I was boiling water for afternoon tea, contemplating on what life is all about and looking at the robust orange bulb plants I planted in pots outside our grill door. when two airplanes passed by. One was going north and the other one was going south to where our airports are located. Our place is on the east side of Metro Manila so their path is always this way. It made me think of those people inside those two planes. The one going north made me ask myself, “where are they going? Are they leaving their families behind seeking greener pastures abroad? Are they tourists out to discover new places?” And I can’t help thinking too, the family of those going to the airport must be so happy that they’ll be seeing their kins again or maybe they come from other places and would love to visit the Philippines.
I was busy this morning catching up with my two brothers and sis-in-law online and through calls and texts. My brother next to me has been sick for almost two weeks now, on and off fever, acute UTI and raised blood sugar. I was alarmed. They’ve been to the doctor thrice with labs and medications. My youngest brother whose family lives in Tulsa called me up through Viber and we had a long chat about life, our family, my other brother’s illness and life here in the Philippines compared to the US where they have been living for more than twenty years now.
He bragged about making Tupig, our favorite kakanin (sweet delicacies) back in the province. He said he hasn’t tasted one for so many years now so he made his own. I borrowed the photos he posted earlier.
It’s made of sticky rice powder, coconut cream, fresh grated young coconut or what we call buko locally, a little sugar and margarine to wipe the banana leaves before wrapping the mixture so it won’t stick when it’s cooked.
Then you have to grill them until they are cooked.
There, it is nicely done and he said it tasted better than the commercial ones we used to buy when we go back home to the province. I have never attempted preparing this but I will try it one of these days.
My brother is a great cook. He also experiments on other desserts native to our country. Maybe he misses his land of birth. It’s another afternoon of reminiscing.
I think I would love to try some of that Tupig, Arlene. I love the flavour of coconut.
Best wishes, Pete.
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They taste really, really good, much more if they are homemade. The commercial ones are very small. And they have jacked up their prices.
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Looks so delicious
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Looking at it, yes. My brother says it tastes better than those sold in the market.
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I think I had something similar in Bali! 😋
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How did you find it Sabine?
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There were small food stalls along the beach in one town. We ate at one of them several times and the lady always made these types of banana leaf packets filled with different fillings. They were delicious! And I’ve gotten something similar, but not grilled at a local Vietnamese tofu shop. They make some interesting Asian foods besides incredibly fresh and delicious tofu.
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Oh yes, Asian food is quite unique Sabine. I am glad you like the taste of it.
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Trying foods from different places is fun!
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I agree Sabine. I like Indian food.
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One of my very favorites!
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Wow, you too? That’s great! Love chicken with Garam Masala.
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I’m partial to a good sambar with some lemon rice!
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Yum!
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omg! tupig!! my favorite! drooling 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Haha, I miss it too. One of these days, I will learn to prepare those yummy tupig.
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That was very interesting, Arlene. I wonder if he can find banana leaves easily. I’ve never seen any.
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According to him, they sell banana leaves in Asian stores, well, frozen!
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That’s good to know, though I doubt I’ll ever have a recipe that calls for banana leaves.
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Try it one time Anne, you might like it.
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I hope your brother can recover from his ailments. We sure have a lot of issues as we age, don’t we.
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Praying hard on it Elizabeth, thanks a lot.
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