A rustic lunch with a view at Camiña Balay nga Kawayan in Guimaras

Our very gracious hosts a few Sundays ago were the Camiñas - Sir Gerard and Ms. Luth who welcomed us to their home in Guimaras - the Balay nga Kawayan. The power couple also owns the among the top tourist destinations in Iloilo now, the Camiña Balay nga Bato famous for its delectable tsokolate.

The Camiña Balay nga Kawayan is around 17 kilometers from the Jordan Wharf and set amidst the sprawling Springbloom Farm. From the abode, guests see a vast pineapple plantation nicknamed Pineapple Ridge (thanks Sir Eugene) on one side and a native papaya orchard down below. The pineapples will be ready for harvest by November and the papayas were all bearing fruit – so many that it weighs down the tree.

The house overlooks Lawi Bay and offers a breathtaking view anytime of the day. It is also almost al fresco and the air smells sweet because of the produce around.

But guests can go further and find a viewdeck which gives a closer look at the bay, wider view of the farm and a good look at the Balay nga Kawayan from afar.

But i had to go back to the house which has a wide kitchen for I smell something was being broiled. And it was the specialty of the house - Bino-ug nga Baboy. It is basically pork that has been seasoned only with salt and subjected to high heat that the outside cooks faster thus a crisp skin while the inside remains moist. Bino-ug is a Kiniray-a term for "sinugba" or "ihaw".

Our side dish was a simple Kamote Salad - just a mix of steamed kamote tops, onions and vinegar which created a delightful blend of flavours and texture.

We also had this Dilis Mix made of a smaller variety of balingon (I forgot the specific term) which was perfectly fried. Even in ints simplest form it was bursting with delicious flavour and taste.

Soup was native chicken tinola with labog - a local green vegetable which has hints of sourness into it.

And finally, as Guimaras is known as the Island that Fits your Taste, we had Guimaras mangoes for dessert and a whole of the farm's produce to cap off one delightful Sunday lunch that ended on something that sounded like "We'll be back for more"!

Mama's Kitchen and Sinamay House in Arevalo

A stones throw away from the plaza of La Villa de Arevalo is an ancestral house where one can find not only good pasalubong items but also a look into the past of the district. Known as the Sinamay House , this well preserved ancestral house is an attraction not only in the outside but also what it houses inside. A collection of what the past like is housed in the two storey edifice which also acts like a museum of sorts. Sinamay is simply known as abaca by most and, here, a variety of products made from this fiber can be found. I remember watching a feature on tv wherein the owner proudly showed a framed letter signed by the late Princess of Wales, Diana, showing her appreciation of the handkerchief she was given as a gift coming from this very shop. But the attraction I am most familiar with are the chewies and crunchies made by Mama's Kitchen. Attractively packed in boxes showing their current flavours and variety, this is among the better...

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece por...

Easy Century Tuna Recipes

If you're looking for simple, easy and delicious Century Tuna recipes online, congratulations, you've found it right here! How about spicy tuna sisig or tuna sinigang ? Maybe stir fried tuna with pickles or just yang chow fried rice . I love Century Tuna from its flakes in oil variety, the spicier the better, but when I discovered the versatility of its solid variant, it became an obsession. At first I was just into the usual tested recipes; pasta and sandwich filling, but then it got simpler – I just eat it straight from the can! Usually with a piece of bread or an apple. I just add a few drops of vinegar to spice it up a bit. Then came the experiments. Yup I got tired of that habit that one day, I decided to test my skills in the kitchen. Serendipity, you might call it yet most of them turned into good recipes that I have shared now and then. Satisfying my Palabok cravings had me experiment on this recipe on the spot. With Century Tuna in lieu of the us...

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare. ...

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