TASTE OF ZAMBOANGA: ORGANIC SALAD FROM SILSILLAH

Here is another unique salad that is great for health and wellness!

This was also suggested by Doc Maya and this was specially prepared fresh from the gardens of Silsillah in Sinunuc, Zamboanga City.

Isn't this interesting? We thought the salad would be lettuce leaves and the like!

What a surprise, that these are really leaves (as in tree leaves) and flowers!!! 
I didn't get to know the names of the leaves from herbs, shrubs and trees nor of the yellow flowers... 


They said the pink flower was the "katuray".
Have you heard of the "katuray"? 

So I had to find out if this was just a vernacular term and this is what I grabbed! (to my surprise again!!!)

http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/katurai-katuray-katuday-corkwood-tree-flowers

Katuray are the flowers of a small tree with light foliage (sesbania grandiflora) that thrives in arid and tough conditions, the often rather bitter tasting flowers (petals mostly) are a classic ingredient in Ilocano cooking. Along with ampalaya (bitter gourd) and other vegetables, they seem to mirror the tough conditions wrought by the geographical realities in the Ilocos region. I suspect many hundreds of years ago someone thought to cook katurai flowers for lack of better food alternatives… The tree is apparently native to this part of the world, some suggesting Indonesia as the epicenter of the species, and its flowers are enjoyed as food in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, etc. I have seen two colors of katuray in the markets, this pale greenish white and a more burgundy colored hue.

Doc Maya and Juvee placed the special salad dressing on each pack.

The pack cost P50.00 but these leaves are really compactly placed.

In fact I had to eat two times... first, to get used to the idea, then second to finish it including the flowers, but it was really heavy!

Charmee suggested to mix some tuna to the salad, if it is so difficult for you to eat leaves and flowers only.

can you see the leaves are really leaves
from herbs, shrubs and trees!!!

My other friend didn't dare try out the flowers!

Isn't this so appropriate for the Ciudad Medical Zamboanga Breast Wellness opening! The Breast Cancer Survivor group second the motion!!!

TASTE OF ZAMBOANGA: VEGETABLE PANINI FROM WICHCRAFT

What's a Panini?


This is what I gathered from Wikipedia:

Panini are small, filled, bread rolls, which are sometimes toasted. They are Italian in origin, but now found in other countries.

In Italy, panino (Italian pronunciation: [paˈniːno]) is the word for a sandwich made with a bread roll. Sandwiches there are customarily made from a roll or loaf of bread, typically a ciabatta or a rosetta. The loaf is cut horizontally and filled with salami, ham, cheese, mortadella, or other food, and sometimes served warm after having been pressed by a warming grill. A toasted sandwich made from sliced bread is not called 'panino' but 'toast' by Italians, and is usually filled with prosciutto and a few slices ofcheese, grilled in a sandwich press. A popular version of panino in Central Italy is filled with porchetta, i.e. slices of pork roasted with garlic, salt, rosemary, and sage.

In the USA, UK and Canada, the term "panini" refers to any pressed and toasted sandwich ('toastie'); there is widespread availability and use of sandwich presses, often known as "panini presses" or "toasted sandwich makers".

This questioned entered our minds when my friend, Doc Maya kept on prodding us to try the Vegetable Panini from Wichcraft at La Tienda! Helth buff that she is, she wanted us to try out other kinds of sandwiches and salads! 

So we asked a friend to buy us the Panini! To our surprise, he bought the Parm Cheese Panini! 

So we realized that there were different kinds of Panini!

We tried out the Parm Cheese Panini.

Some liked the Parm Cheese Panini (which cost P90.00) and others didn't exactly understand the taste, since there was ham, cheese, parmesan cheese, mustard and was it an apple slice or a zucchini?

Therefore, the panini is that interesting!

We kidded those who didn't like it that they just didn't have the class of people who appreciated these kinds of special food... "hindi sosyal!"

So we again bought the Allovegetable Pesto Panini (as it was written in the receipt) and it cost P70.00. 

See the cucumber, onions, tomatoes and others...

.I liked the taste of this Panini to my surprise and even my 15 year old boy appreciated its taste! The panini comes with the pesto which adds more flavor to the flavorful veggie sandwich!!

I accordance with our trend to health and wellness, we served the Vegetable Panini during the launching of the Ciudad Medical Zamboanga Breast Wellness Center.

our very pink room at the Ciudad Medical Zamboanga
Breast Wellness Center

Try this one out at Wichcraft at La Tienda!!!

"PASALUBONG" FROM MANILA: MARY GRACE CHEESE ROLLS

We were already "burdened" as we carried our pasalubongs. I thought I wouldn't need to get Café Mary Grace's pastries anymore.

But, my friend decided that she wanted to buy some and give it to us as pasalubong, too! She really loves these cheese rolls, too.


This is a message from Mary Grace... see the lovely smile!

I found out that this is Mary Grace's story.

While waiting for our orders, I couldn't help but notice the "family things" like this happy family collage.

And this is a nice "TEN RULES FOR A HAPPY MARRIAGE" frame.

Here is the restaurant side of Mary Grace!

This is the "pasalubong" box.

Here are the famous "cheese rolls" which are soft to the bite.

They also have strawberry shortcakes, but with a nice real and fresh strawberry accents!

This is the pasalubong box

And the Cheese Rolls... once heated, the cheese becomes so melted..

And I just had to show you how it looks in the inside!

These are really delicious!


Try these yourselves!!!

"PASALUBONG" FROM MANILA: CONTI'S PASTRY SHOP

It is my first time in Serendra in Fort Bonifacio!

My friend strongly suggested that we bring home pastries from Conti's Pastry Shop as our pasalubong back home.


It is the first time I have heard of the place and she guaranteed that the pastries here are really good.

We are welcomed by a heart-shaped rose wreath as we entered the store.
Since it is still Valentine's Day season, we still see lots of hearts here.

The lady in Conti's is so gracious and smiling!

My friend suggested these puffs and pies as the specialty of Conti's.

They also have cakes such as this Mango Bravo.

I chose the assorted pies...

They come in different shapes.

Chicken Pie has the form of the empanada.

Ham Pie is more squarish in shape.

Cheese Puff has a triangular shape.

This is the Tuna Pie, with the tail and looks like a fish, too.

Here are some of the bread loaves like the Raisin Swirls, Cinnamon Swirls and Cheese Swirls.

Why don't you try out this place, too!!!
These are their other outlets.