Food iron-y

Leah, my youngest sister, is suffering from anemia. I made her take iron supplements but she missed several days of medication because she forgot to bring the supplements in her excitement last week for the Holy Week trip to Bantayan. So today, I planned of cooking a dish that's rich with iron. Knowing how she hates vegetables especially ampalaya (which is a good source of iron), I thought of making something out with pork liver as the main ingredient. So off I went to Robinson this morning to buy the ingredients for my pork liver version of kaldereta. When I finally got home, I was dismayed for finding that the potatoes I had bought were all rotten inside. I had no option but to throw them out. My kaldereta is no longer complete! I just couldn't go back to the store since I am already so tired and I have still have to go to work at 2 pm. While trying to solve my dilemma, I noticed that there were still some uncooked saba left from what Brian has brought from Bantayan in the kitchen. So, there goes my pork liver kaldereta using bananas in lieu of potatoes. Really, I was amazed myself at discovering how good it tasted. And I didn't even have put any monosodium glutamate to it!

I am posting the recipe, lest I forget it and I might want to cook it again in the future.

Pork Liver Kaldereta with a Twist

300 grams of pork liver, cut into small strips
2 uncooked saba (plantains), diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 medium red bell peppers, diced
1 head garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
catsup, a few tablespoons will do
soy sauce
salt and pepper
2 tablespoon of cooking oil
1 cup of water

Wash the liver and marinade with soysauce, salt and pepper. Let stand for about 15 minutes. Heat the cooking oil in the frying pan. Saute the garlic and onion. Add the liver. Make sure that the fire is on high so as to avoid making the livers soggy. Add the water. Let simmer for about 20 minutes or until the livers are soft enough. Add the bananas, carrots, and bell pepper. Add the catsup. Let simmer until the vegetable are almost cooked. Adjust the seasonings. Let stand for a few minutes for the flavors to develop before serving.

Injustice

Because of our obligatory overtime (as expected), I had no option but to cancel my plans of going home for the Holy Week. So, instead of rushing to get the last available transportation that would take me to Bantayan, I am here at work rushing to meet my qouta. While my sisters are now probably swimming in our world-famous beaches, I am here with my eyes swimming in tears for straining against the glare of the monitor since 6 am. Oh life! Why art thou so cruel?

To blog or not to blog: that is the question

iblog summit part 2 will be staged in Manila next week. I was able to hear an audio recording of the first summit last year on the Internet and it was really entertaining. Dean Alfar, the creator of Write Here, Write Now blog, delivered a very inspiring lecture. His piece was the best one I have heard so far. No wonder a group of bloggers last year started a web ring in honor of him. These bloggers committed themselves to a weekly ritual of blogging about suman latik. Suman latik, by the way, was the example used by Mr. Alfar to impart the importance of creativity in blogging to retain a blogger's readership.

What's with blogging anyway? Why spend precious hours and energy on writing about mundane topics that perhaps other people has no time and interest to read in the first place? For one, blogging provides an avenue for writers to publish their creations without the fear of getting blatant rejections. Two, the blogging world is now being tapped by advertisers for promoting various products. Blogging offers the possibility for bloggers to acquire advertising contracts from Google and other search engines. And that is what every blogger (me included, as if) in the blogging world is hoping to achieve.

As for me, I will still continue blogging, with or without Google contracts. Haha. I just wish that a similar blogging summit will be held in Cebu soon.

Friends online

Just when I am about to accept the inevitability that my day has started so badly and would end up much worse, a very good thing happened to me 30 minutes before my timeout. I was able to find that JM (an acquaintance from Fujairah!) is online. For those who do not know where Fujairah is, it is one of the emirates in UAE. I used to work there as a cashier three years ago. Dubai is the most popular among the regions in UAE so whenever I am asked by anyone where I worked while I was abroad, I would just say that I worked in Dubai to prevent long explanations. Now, back to JM. She and her husband LM were one of my regular customers in Giant. I just discovered her on Friendster two days ago (the amazing wonders of Friendster!). She said that they are still in Fujairah but will soon leave for London. JM is a nurse and she plans to work there as a caregiver. While I was chatting with her, I can't help but feel like I was being transported back to that place. Fujairah holds so many memories in my heart. I will never ever forget that place for as long as I live or for as long as my memory remains functional. To state that I was happy that I was able to talk with JM was an understatement. It is not everyday that I get to talk with long lost friends and such opportunities are moments to be cherished for a long time.