let's give the birthday boy some bacon love!

{don't be distracted by the new polka dot dinnerware -- this is a really good hearty soup!}

you all know my food twin, right? after all, he IS way more popular than i am! and you all know how much he loves bacon, so much that family bring him bacon as pasalubong! so, in honor of his anniversary (yesterday) and his birthday (today), i'm writing a second post for today and it's all about today's dinner which i made in his honor:

pototo, cauliflower, corn, and BACON chowder*

*recipe adopted from here! notes from me!!!

cauliflower, chopped (1 big head, or several small heads)

1 large potatoes, diced (the smaller the dice, the faster they'll cook)

chicken stock (2 chicken bouillion cubes in around 1.5 liters of water)

1 can of corn kernels, drained

crumbled bacon (a lot, like around 250 grams. btw - purefoods actually has this now!)

3 to 4 cloves garlic

1/8 cup butter

1 large onion

salt and pepper to taste

method:

1. in the pan where you'll make the soup, fry the bacon. no need to make it crisp, just cooked! remove from pan, set aside.

2. melt the butter in the same pan (which will have a bit of fat rendered from the bacon, yum!). add garlic and onions and lightly fry till onion is transparent. DO NOT BROWN.

3. add the cauliflower and the potatoes. add enough chicken stock till the cauliflower and potatoes are covered.

4. bring to a simmer and allow to cook until the cauliflower and potatoes are cooked.

5. using an immersion blender, blend the soup. OR, allow to cool a bit then transfer to blender to mix. 

    * now after blending, you'll know whether your soup is perfectly thick or too thin. mine was, so i made roux with butter, onions, and flour and added it to the soup. it thickened a bit!

6. add corn and bacon. season with salt and pepper. simmer for 15 minutes.

7. serve warm! to make the soup a bit more special (and since i had a lot of it), i sprinkled parmesan cheese on top which became a "soft crust" that you can break into.

let there be light*

(*ang corny ng title, i know!)

since i ended 2012 as a domestic diva (with the help of my amazing cleaning lady), i've been trying to keep my house in tiptop shape despite marathon cooking sessions, purging sprees, and my short stint as a vegetable dealer. so far, i've been pretty for the first four days of the new year, and, as a way of embracing my inner martha, i told myself i was going to spend the first saturday of the year doing errands.

well, not real errands, but you know, the let's-pretend-i'm-domesticated-but-all-i-really-want-to-do-is-shop-so-i-will-look-for-house-stuff kind of errands. and thanks to KR, i chanced upon these:

{lamp number one}

{lamp number two}

for quite some time now, i had my heart set on this lamp with a glass base from SM, but since i divorced henry sy, i've avoided my ex-favorite mall like the plague. and, while it was on my christmas wish list, my friend wisely picked the ottoman + 2-gallon drink container, both of which are getting way more mileage than what i would've gotten from the lamp.

i guess i ought to blame that lunch we had at a co-worker's beautiful condo unit.

{photo collage from @dred_fabian's instagram feed}

the hour and a half we spent there was so inspiring that it jolted me once more back into martha stewart territory. it began with me and my boss running over to get the last two pieces of the louis ghost chair (and bringing it back to the office, walking through a very crowded mall + walkway) that same afternoon. and then today, i totally junked my puny (they were too tiny for the place) lamps and replaced them with these beauties.

there was way too much eye candy from today's trip, and my credit card thanks me that i exhibited fiscal restraint when i decided not to buy some of the other stuff that were on my cart as well. i guess it's a good thing that i'm saving up for two major items (not to mention a trip this month!), otherwise, i would've come home with more than two gorgeous lamps - i had my eyes (and heart!) set on a number of candle holders, this gorgeous artichoke vase, polka dot plates, and several serving dishes.

so not a good idea, right? especially after i had just purged a whole lot of stuff from my kitchen!

i AM going to go back ... after putting up the lamps and re-organizing some parts of my home (again!) i realized that i do need some of the stuff i saw over there. or maybe not. but then again, i am a girl who really loves to shop. sometimes, i don't really need a reason except that i want to. ☺

today

today is the birthday of a really good friend.

{birthday boy}

we met in 2007 ... i was a new lawyer and within minutes of meeting him, i pre-judged him as this guy living of his parents simply cause he was in jeans on a weekday and was driving an innova. i couldn't have been more wrong in my assessment of him. haha!

almost six years later, we're still friends. last night, when my turn came to tell the group something nice about him, i shared how he's always been there to figure out how to get inside my locked house, come in the middle of the night to repair pipes that burst, and to bring me to the airport when the flight is at some ungodly hour. he attempted to bill me for services rendered, until i reminded him that i've basically been his on-call lawyer. we have a mutually beneficial relationship (and hopefully he doesn't realize that i benefit way more than he does!).

happy birthday, KEf. i hope you never get tired of having us around you.

well, hello there 2013!

{happy new year!}

If today would be any indication of the rest of the year, then 2013 will be drizzly, will have minimal traffic, and will make me horribly fat with all the amazing food that passed through my mouth.

To my five (and hopefully more in 2013) readers, may your 2013 be filled with all things good and wonderful.

2012

Had the predictions been true and the world did end in 2012, I would've been okay.

It was a GREAT year for me.

{Superstars} 

{Part of Tuloy Thursday ... with kids!)

{Work Friends}

{Tuloy sa Don Bosco}

{Wonderful memories made}

{Tuloy Thursday ... we're growing -- in numbers, not in girth, haha!)

{becoming more domesticated}

{Becoming a regular employee and all the perks that went with it ... even if they got my nickname wrong!}

{more time to read, to relax, and to just be}

{getting back into the habit of cooking}

{hosting more parties at home}

So many blessings in those pictured, and so much more undocumented here, Diego being one of the most major ones. Ever since the holiday season started I'd reflect a bit before sleeping and would be struck at how many blessings have come in one day, and couldn't help but utter a short prayer of thanks for how He has made his presences felt in so many ways. and as if that weren't enough, last Friday, I received amazing news in the morning and realized, truly, the Lord cannot be outdone in generosity.

My 2013 looks promising. I've four trips scheduled, Mama's coming home this April, Papa in December, and I finally have leaves from work. The Big Boss has predicted that while 2012 was a tough year for business, 2013 is supposed to be the year of recovery. So if my 2012 already knocked off my socks, I can't imagine how much more wonderful 2013 will be!

Thank you Lord, family, and friends for being with me on my 2012 journey. Here's to more blessings in 2013!!!

♥,

Rosa