Old-fashioned recipes to remind you of happy times

L ast Sunday, we had a five-in-one family celebration. Since most of the celebrants were kids, I cooked kid-friendly favorites, coupled with dishes that reminded me of our Sunday lunches, when Mom used to cook.

I am amused by the thought of what I classify as “stereotypical Sunday fare.” I refer to an older generation when mothers cooked lengua almost always in mushroom sauce, and when fish was steamed whole, slathered with mayonnaise then decorated merrily with eggs, pickles and finely diced carrots.

This was also when porkloin was studded with garlic (how Mom did hers), generously seasoned with salt and pepper, then left to marinate overnight. It was baked till fork-tender the next day, and always served with a side of buttered corn. The roast pork sauce was to die for, made from the drippings, to which cream of mushroom soup was added. Yes, there was a time when canned Campbell’s Mushroom Soup made everything tasteful!

Mom’s roast chicken, I recall, was equally marvelous in its simplicity, marinated only in salt and pepper. How could something so simple leave such a delicious imprint? Looking back, the primary reason must have been because it was cooked by Mom.
Oh there was always callos that was simmered for hours, which resulted in melt-in-your-mouth strips of tripe that had absorbed all the flavors of good olive oil and chorizo.

Those were the days when menus for special occasions were shuffled somewhat, but remained predictable; a time when we knew exactly what we were having for lunch or for dinner, and looked forward to it.
It was special when the salad was Caesar, the table had pot roast, and of course, baked prawns.

Here are some old-fashioned recipes, with a few modern touches. Simple, but still tasting as good as they did then. Each bite reminds me of happy times.
Steamed Fish with Mayonnaise
Remember this Sunday classic? What was then made with lapu-lapu or apahap, I now make with salmon, and garnished with things more exciting than just eggs, carrots and pickles.

1 kg salmon fillet, center cut
Salt
Pepper
Lemon juice
Season salmon with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little lemon juice. Steam for 8-10 minutes. Do not overcook.
Lay fish over a bed of lettuce. Slather with mayonnaise, preferably homemade, and decorate with 1/3 cup each: hardboiled egg, white and yolk separated, chopped; pickle relish; chopped blanched carrots; chopped blanched asparagus; chopped mangoes; chopped onions, red and white; red bell pepper, roasted and chopped.

Homemade Mayonnaise
2 eggs
2 c vegetable oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
Salt, to taste
Dill

Bring water to a boil. Cook eggs for 1 minute, then remove from heat.
In a food processor, crack eggs. Add oil in a fine stream a teaspoon at a time. Pulse until mixture is emulsified.
When you’ve reached mayonnaise consistency, add the rest of the ingredients.

Delicious Garlic Roast Chicken1 large chicken
2 Tbsp olive oil
2.5 tsp sea salt
1.5 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Garlic butter (recipe below)

Rub chicken including cavity with oil and seasonings. Keep in fridge overnight.
Garlic Butter½ c butter
1 Tbsp garlic paste
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp fresh thyme
2 tsp parsley
Combine ingredients.

Loosen skin of chicken and slowly spread garlic butter underneath the skin, spreading evenly through the breast and thighs.

Stuff cavity with whole garlic, half a lemon, sprigs of thyme and whole peppercorns. Truss chicken.

Bake covered in foil at 350F for 1.5 hours. Remove cover and save the drippings. Return to the oven and brown the chicken.

Serve with drippings. You may thicken the gravy with some cornstarch or flour slurry. Season drippings.

Serve with corn and mashed potatoes.
Old-fashioned Pot Roast1 to 1.5 kg beef for stewing (I prefer top blade, cleaned, or chuck, brisket, round)

Salt and pepper
1/4 c garlic
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 c chopped onion
1 c peeled and chopped carrots
1 c chopped celery
Beef stock
2 c red wine
A sprig of rosemary
Few sprigs of thyme

Season beef with salt and pepper. Sear on all sides, set aside.
In the same pot, saute the vegetables until caramelized. Add wine. Deglaze pan, scraping the bottom. Return beef.

Add beef stock, enough to submerge the beef. Simmer until tender.
Cook until sauce is thickened and reduced. Season.
Add baby carrots, and some marbled potatoes halfway through the cooking if you like.

Garlic Prawns1 kg prawns, butterflied
Season prawns with salt and pepper. Brush with a little garlic butter sauce (recipe below).

Bake in a preheated 350F oven. The secret is to bake for no more than 7-8 minutes for large prawns or until it just changes color.
Arrange on serving platters. Garnish with lemons. Serve with the remaining sauce on the side.
Garlic Butter Sauce1 c butter
1/4 c garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp parsley
Zest of 1 lemon
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp bouillion powder
Salt
Pepper

Combine butter and garlic in a saucepan. Cook until butter is melted over low heat. Cook garlic for 5 minutes. Turn off heat, add the rest of the ingredients. Serve with the prawns.

www.reggieaspiras.com; @iamreggieaspiras on Instagram and Facebook.