from wikipedia:

"any of certain cuts of meat taken from the sides or back or belly of a pig, cured and possibly smoked. It is generally considered a breakfast dish, cut into thin slices before being fried, or grilled. It is commonly used as an ingredient in recipes, and is valued both as a source of fat and for its flavour."

what else? bacon.

some of my favorite bacon can be found in cafe by the ruins in baguio. it's dense and home-cured. a rather different experience from the usual thin and crispy ones - but very satisfying. it has a full, smoky taste that make the tastebuds tingle.

one of my favorite bacon experiences was at the juan residence where they served up a huge plateful of perfectly crisp bacon strips. the cat was giving me stiff competition in consuming the bacon, but it was worth the fight.

last sunday i cooked my own bacon. joanna and i figured it would be more practical to cook a pancake breakfast rather than eat out and so i came armed with a box of mix, a bottle of syrup, and a pack of bacon.

into a hot skillet went the first three strips and the sizzle they gave was downright heartwarming. once the edges were turning gold, it was time to flip and get a renewed sizzle. 6 more strips went in and by the time i was done i had about 1/4 cup of bacon grease in the pan. i said, 'if somebody fried chicken in this, it would be sooo good.' 

the sweet of the pancake and the smooth saltiness of bacon. now that's another durned good way to start a day. 

thanks to dez, we got to learn about a really good drink that costs around P10 a glass.

dubbed rumango, this is a mix of rum and mango juice. after a bit of experimentation, we found the ideal recipe to be as follows: get a glass and plunk in 3 ice cubes. pour in one part rum and then 4 parts mango juice. for a biggish glass you could have 1/4 cup rum (around 2-3 shots) and 1 cup mango juice. scale down for a smaller glass.

one glass should be enough to make the evening pleasant. two could make it a bit merry. three will have you a bit sloshy, and six will bring you close to throwing up.

P10 a glass means tanduay rum (which is good, world-class rum) and zesto mango juice. of course if you're the uppity type, you might go for bacardi rum... but there's really no need. no difference taste-wise, and the end result will be the same anyway. 

if heaven were a salad, it would be something like this:

lightly grill zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant and onions. i suggest brushing them with a drop (just a drop) of olive oil and a tiny pinch of salt and pepper before placing them on the grill.

toast some croutons.

blend a dressing with red wine vinegar, olive oil, honey, and a whole lotta garlic.

pour over the vegetables and you'll swear with me that, you got it, if heaven were a salad, it would be something like this.

(recipe c/o my sister-in-law ermi who served this with grilled porterhouse steaks making me deliriously happy over lunch) 

we interrupt food posts to bring you the ipod nano

(maraming salamat kay joanna, dez and their folks for getting me this bottle of sunshine hehe) 

it's the end of the sem. usually the time of the year when i have to change pace (often unwillingly). i now consider all 24 hours part of the working day and try to space my meals and napping times evenly throughout.

when things get this tight, usually the first thing that goes is my appetite. i become incapable of eating big meals and sometimes don't eat at all. but nowadays something has been making sure i at least take in lunch and dinner: sugar cane vinegar from ilocos.

vinegar is a naturally-sugared liquid that is taken to higher fermentation heights than wine. naturally-sugared, so usually vinegar is made from coconut juice and sugar cane (in the philippines), and apples and grapes (red wine) abroad. each vinegar certainly has its charm but the ilocos vinegar goes beyond charming into the territory of seductive.

the vinegar is dark, reflecting its earthy - almost woody - flavor. it has a round, full-bodied taste unlike the general tartness of coconut vinegar. my suggestion is to always have a few siling labuyo and peppercorns around to throw in.

my favorites with the vinegar are hilabos na hipon (suahe - the small, sweet, white, shrimp are perfect), longganisa, porkchop (my latest combination discovery), daing na bangus, and - of course - that lovely batac empanada.