Pancit Bihon

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Tom’s little man is half Filipino.  His mother’s family all come from that wonderful country consisting of a group of 7,107 islands off the mainland of Asia.  Did you know that the area occupied by the Philippines is slightly larger than the state of Arizona?

Wonderful what you can learn in geography class right?

Before I meet Tom my exposure to the Filipino culture was zero.

I knew a little of the history of the country, which is pretty fascinating once you really take a look - Nestle between the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean this cluster of island was an ideal point for migrating people all over the world.  As a result the country is made up of a range of ethnic groups.

So its no accident with so many outside influences during its history, the Philippine cuisine is a fascinating blend of Malay, Spanish and Chinese cultures. To the Filipinos, food is very important and integral part of local art and culture as well as communal existence.

So, when I was invited to the little man’s birthday party, I saw first hand how food brought them together as one single unit.

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Almond Flounder Meuniere Birthday Surprise!

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When I started Sweetbites I wanted to join a baking club in order to entice me to baking more.  I stumble upon Tuesday with Dorie, a huge group of bakers that were baking their way thru Dorie’s Greenspan book: “Baking: From my Home to Yours”.  By the time I found them, the group was closed and was not accepting new bakers.  I was totally bumped out, but I decided to send an email to Laurie, the group founder and moderator, to let me know when there were opening in the near future and that I was super interested in joining the pack.

A month went .. then two, then three and then, I got an email saying that a couple of spots opened up and that I was in if I was still interested!

I was in faster than you can raise your hand.

It has been amazing to bake along side the group for the last nine months.  I have made friends and found so many great blogs that inspired me with their words, photography and the level of cooking creativity.  I look forward to every Tuesday with anticipation, knowing that for a couple of hours I get lost in the sea of storytelling and eye candy photography.

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FFwD: Hachis Parmentier

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Ok guys, we are entering the forth week of cooking from the new book by Dorie Greenspan - “Around my French Table”.  This is my third contribution, since I skipped last weeks choice, the Vietnamese Spicy Chicken Noodle Soup.

But, this week I could not resist, because mashed potatoes and meat, in this case chopped meat - are like a great marriage.  

In France this is the equivalent of the English Shepard pie. “Hachis”, which means a dish in which the ingredients are chopped or minced, come from the same root as the English word “hatchet”.  I did not use a hatchet of course, but I like the mental picture of it.  The rest of the dish is named after Antoine-Augustin Parmentier, a French pharmacist, nutritionist, and inventor who, in the late 18th century, was instrumental in the promotion of the potato as an edible crop.

Let’s all stand up right now and thank THAT MAN!

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