It’s Fresh, It’s Spring

By: Sarah

 

Who doesn’t celebrate SPRING! Spring has always been, and will always be a cause for celebration. It’s a new season…and hinting on all of us that, fi nally, sunshine is on its way. We welcome spring in so many ways, but one thing is certain, right around March/April, we just keep looking forward to spring. Nice walks around the neighborhood, one can’t help but enjoy admiring the colorful fl owers sprouting up. There’s that unexplainable revitalized feeling suddenly awakened. We get to work on planning mini trips or R & Rs, we fi nd that push to get up from couch and do something, and wanting to feel alive once again…spring is indeed a strange thing.

I love this quote: “Spring adds new life and new beauty to all that is.” Sure is. The joyful enthusiasm among circle of friends at this time is contagious, I suddenly fi nd myself shopping for indoor and outdoor plants, even if I hate admitting I am one of those not born with green thumbs. What a wonderful feeling to haul to my backyard not one but two potted healthy calamansi/calamondin trees, each one having already tiny baby green fruits and white fl owers). Pricey, oh yes, at $ 70 a tree. And a tip from the grower, “each day talk to the trees”…huh, what If I sing them lullabi es, would that make them bear orange fruits faster…oh that certainly make my heart sing. My calamansi and other garden beauties are my spring’s happiness. The shopping just continued, I was glued to QVC shopping channel for weeks, and learning more about annual or perennial plants, low maintenance plants. So I got myself tomatoes, strawberries, blueberries, hydrangeas, daylilies, and yes, planters, fertilizers of all kinds, potting soil, horticultural charcoal, and gardening wood chips, omg, the list goes on. Am a newbie, but so ecstatic to provide warmth and caring environment for th ese spring beauties. Now my life gets better and just pleasantly warmer now that spring has sprung. Hello Spring!

Now let’s move on to some fun baking and cooking with my favorite spring/summer fruit — ripe yellow Ataulfo mangoes or honey mangoes. A fair substitute for our supersweet Manila Mangoes, yes, good enough. Enjoy making these mango-fi lled desserts and treats all spring and all summer!

CREMA DE FRUTA HALO-HALO (it’s mix-mix with fruits, extraordinary halo halo!)

3 ripe yellow mangoes, cubed
1 can no sugar added Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches, drained and cubed
1 cup White Nata de Coco, drained
1/2 cup mini sago (tapioca) pearls
2 (3 oz) boxes Jello-o Mango fl avor

Dressing:
1 cup All purpose (heavy whipping) cream
1 regular can condensed milk
1 cup whole milk
few drops of McCormick Mango fl avoring
Serve with shaved or crushed ice

Boil 5 cups water in saucepot, add sago, stir, then lower heat to medium and cook for 12 minutes. Turn off heat, cover and let remaining heat fi nish cooking the sago for another 12 minutes. Wash and drain.

Prepare Jello according to package directions (2 cups boiling water and 2 cups cold water). Place in containers to set for 4 hours or overnight. Cut into cubes. Or you can shred using buko or achara shredder.

Combine dressing ingredients in a bowl, adjust sweetness to your preference (may add sugar). Pour into combined fruits and sago. Mix well. Serve in tall glasses. Fill fi rst with shaved/crushed ice, then add fruits and sago mixture. Yummy!

KANI SALAD ROLLS (Healthy and Delicious Japanese salad rolls with sweet notes from ripe mangoes, serve cold as appetizers)

2 lbs Cucumber/Pepino, remove seeds
1 large Jicama/Singkamas
2 pcs Carrots
24 pcs Crab Sticks/Crab Meat
Imitation
2 pcs ripe mangoes
Lettuce
12 rice paper

Cut cucumber, carrots and jicama into thin slices. Cut the mangoes into strips. Cut the lettuce into small parts. Soak the rice paper in water about six seconds (don’t oversoak). Arrange the vegetables as quickly as you can, then roll and fold tightly, like lumpia. Cut in half, arrange on a serving platter and serve with peanut sauce.

Peanut Dipping Sauce
2 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
1/4 cup peanut butter (you may add a tablespoon or two more)
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
About 3 tablespoons hot water to thin sauce
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped roasted peanuts honey, salt & pepper (as needed according to your taste)

Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. And guess where our dear Ms. Veronica and Direk Gerry Rebello are heading next month, for an exciting adventure, exploring cityscapes and good eats. Happy Easter, Happy Life!