIS and have traveled back in time as I go walking about in my immediate area. An example of this mental disconnect can be seen in these photos, taken within a ten minute walk from our house in Magatas, Sibulan.

Back in the U.S., I knew a few folks in rural Georgia and Alabama who might have garden areas similar to the one the man in these photos works, but in the U.S., the work would be done with tractor - or tiller at least. I never met anyone in the States still using an animal to plow the field.

I imagine that some in the First World might be praising the man for being "green", by his not using a machine powered by fossil fuels or his not applying chemical fertilizers to the soil. No gasoline, or diesel. Carabao manure for fertilizer.

Does this enter his mind?

Would he rather be brought into the future?

Finishing the Lechon Baboy

In two posts from yesterday, I chronicled the preparation of a lechon baboy for the celebration of my in-laws' 43rd wedding anniversary.

In this post, I will include photos of the final steps.....the baboy, as it is nearly complete, and photos of the lechon on the dining room table.

Preparing the Lechon Baboy

In my last post [Hogtying The Pig ] I published a series of photographs documenting the early stages of getting a pig ready to become the lechon baboy. Those photos showed the hogtying of the animal prior to it being slaughtered along with a few photos taken after the slaughtering.

The photos in this post show the removal of hair from the carcass, the washing of the pig and the beginning of the roasting.

As with my earlier photographs, some may not wish to view these and might question why I post them. These photos document life as it is in Philippines today. This is the way things are here - it is not a whitewashed portrayal.

Hogtying The Pig

There's going to be a celebration this evening, and I suppose some might say this pig will be the guest of honor - or rather the main course. She will be the lechon baboy or roasted pig.

The following series of photos show the pig being "hog tied" as it were, along with photos taken immediately after the slaughter. Although I did not photograph the actual slaughter, there is blood in some of the photos and some may not wish to view them.

You have been warned.

As I write this, water is being boiled to scald the carcass to facilitate the removal of hair. No need to photograph that.

Later, when they are further along in the roasting of the baboy, I will take photos for another post. I'm sure there will be some who will object to what is being documented in this post. This is, however life as it exists in Philippines today.

Mango Shake From Cafe Mamia

This morning, we had planned on having our American expat's brunch at the Gabby's Bistro inside the Paseo Perdices Building on Rizal Blvd.

The original plan was for 10:00 AM, but it developed into a regular cluster 4#ck very early. The school where the children of four of us attend is having exams this week. This means classes are only half days this week. Yesterday the children got out at 11:30......that would still give us time for our brunch from 10:00AM until 11:30, but at the last minute, my son tells me that they'll get out at 10:30 today instead of 11:30. At that point it became a scramble to contact everyone to see if we could gather at 9:00 AM instead.

Everyone was successfully notified about the change. When the first ones arrived at Gabby's, we learned that Gabby's was no longer serving breakfast at that location. The signs read that the cafe would open now at 9:00 AM, but we were told by employees that they really didn't open until 10:00. We decided to go to Cafe Mamia instead. We could stay parked where we were and walk the short distance to Mamia's.

The last two times we met at Cafe Mamia, I had had the bread pudding à la mode with brewed coffee, and I had enjoyed that on both occasions. I had every intention of ordering the same today, until my friend ordered the mango shake. I couldn't recall ever having had a mango shake there, and I'd need to try one for my reviews.

As it turned out, neither of us had tried them before today. Looking back at an old blog post, I read that once before two others had ordered the mango shake, but when I ordered that time the cafe was "out of stock, sir".

Today, finally getting our shakes, my friend and I were both disappointed. The mango shake is too thin for my tastes, and priced too high (105 pesos) to boot. I'm sure I'll stick with the bread pudding next time I return to Mamia.

Brunch at Tinto

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that circumstances had prevented me from attending the regular Thursday brunch with some fellow Americans last week. At one time we'd meet at pretty much the same location every week, but recently we've begun going to a new joint each week. Because I wasn't there last week, I had no say in where we'd meet this time. This week we met at Tinto on E J. Blanco Dr. in Dumaguete.

I arrived a little early and met the "first shift" expats who were leaving as we were to arrive.

As can be seen in the photos, the restaurant's decor is pleasant enough, but it's similar to choosing the proverbial book by the cover. It's the food that's important.

I made the mistake of ordering the fish and chips. I was hoping for something as good as the fish and chips at Thunder Road but I was sadly disappointed. The fries were not bad - pretty good, in fact, but the fish wasn't good at all, and the meal was way over priced at 330 pesos.

One friend had the chili con carne. It did not look at all appetizing and my friend said it tasted like left-overs (and not in a good way). Two of the guys had burger and onion rings. I didn't ask how the burgers were, but burgers are burgers in my book. The one good thing I can say about the place is that they are very generous with their onion rings. I thought one order was actually a double order.

All in all, I did not have a good dining experience at Tinto and it's unlikely that I'll return.

Open For Business - J.D.'s Delight Bakeshop

Saturday, while on my morning walk, I took photos of a new bakeshop recently built within walking distance of our house - J.D.'s Delight.

I was able to add the location to Google Maps , but as I mentioned in my blog post, the bakeshop did not appear to have opened for business.

I walked in that direction this morning and found the business open. Of course, I took additional photos. Before returning home, I stopped and bought pan de sal, which was very tasty.

I'm sure I'll be back.