Skip to main content

behind-the-scenes of the first lunch I cooked for friends.

Several weeks ago...

I was assigned to bring in picnic food. Because cooking is a hobby of mine, Matty was imagining that I'd bring something really nice. Alas, it was short notice and I was only able to bring donuts. Sorry! Anyway, I told him that it takes around five hours for me to prep a picnic meal that would pass his no-adobo-no-sinigang specifications and does not involve sandwiches. The five-hour period is from shopping to mise-en-place to cooking to cooling the food down to packing the food and to cleaning up the kitchen. So next time I'd be assigned to bring in the food, I should be told a day in advance... Or an evening in advance.

Last Thursday...

It was a holiday and there was nothing for me to do at home. I wanted to try baking chocolate crinkles but I didn't have the right chocolate. I chanced upon Santi's when I drove to Sta Rosa and it had just what I was looking for: discs of chocolate milk couverture! That made me so happy that when I got home, I started prepping cookies right away!

first batch of chocolate crinkles

Last Friday...

Looked like the guy remembered. I was told that evening that the trip to Caliraya was a go and I was to cook a picnic lunch for six people. So off to the grocery I went to buy ingredients. I didn't have a recipe book with me at that time so I decided to cook what I've tried before; at least with those dishes I'd know what ingredients to buy. I threw in some wheat bread and lots of water in my shopping cart as well, just in case nobody else brought any food and we'd be in a place with no restaurants. 

When I got home, I started to prep right away because the cooked food needed to cool down before they'd be placed in the fridge. Thank goodness for my trusty chef's knife and my favorite cutting board... Chopping veggies and meat was a breeze, even with the smaller cuts (i.e., brunoise for the garlic and the onions). I was chef and steward at the same time, so while something was simmering, I was washing pots and pans... Or whisking the salad dressing. Yes, the dressing was made from scratch. :) 

Everything was ready five hours after I bought the picnic lunch ingredients.

Bright and early last Saturday...

I just realized how much stuff I was bringing in when I started loading them in my car's trunk! A shopping bag with spoons and forks, plates, tissue paper, and cups; a cooler with bottles of water, a bag of ice, bottled iced tea, and lunch; plus my box of chocolate cookies. I just missed loading my tent (no more space in the trunk) and a picnic mat (I don't have one). My kite, my tripod, and my Frisbee were placed inside the trunk along with my gym bag containing my camera gear and my swimming gear. Basically, I looked like I was about to go on a week-long vacation rather than a day trip to the lake. It took two guys to help me load the food into Val's car. Yeah, that's how prepared I was this time around.

On the way to Caliraya, I described lunch to Sonya, Mai, and Matty (who's driving his car), telling them to wait until they've tasted the meal before they pronounced judgment on my cooking. Val, Zia, Sylvestre, and Alpha (in Val's car) had no idea at all what lunch would be. 

Saturday lunch...

I was going for contrasts in tastes and textures for lunch, which is why the menu included:
     - Risotto with parmesan cheese and shiitake mushrooms
     - Beef and cucumber salad (the dressing included beef jus, chilis, and calamansi)
     - Chocolate crinkles, for dessert
     - Lemon iced tea and water

Weird combination, I know, but here's the thing: the tanginess of the salad dressing countered the milky nature of the parmesan cheese; the crunch of the cucumber was there as contrast to the smoothness of the risotto; the umami of the beef complemented the earthy tones of the mushroom. 

Oh my goodness, I've just become as fussy as a real chef! 

Unfortunately for me, I couldn't serve the lunch hot because the microbiologist in me was more concerned with my friends' tummies not getting sick than the food's serving temperature while in the great outdoors.

Over lunch, I was happy that my friends appreciated the food that I prepped for them. Good job, audience! Thank you, thank you! 

I have to learn how to cook more meals for future picnics! Let me see what I can do with fish fillets...
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for dropping by!

Before moving on, please share your thoughts or comments about the post. :)

Thanks again!

Popular posts from this blog

10 things I learned while driving on Marcos Highway to Baguio City

I went on a day trip to the City of Pines, which was around a 700-km drive from my house. I drove  going up there and then from the city to Victoria, Tarlac. After that, my dad took over the driving duties. It was day trip with Tita Ising and Tito Sibing with us. Anyway, this trip was my first time to go to Baguio City with me behind the wheel. As everyone who drives up knows, there are three main routes to Baguio from the lowlands: Kennon Road, which ascends from Rosario, La Union. It was out of my options because it's too dangerous to use that road in the rainy season. The second route is via Naguilian Road, which makes my trip a lot longer because the beginning of the ascent is in Bauang, La Union (further north). The last route, and the one I took, was the Marcos Highway, now known as the Aspiras-Palispis Highway. This 47-km road starts from Agoo, La Union and is touted as the safest route among the three.  As I drove up and then down (on the same day; we were in Bagu
5 comments
Read more

How MALDI-TOF-MS makes mycobacterium diagnosis faster and more accurate

The laboratory I work in has plenty of instruments that help us characterise and identify microorganisms causing diseases in patients. One of my current projects is to validate an instrument called "matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometer" (MALDI-TOF-MS) in identifying members of the Mycobacterium  species. Many of these organisms are opportunistic, meaning they only cause illnesses in people whose immune systems are not strong enough to fight infections. Mycobacterium leprae  is known for causing leprosy, but we cannot grow this bacterium in culture media, so we cannot isolate it. Mycobacterium tuberculosis  complex, on the other hand, is a group of several species of Mycobacterium  that causes tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a disease that killed 1.6 million people in 2021 alone. It is a leading cause of death globally, second only to COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Identifying the Mycobacterium species that has infected a patient is
Post a Comment
Read more

a crash course on traditional Filipino houses

On Dr Jose Rizal's birthday this year, I was back in historic Manila with Ate Bing, Ate Mary , and Manuel . But instead of visiting him, we opted to soak up on Philippine culture. Our first stop: the Cultural Center of the Philippines ' (CCP) Museo ng Kalinangang Pilipino .  Aside from the musical instruments, I noticed the dioramas about Filipino homes. Filipinos living by the sea (the 'sea gypsies', Sama Dilaut or Badjao ) have boathouses; those who live in the mountains, like the Bagobos , have developed interconnected houses in the trees; Filipinos who live along the path of the strongest typhoon winds, such as the Ivatans , have developed houses of thick limestone walls; and people who live in calmer conditions used bamboo and nipa to construct their houses, like the lowlanders and the Agtas . Sama Dilaut 'lepa' and houses on stilts (in the background) Ivatan limestone house nipa hut Ifugao 'fale' Maranao '
Post a Comment
Read more