My Favorite Things (and my Crunchy Calamari with Lemon Aioli Dip)

People think I'm complicated. And that I'm as scary-fickle as the weather in the gloomy global warming era.

The truth is I am really simple (and no, am not saying this to convince myself as well). I get happy over really little things. And I am one of those annoying people who easily attach the word "love" to every thing that brings even a small grin to my face or stimulates even the minutest happy hormone in my brain. I've always said that the simplest things make me happy - and it's not my fault that I find a lot of simple things around me.

So if someone were to ask me for my favorite things, the list will tend to be quite lengthy and detailed. Especially when it comes to food. But for the sake of brevity (and in the spirit of simplicity - another word that needs a redefinition in my books, along with comfort food) I list the best food in the world for me. If there are things that I can eat every day it would be these:

1. Dark Chocolate. Just imagine a world without chocolate (actually I can't).

2. Pasta. Spaghetti, linguine, macaroni, farfalle, capellini...Dress it up with some fancy sauce or just eat it warm with the barest of spices and oil and it's still good. Like curl-up-in-a-cozy-armchair-with-a-blanket-over-your-lap good.

3. Fried Chicken. I've always thought I might have been a black person in a past life. I just love me some good, crispy, homecooked fried chicken. The kind that does make you lick your fingers long after you've dropped the clean bones on your plate.

4. Sashimi. Fresh slices of salmon or tuna dipped in soy sauce and wasabi. Chased by a sip of warm sake. Instant Zen.

5. Curried dish. Beef, chicken, fish or pork. Coconut and spices married in a flavorful stew. Have a bowl of rice ready.

6. Cheese. Just like dark chocolate, I can never imagine a world without cheese. When I found out that I became (almost!) allergic to cheese, it was like being told that I have to lose a limb.

7. Wine. I can go for a day without it. But then again, why?

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Crunchy Calamari with Lemon Aioli Dip

Calamari is not my favorite preparation for squid - I'd go for something saucy like Adobo, or Calamari en su Tinta (Squid in its own Ink). But one must make do with what one has in the pantry - or in my case the lack of the essential squid ink made me reach for something handy, like Panko crumbs.
Good thing with calamari though is you can go crazy with the sauce. I made an aioli dip but you can also serve this with a tomato-based dip, soy sauce and vinegar, peanut chili or even a brown gravy. Play with it!

Ingredients:
6 pieces squid, cleaned and cut into rings
salt and pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup flour mixed with parsley, garlic powder and cayenne pepper
1 cup Panko crumbs
2 cups frying oil (vegetable or peanut)

For the Spicy Lemon Aioli Dip
3 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and Pepper
1/2 tsp Sriracha Hot Sauce
1 tsp honey
1 tsp lemon juice
Mix all the ingredients together. Adjust seasonings according to preference.

Heat up your oil in a frying pan (or you can also use a deep fryer).
Prepare your dipping bowls in order - flour, egg and Panko crumbs.
Pat your squid dry and separate the rings before starting the dipping process.
Drop the squid rings into the flour and coat well. Then drop them into the egg mixture and finally into the Panko crumbs.
Fry the squid rings until golden brown. Serve with a wedge of lemon and the aioli dip.

The Pork Party

(Vegetarians, vegans and everyone else pretending to have a healthy diet...look away! This post is not for the faint of heart...and those with heart conditions!)

So it started with but a simple request, an amusingly silly craving, if you may. But I guess it came out as a sad and desperate plea, much like what an addict who's going through a terrible case of withdrawal would make.

And my friends are my enablers.

That was how Saturday night became a porcine feast night, when merry indulgence was the spirit and the wonderful aroma of pork fat filled the air. A&L, two amazing friends, pulled out all the stops and labored to create a table laden with food - so memorable and heartwarming they transported me back home even for a while, so much that it can actually feed a whole town during a fiesta and so ridiculously good even if they were all bad (like trans-fat-laden, cholesterol-heavy bad). Yes, the dinner was the stuff last meals are made of. Food-wise and company-wise. We toasted to good friends, good times and good food. We laughed, we ate and we shared stories. But mostly we ate.

And long after we've unzipped our pants to breathe, waddled our way back home, drank copious amounts of tea to flush out our sinful eating and prayed that the dreaded "bangungot" (or as the medical world bluntly calls it Sudden Death Syndrome) will not descend upon us as we slept that night, we gratefully remember how blessed and how rich our lives are when shared with family and friends.

Truly you can never ask for anything more.

Adobo sa palayok (adobo cooked in claypot - the indigenous slow cooker and my favorite childhood toy), adobong binalot sa dahon ng saging (adobo with rice wrapped in banana leaf and steamed). Did I mention that it was all pork?

Fried pork belly. With skin on. 'Nuff said.

 Sisig. Pork cheeks, pork ears, chicken liver. Spicy, rich and good....Andrew Zimmern, this is your stuff!

 Salted eggs, tomatoes and balo-balo (fermented rice with fish/shrimp). You have to taste it to know how good it is.

 Biringhe. The Kapampangan Paella. It was actually the first time I've had it. And it was really good!

Sis Lorina's specialty: Sans Rival. An appropriate name indeed. (and it's all mine!)

Baked by Melissa mini cupcakes (brought by J). Just because you can never have too much fat, cream and butter!