Like Brand Things? How About Brand Eggs?

(Photo taken from Deutsche Welle

After finishing my power palitaw, news came in warning people
about eating eggs in Germany as they are dioxin-loaded. Uuups,
thought of hundred of Pin@y friends and their especial dessert
for important celebrations-Leche Plan. How many eggs have we
been consuming lately, hidden in many holiday cakes. How many
scoops of deliciously prepared yolks dressed with cream in
leche plan?
More on this dioxin loaded eggs, see the news taken from
Deutsche Welle.

...and this is just a tip of the iceberg. Ei!Ei!Ei!

First Posting on 1.1.11, Power of Palitaw

"When poets...write about food it is usually celebratory.
Food as the whole thing-in-itself, but also the thoughtful
preparation of meals, the seving of meals, meals commonly
shared: a sense of the sacred in the profane."
Joyce Carol Oates

This is not a poet writing on food but just posting what
I had for brunch on the first day of the new year. I had
some pieces of delicious Palitaw. To give an authoritative
definition of what palitaw is and how to do it, Wiki described it as "a small, flat, sweet rice cake eaten in the Philippines. They are made from malagkit (sticky rice) washed, soaked, and then ground. Scoops of the batter are dropped into boiling water where they float to the surface as flat discs - an indication that they're done. When served, the flat discs are dipped in grated coconut, and presented with a separate dip made of sugar and toasted sesame seeds. Sounds easy you might think.
Palitaw is a common delicacy in the Philippines but it gets a special
status when prepared, cooked and eaten on the first day of a new year.
Like other round objects to wear, decorate and eat to celebrate the
coming of a new year, Palitaw is a symbol for luck. The word litaw
means to float, to appear and it conveys a meaning of getting
above, getting lighter: above problems especially financial worries
as many people believe or would love to believe.
My hubby said that I might be very unpredictable in many ways
and things but preparing palitaw on the eve of a new year becomes
a part of a sacred ritual.
Many years of experiencing how to make it have given me palitaw
of different sizes and textures:sometimes too thin that they
would melt upon hitting the boiling water or too thick they
would not float above which would not serve the meaning of
having them in the first place. My fingers would be sticky with
the batter and dusting them with the flour would send hubby into
a violent fit if he would actually see me in action.
I could claim now that I could do palitaw, delicious ones, and one
could eat my own version and feel that they bring good omen for
the new year. Proof? Hubby eats them now voluntarily,
commenting that my Palitaw get softer, tastier and the sesame
with sugar toppings do taste like sesame and not burnt residue.
Prosit! Cheers to the New Year!

Getting Ready for the New Year 2011

In between the last minute general cleaning, blogging call
has not been forgotten. Posting here photos of good luck
bringers in Alemanya:
Chimney Sweeps with mini clover
Piglets
Back home, people are preparing all sorts of round fruits
to decorate the dining table as round things are believed
to bring luck. This is a consolation for those who are
getting the round figure...carrying luck all the time.
So as the Germans greet each other on this day,
I say, "Guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr...
Welcoming the new year, 2011!

O Holy Night of December 2010

Something different this year with my Noche Buena in Alemanya.
In addition to the now called "century snow" in Germany making
this year's Christmas a truly white one, my sister-in-law thought
of surprising us with her new menu. She served wild boar, baked
and tamed with peaches and prunes cooked in white wine. Instead
of having the dreamed lechon - roasted suckling pig (Spanferkel
or Milchferkel) for Noche Buena, I had my first tasting of "baboy
damo", a wild boar. Grunt, grunt, grunt on a holy night this
December.

Pumpkin soup as starter.


Potato gratin and red cabbage as side dish.

For dessert, sister-in-law treated us with her all-time winner
dark and white chocolate mousse with vanilla ice cream and raspberry.
O Holy Night
in a Peaceful Land
Peace on Earth and to Men and Women of Goodwill and ...taste.

Christmas Letter Through the Post...a treasure

It came as a surprise, the letter. I was just saying the other week
to my hubby that we don't have many Christmas cards anymore
this year as compared to other years when he came inside our flat
with newly delivered letters and cards - Christmas greetings, the
yearly cards sent by organizations and companies, some with
enclosed bank forms for donations.
And with the pile of papers is this letter from cherished
friends who keep contact despite their hectic work schedule and
distance. These are cherished friends who would drop whatever
they're doing (not when Heike is cooking her soup) and welcome
us in the warmth of their nest.
Nice, thoughtful and cherished friends.
I love this letter, this is a treasure.

You're all I want for Christmas

(Photo: Shows a Pinoy cook preparing puto bumbong, Christmas
delicacy made of sticky rice steamed in bamboo tubes or
cylinder and served with freshly grated coconut and red
sugar)
If I would have the means, I would like to have my dining table
on Christmas filled with these goodies:
* Sweet jamon
* Queso de Bola (from the Philippines)
* Pandisal
* Dinuguan (spicy murky soup...only for Pin@ys)
* Puto - rice cake
* Sweet spaghetti with grated Kraft cheese
* Puto Bumbong with freshly grated coconut
* Bibingka with grated cheese and salted egg
* Lechon Kawali
* Buco Salad
* Ube Halaya
* Leche Plan with Macapuno
* Red grapes with bits of ipa (rice husks)
* Roasted chestnuts from Chinatown

But if you insist to give me something, I would
not say no to "little things mean a lot" surprises like
an E Book reader, a new laptop, a flat screen tv,
microwave oven, Blue or blackberry or IPhone.
To my dear KnP, I hope you would be moved by
my "Parinigs" and not tell me again you don't believe in
the spirit of Christmas.

2010 Weihnachtsmarkt/Christmas Fair in Cologne

Fourth Sunday of Advent

Glass balls and glowing lights.
Dead tree in living room.
Killed to honor birth.

Ron Loeffler
Taken from Haiku for People

Granada, I'm falling under your spell!

"Granada, I'm falling under your spell. and if you could
speak, what a fascinating tale you would tell." So goes the
song but I'm not posting here about the city but about one of my
favorite winter fruits - Granada, Pomegranate or Granatapfel.
Turkish fruits stands start displaying them starting
early September, some still yellowish and small. The
displayed fruits go rosier, redder and bigger as the year
ends.
I love these fruits. Just looking at them brings me back
to my childhood memory of my neighbor's one Granada tree
with its few hanging fruits, and how this woman neighbor of
ours would looked at me suspiciouly the moment I stopped to
admire her rare tree with such a dramatic name.
I would love to believe to this day that as a little marauding
child I really imagined what would happen if the fruits would
open up and how would they taste?

What tales do they bring?
Here are the perks of eating these Granadas as explained in
the fruit tags accompanying these miracle fruits:
*Balances your blood pressure
*Protects your heart and helps it work regularly
*Protects and increases your resistance against infections
*Gives energy and removes fatigue
*Strengthens your immune system and protects
against diseases
*Regulates your cholesterol and blood sugar levels and
prevents them from increasing
*Prevents diarrhea and helps its treatment
*Good for the skin and provides a smooth appearance

Now, don't take cover. Grab your Granadas and
keep yourself under their spell.

Raclette Dining and bits of discussion on Pin@y Identiy

For our Eat and Meet Group, we decided to hold it in a private
place to be hosted by Christie. Every guest brought something
for the raclette dining: steaks for grilling, marinated chicken
meat,cooked shrimps, champignons,cornichons, red,green and
yellow paprikas,bottled asparagus,aioli sauce, baquette rolls,
cheese for raclette dishes, red and white wine.
Our hostess prepared for the Eat and Meet women squash soup,
potato gratin, drinks, sausages, tiramisu and cheesecake.

While Cologne city was shaking with Shakira's Wakawaka, we were
getting heated in the room from the raclette pan and the instant
discussion on our identity as Pin@ys, regionalism, history of the
country, why Philippines has not moved up as compared with
other similarly colonized countries in Latin America,
on Heiratsvermittlung or marriage/introduction bureaus,
and who is to be blamed for the "backwardness" of the country
we left behind...the government or the people? Quite an evening
of chewing, drinking and emotionally loaded rounds of individual
viewpoints and insights.


End part of the raclette dining...instead of the traditional
exchange gift, Christie introduced a game of throwing the dices
to get the brought gifts comprising of gifts, new ones and
recycled items.
I got an even number which allowed me to get one gift for
that round. At the end of the game, I won a free brunch
courtesy of Sol but with an addendum saying it is either in
her place or mine. Next Christmas Eat and Meet, I will
vehemently suggest to have one traditional exchange gift
and one "stealing" the gift game to keep the spirit of
giving - and receiving.

The Big Freeze Holiday in NL...Day Three

Some wintry days in Rotterdam...what to do

What's this Asian food doing in this blog on some wintry
days in Rotterdam? I finally braved the drizzling snow outside
to look for this Korean eatery to have a late lunch of bibimpap,
a rice dish made with shredded beef and carrots, spinach, fried
egg, mixed with spicy peppery red sauce and served with
a typical miso soup and kimchi. A piping hot Ginseng tea made
one forget the bitter wintry temperature raging outside, all for
10Euro only.

On Saturday, this open space would be filled with all sorts of
stands and shops selling wares from fresh Tilapia (wonder where
all the freh fish would come from with this kind of weather?)to
old used photo frames.

As a dessert not only on such bitterly cold day, try poffertjes -
Dutch mini pancakes served hot and dolled up with butter and
covered with caster sugar to go with creamy hot chocolate
or your favorite tea, all for 5Euro.

It's December and time for this traditional George's
ad hanging in many European parks.

It's December and time for these delicious but notoriously
fatty Oillebollen-oily balls rolled in caster sugar.
Each delicious mini ball costs around 85 cents. What a cheap
way to get heavy on equally heavy wintry day in Holland.

A version of snow storm hitting Europe since decades

Global warming is surely not the issue this week
when Europe has been under snow since the start
of December. I'm posting a short video clip
here to record this wintry day in Rotterdam.
TV says winds from the east bringing more
snow. Brrrrr.
Here's the short video.

Getting Creative on First Sunday of Advent

Was in the market the other day thinking of what to buy to
add a bit of festive spirit in my flat now that the first
Sunday of Advent is coming. As usual, just a bit of greens
and some commercial candles of all possible colors cost
a fortune and they all look the same. Prices range from
15 up if one wants a good to look at holiday decor just
in time for the start of Christmas.
I normally make my own simple Christmas decor using
nuts, fruits, greens and candles. This time I have two
Kakis ready to eat for the Sunday brunch. Next Sunday,
I might have oranges or apples...pineapple might be too
huge for the Teller (plate) but maybe you have bought
the new breed good for Christmas decoration and flown in
just for the season.
Advent, Advent, the season of expectation, of waiting
and here's a quote I saw this morning regarding
expectation:
Brian Tracy: Expectation Quotes
"Your attitude is an expression of your values, beliefs and
expectations."

Send me some photos of your own creation. Let's share
them. Have a wonderful Sunday!

Celebrating Nov. 25, International Day Against Violence Against Women

Wir Fordern Die Nacht Zurueck! Reclaim the Night!
With this political slogans, women in Cologne celebrated
the International Day of Elimination of Violence Against
Women on November 25.
For the protest march, they were shouting:

Wir sind Frauen
wir sind viele
wir haben die Nase voll!

We are women
We are many
Fed up are we!

Frauen, hoert ihr Frauen schrei'n
lasst die andere nicht allein...greift ein!

Women, if you hear woman screaming
Don't leave her alone
Strike back, help her!

Wir sind Frauen, welch ein Glueck,
wir fordern uns die Nacht zurueck!

We are women and lucky we are
We want to reclaim the night!

Frauen gemeinsam - sind nicht einsam
gemeinsam sind wir Stark!

Women together are not lonely
Together we are mighty!

The protest march was organized by the women network
Lila-in-Koeln and supported by the Frauenverband Courage
and rhythms of resistance Koeln.

Please see the attached video of the protest march of Nov. 25.

Visit to Koelner Dom/Cologne Cathedral

If you're around in the city and want to hear a high mass
with all heavy and heavenly church music, then come to
Koelner Dom just beside the central station or Hbf...very practical
as one tourist commented.
High Mass is on Sundays at 10:00. Check also the site
I participated this morning at the Holy Mass and
was able to film partly the Gottesdienst. Secretly, of course.
Here's my short video.

Supporting the neighborhood economy

My first act when I returned to my village after a brief holiday
in Budapest was to buy a kilo of these locally harvested
walnuts. I saw the sign Walnuts for Sale for 3.50Euro per kilo in
front of a house on the street near our local post office.
I thought time has really changed. Even my neighbors are now
selling nuts from their backyard. But the nuts taste really
fresh, sweet as compared to the imported nuts from USA which
cost only about 2Euro a pack from the supermarket. The ones
from the USA are bigger and cleaner but taste a bit old and
moldy. I wonder how long have they been stored in some German
import houses and released just in time for Christmas season.
Well, I have my locally harvested nuts for consumption and the
US nuts could be used as Christmas decors. Nothing is lost.
Bayanihan ala Alemanya. The difference is that I paid for the
nuts. Didn't get it free, didn't work for it either.

Integrationsknigge: New Word Learned "Eiersollbruchstellenverursacher"

(Source of Photo:googleimage)

Just in time for the renewed debate on integration of foreigners
in Germany, I learned a new German word while attending
a seminar on "Internationale Handlungskompetenz". A seminar in
English with this topic could include: decision making and
responsibility, negotiating skills, hands-on expertise,
performance capabilities, occupational competence,
leadership skills, action competence, authority to do,
professional skills, social and inter-cultural communication
talents, etc.
For my fellow migrants in Germany, don't worry, this is not
a required seminar to get a permanent permit of stay nor
a part of that compulsory integration course.
Yes, you might think this should be rather a compulsory
seminar if not a course for many public and government
officials who are back to making capital out of
the renewed integration debate. Remember a high ranking
CDU official who had the gall to say "Lieber Kinder als
Inder" (better have children than have Indian migrants)
during a debate on the granting of especial migrant
visa status for IT experts for Germany.
For an updated info, see this link for the current state on the
debate on integration.
Now back to what I really want to blog on the newest
German word I learned...Eiersollbruchstellenverursacher
a word which came out of my friend's mouth
during our brunch after our seminar on hands-on
expertise i.e. Handlungskompetenz.
It is a compound word consisting of egg and cause of breaking
point which is just impossible to translate. Minutes later, I found
this English translation, not egg tickler nor beheader but
an egg clacker.
Eiersollbruchstellenverursacher.
Who needs it?
If it's one item on the language proficiency exam for
obtaining a German passport, I get one correct answer.
At least hindi itlog sa exam!