Christmas 2012

Merry Christmas 2012 from Team Swangelista!!

Baby Boy is 2!

I can hardly believe how fast time flies. My baby boy is now 2! I still remember the day he was born and just can't believe it has already been two years. 

Unfortunately the beginning of December was really awful because my poor boy got hit really hard with amoebeasis. He was so sick and it lasted for almost two whole weeks. Thankfully the day before his birthday he finally seemed back to his old self so at least he wasn't sick on his special day.

We celebrated his actual birthday with his Lolo and Lola and later on in the day some of his friends and their parents (who are of course our good friends!). A week later we had a play-date party which was really fun. Two has been great so far!

Loving his Y-Bike from his godmother Ninang Katie

Growing up. More fun in the Philippines.

Thanksgiving

After Christmas, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and was always one of the highlights of the year when I was still living in the United States. It is a holiday focused on giving thanks, cooking up a storm, and spending time gorging yourself on delicious food with your closest friends and family. What is not to love?

Since moving to Palawan in 2009, around Thanksgiving is the time that I always miss New York City the most. I just loved the Thanksgiving days we spent there. I would spend weeks beforehand scouring different recipes for stuffing and gravy and cranberry sauce and potato dishes, and would spent the days in the lead up to Thanksgiving fighting crowds at Fairway and waiting for deliveries from Fresh Direct. Our fridge was always packed and I’d start prepping some of the dishes on Wednesday afternoon.

On Thanksgiving morning Marcus and I would have a light breakfast and get started on the turkey and all the dishes that still had to be cooked. We’d also have the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade on TV, and every hour or so, we’d walk to the end of our street to 74^th and Central Park West and watch some of the floats come down the street. Then we’d go back to our cozy little apartment to the awesome smells of turkey slow roasting and other dishes at their varying stages of completion. By late afternoon friends would start coming over and since I am not a great baker, I always asked that they bring dessert, and more wine. They never disappointed and our Thanksgiving meals were always so much fun, and so yummy! We’d eat for a few hours, take a brisk walk around the block and relish the chilly air, then go back into our apartment and eat and drink some more.

Sadly, I can’t recreate our Thanksgiving feasts here in Palawan. You can actually get frozen turkeys here now but I don’t think any would fit in our tiny oven, and the idea of having the oven on for 5 or 6 hours is not an option. It is already way too hot without introducing that kind of heat into the house. I would love to make some of the other side dishes I always liked making, but unfortunately you can’t get cranberries or cornmeal or chestnuts or chocolate pecan pie on the island.

Our very first Thanksgiving day in Puerto Princesa, Marcus and I sort of forgot it was Thanksgiving and realized it as we were sitting down to dinner, which that night was a simple pizza we got for take out. The following year I resolved to do more for Thanksgiving and we actually had a lovely meal with friends at our house, with 4 local litson manoks instead of turkey, and a variety of Filipinized side dishes, like kalabasa with ginger and brown sugar instead of squash or sweet potato. My mom made a great pumpkin pie mousse sort of dessert but unfortunately it didn’t get put in the fridge when they came over and because of the heat here, it melted before we got to dessert. It was still delish as a soupy dessert though ;-) Last year our friend Tim hosted a Thanksgiving dinner at his restaurant, Blue Ginger. It was a great meal and we enjoyed it a lot. This year I was too pregnant and hot and tired to plan a feast, and Tim has unfortunately moved away so his restaurant is not an option. We’ll have dinner with my parents and then next week go to a belated Thanksgiving celebration that our friends at Aloha House are throwing. (They’re out of town this week so we’ll do Thanksgiving a week late).

Anyway, it isn’t the feast that really matters of course, but the sentiment of taking the time to gather your loved ones and give thanks for the many blessings in all of our lives. But as I think back on past Thanksgivings, I can’t help but miss NYC and think about my absolute favorite stuffing dish in the world. Highly recommend this to all of you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Chestnut, Bacon, Dried Apple, and Corn Bread Stuffing

Two shortcuts — prepared chestnuts and a purchased corn bread stuffing base — add to the appeal of this recipe from chef and Aidells Sausage Company founder Bruce Aidells.

Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings

1/2 pound thick-cut bacon slices, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips

4 cups chopped onions

3 cups chopped celery

1 cup chopped dried apples

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 1/2 teaspoons dried rubbed sage

2 7.4-ounce jars roasted whole chestnuts, coarsely broken

8 cups dried corn bread stuffing mix (from two 16-ounce packages)

1 3/4 cups (or more) low-salt chicken broth

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted

Cook bacon in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until brown and crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to large bowl. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings from skillet. Add onions and celery to drippings in skillet. Cover and cook over medium heat until vegetables are soft, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Add vegetables to bacon; mix in apples, thyme, and sage, then chestnuts. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Reheat to lukewarm before continuing.)

Add corn bread stuffing mix to chestnut mixture. Mix in 1 3/4 cups broth. Drizzle with butter.

To bake stuffing in turkey:

Loosely fill main cavity and neck cavity of turkey with stuffing. Add enough broth to remaining stuffing to moisten slightly (1/4 cup to 3/4 cup, depending on amount of remaining stuffing). Generously butter baking dish. Spoon remaining stuffing into prepared dish. Cover dish with buttered foil, buttered side down. Bake stuffing in dish — alongside turkey or while turkey is resting — until heated through, about 25 minutes. Uncover stuffing in dish. Bake until top of stuffing is slightly crisp and golden, about 15 minutes longer.

To bake stuffing in dish:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Add enough extra broth to stuffing to moisten (3/4 cup to 1 1/4 cups). Transfer stuffing to prepared dish. Cover with buttered foil, buttered side down. Bake until heated through, about 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until top is slightly crisp and golden, about 20 minutes longer.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/printerfriendly/Chestnut-Bacon-Dried-Apple-and-Corn-Bread-Stuffing-107290#ixzz2Cq7dtAbK

Ouch!

Today is the first day of November and the start of a very rare 5 day weekend. The last couple of weeks have been incredibly busy and exhausting so I was really looking forward to some down time and to be able to get organized and tackle some projects I’ve wanted to start for a few months.

Well, I have certainly had some down time today! In fact I haven’t really left my bed for nearly 24 hours. Unfortunately I pulled a muscle in my inner left thigh / groin area while flying back to Puerto from Manila yesterday (I crossed my legs and bam, pain!) Last night the pain got progressively worse and this morning I couldn’t walk at all. I can’t straighten my left leg and I haven’t been able to find any relief from the pain. No matter if I am sitting, lying or standing, I am in pain. I’ve been reading up a lot on this and it seems like it is a pulled groin muscle or round ligament pain – both very common among pregnant women, especially as bellies get larger and there’s more strain on the pelvic muscles. Unfortunately it seems like most people have to just wait out giving birth before this improves. Since I still have about 2.5 months to go, I really hope this is not the case for me and that I’ll heal and improve! Bed rest today has not been fun but I am just forcing myself to rest and recuperate and am hoping and praying for the best! 

Highlights from my kuya Alex and Ria's Wedding

Some photos from Alex and Ria's wedding. Highlights of the day included the gorgeous bride and groom, a humorous homily from Palawan's Bishop Arigo, Alex and Ria's super sweet wedding vows, the UP Pep Squad's performance at the reception (Ria captained the team while at UP!), Ria's stunning wedding dress designed by Veluz Reyes the amazing 1000+ truffle wedding "cake", and all the love for Alex and Ria from all the family and friends who gathered. Amazing day!

Feature in Cosmopolitan Magazine

When it rains, it pours! October 2012 also marked a feature of me in Cosmopolitan Magazine's October issue. So exciting, and so thrilled that Philippine publications are choosing to highlight issues like reproductive health.

All Good with Baby Girl

I’m 27 weeks pregnant today – into the third trimester, woohoo! This pregnancy has flown by so fast – can’t believe that in roughly 13 weeks our little girl will be here with us. I had a check up today with my doctor and she did a congenital anomaly scan to make sure that everything is developing well. So thankful that it seems everything is right on track. She is still a girl (!), has 10 fingers and 10 toes, has a four-chambered heart that is doing it’s job, has a functioning digestive system, no club foot, no cleft palate, and looks like she may have my lips. Yay :)

So excited to meet her!!

Now to come up with a name...