Cook it! Honeyed Cottonii (Guso) Seaweed Salad

Thursday, May 31, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

 Ah, seaweed. Your variety, crunchy freshness, and strong sea smell warm the cockles of my heart. You're quite easy to prepare, quite nutritious, and are one usually interesting addition to the menu. The fact that you sometimes raise eyebrows in young and old alike is a big plus in my book. Also, you're quite cheap. Like really cheap. Did I mention cheap? Oh, right.

Now for a bit of education. This type of seaweed is known by a number of names. Scientists will know it as Kappaphycus alvarazii, a very good source of carragean. Carragean is used to help keep things viscous, moist, and gel-like, and can be found in a lot of things -- fire extinguishers, lipstick, shampoos, bread dough, beer, and ham, to name just a few. It's also commercially known as cottonii seaweed. If you find yourself in a local wet market, just ask for Guso. (Remember, say it with a glottal stop on the last syllable.)
 
Now, I'm not entirely sure if I should even but calling this entry "Cook It!", because, well, there's practically no cooking involved. None whatsoever. (Except maybe for the blanching bit, but you wouldn't call that cooking per se, would you?)

Guso is usually seasoned with a mix of vinegar, chopped red onion, and some green peppers. If you want your seaweed with a nice spicy bite, that's fine. Let me show you my own sweeter version. 

Callooh Callay is back!

Monday, May 28, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

• Thanks to Mary, I've just discovered just how wonderful the designs of JC Buendia, Eric Pineda, and Dolce and Gabbana F/W 2013 can be. Hnnnnnnnnng.
•  Ashita no Ousama.  Yuu is a simple country girl who most people think could learn to be more stylish. An afternoon at the theater lights a spark inside her, and many mad-cap circumstances take her well into the art of the stage. Seriously, the manga had me at "Theater".
•  The Word Project: Odd and Obscure Words in Bricolage. Nurgling is such a lovely word.
• From Gala Darling -- Mermaids galore. Gor-geous. 
• Braid your t-shirt a la Banana Republic. Remind me to do this to a number of my shirts soon.
• A Day at the Park -- a web comic on questions, answers, and the virtue of a lack of meaning. Worth a read, in my humble opinion.
• Droid-, Dalek-, and Death Star-dresses, oh my!
• Kaming Mga Seroks, a sci-fi short story by David Hontiveros of clones, culture, civil rights, and a conniving conspiracy of continental capacities. 
• Cean Irminger's fabric prints made me go nuts in glee. I will own these pretties and make beautiful things out of these one day, so I do swear by my left hand. It is a good hand.
• How to style two types of braids: a reverse crown braid, and a braided hairstyle that I now realize is so like Dominique Swain's in Lolita -- this time, with bangs.  Both quite elegant, and great for hot weather. 
• Two extremely educational links from PJ on geishas: The differences of Maikos and Geikos, and a guide to kanzashi through the months. 
• The History of English in Ten Minutes. 
• How the Chicken Conquered the World. Yum! -- with some science, anthropology, and culture on the side.

Cook It!: Kinunot, or Demonfish Cooked in Coconut Milk

Monday, May 28, 2012 Jonette 2 Comments

Why yes, you read the title right.

About a year and a few weeks ago, Mik and I found ourselves stranded in a whale shark-watching resort in Donsol, no thanks to man-high floods on the main road and terrible weather. The resort staff and tour team kept us mostly-dry and warm, and fed us, educating our palates a bit more.

Everyone, meet dinner.

Cook It! Hearty White Corn Soup with Moringa

Thursday, May 24, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

Corn. I love corn. 

When I was in college, my trips to the UP Physics Building often meant a chance to sneak out and buy a pack of Japanese Sweet Corn and bring it home. It tore a gaping hole in my backpack for sheer size and bulk, but hey, I was bringing three kilos of wholesome deliciousness home, so there.


Then there's grilled sweet corn at stands that dotted the campus. It seems my dad was one of the blessed few who were privy to their locations and hours. 


And there's Hominy, or White Corn. 


I love White Corn. It's got body and chewiness to it, and boiled long enough, it pops and puffs up and coagulates into a mushy porridge of deliciousness. Add some sugar and grated coconut, and you have some wonderful form of heaven-in-a-bowl called binatog. (Another wonderful recipe for yet another time.)
. 
I went out to do my wet market run earlier this week, and went home in sleepy-addled glee with a kilo of the stuff nestled in one of my bags. James and I ate well the morning after, and here's how we did so. 

The Butler Did It!

Wednesday, May 16, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

Hi, everyone. Meet Butler.

Butler's been part of our household ever since the earlier months of 2012. He's currently four or five months old, and weighs about four kilos.

I... guess that explains the picture, yes?



Butler does not mew. He yips. Like a puppy. and I think, a bit like a high-pitched Basenji.

He also has a thing for going after dangly things (that includes towel corners, watercress, and unhooked bras, oh my), talking to himself all by his lonesome, and being yaoi with Bandit.

He seems to enjoy being seme more than uke, but let's Bandit have his fun anyway. I love my yaoi boys.

Here's another shot of Butler, being all cute and sleepy:

Ureshii!

Wednesday, May 16, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

Hi everyone, and welcome to all-new, tasty-fresh, and piping-hot edition of Ureshii! It's been a while since my last ureshii post, and it's good to be back in the swing of things.

Things I am thankful for:

• Sewing again. Aside from the eco-bags you've probably already seen, I've begun cannibalizing my own petticoat to re-sew and fit it according to Susan's measurements. For all the work I have cut out for her, she'll need the extra poof, not me.

• Reminiscing with James about schoolyard treats and comics over a spaghetti breakfast. An assortment of candy, chibi Street Fighter stickers, plastic Ultraman inch-high figures, and twenty-peso comics that made our fingers smell of glorious dusty newsprint. Yeeeeeeeah, those were the days. 

• Spending time with lovely like-minded folk like Mary, Fai, and Arman talking about creativity, confidence, public opinion, and doing what you have to do, for you. I'm also very thankful for friends like TJ, Anton, Adrian, and Mezarc for pointing me to right direction and widening my creative "review of related literature". 

•  Relishing two of Nick Bantock's books -- Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence, and The Museum at Purgatory. Many, many thanks to Fai for letting me in on this new pleasure. Mr. Bantock has this gift for creating characters and telling stories through crafting almost anything he can set his mind to -- fake correspondence, tops, games, stamps, postcards, you name it. The Museum left quite an imprint on me, and I find myself wanting to tell stories with the same caliber that he does, in my own way.

•  Making a speech for PJ for her wedding day! Omigoshomigoshomigosh. So stoked! Again, take it way, Rainbow Dash. 

•  Playing catch-up with my dad and grandmother on the telephone. It's been five months -- five months! -- since I last saw them. Talking to them and taking in their wisdom and experience is a balm to my soul.  

•  The Avengers. Need I even say more? This movie, I like it. Another! Joss Whedon is our king.

• I er, think I just became a Whovian. I just became a Whovian! Woo-hoo! I have currently added Doctor Who to my roster of loved shows, and I am love-love-loving it! The Ninth Doctor is a pretty cool fellow, and I can't wait to see more of his adventures. I'm also looking forward to meeting the Tenth and the Eleventh! Bowties. Bowties are cool. 

Aaaand, that's it for now. Allow me to leave you with the TARDIS, and may your adventures be ever amazing! 

*Psst. Plus points for getting the references in the list up yonder!

More bags join the fray!

Saturday, May 12, 2012 Jonette 0 Comments

Three came around, one was given away.

Making things: recycled shopping bag from a pet food sack

Friday, May 04, 2012 Jonette 2 Comments

Me? I just detest having too much plastic around.