18th Bday party food...

Last weekend, we went to my cousin's daughter's birthday party. It didn't matter that I hardly knew her...

It was more of a "sense of obligation", which sounds really cold and calculated but if you think of it, it is part of the convoluted sense of reciprocation inherent with Filipino family values...

Known as "utang na loob" (debt of reciprocity), this is a value where one is expected to return favors whether they were asked to or not, when it is needed or wanted. To not do so would bring "hiya" (shame or "sense of propriety") to the family.  Make sense? No? My mom's comare (close family friend, aka my "auntie") is the godmother of my brother (baptism and wedding). My auntie's husband is actually related to my mom's father so they were friends way back when in the Philippines and also townmates. My auntie's kids are my second cousins.

My parents were going to be out of town that weekend and wanted at least me or my brother or my sister and their kids to attend our cousin's daughter's party. Someone to "represent" our family.  Plus the birthday party was for my neice's 18th birthday which is a significant year for Filipinos (like "15" in Mexico or "16" in America). Turns out that me, Bert and TC were the only ones that went (my bro and sis didn't go due to other obligations).

To make a long story short, my mom was pretty happy that we ended up going. I was originally going to blow it off since I barely knew the girl. I even told my mom that we had other plans, but we really didn't just to get out of it. But then I thought about the times my auntie has helped my mom in the past. The times they stuck together when their husbands were away in the Navy and were alone with just us, the kids. I also thought about the times that my auntie gave Christmas gifts to TC even though she wasn't her own granddaughter and I didn't give anything to my cousin's kids. That made me feel a little guilty inside so I made the decision for us to go. So because we went, it brought about "pakikisama" (Smooth Interpersonal Relationships) within me and my mom and therefore made her look "good" to my auntie since I represented the family by going.

Anyhooo, I hope I didn't put you to sleep with that long explanation. But yes, that is why we went. And also because I KNEW they would have good food there. Besides my mom's home cooking, my auntie's ranks a close second!

So here are some photos of the food from that party. If some of this looks familiar, it should. It's the same auntie who threw a big party for her grandson (my other cousin's kid) last year.

Below, the fixings for Pancit Palabok (chopped green onions, shrimp, sliced boiled eggs, and palabok noodles). Missing was the container with the crushed pork rinds and cut off from the photo, the palabok sauce. That's pancit bihon in the chafing dish on the right.

Philippine meat loaf - Embutido (she makes her with boiled egg and sausage within):

Chopped up lechon (roasted pig) and Kalbi short ribs:

Fresh calamansi fruits from their tree and pancit bihon:

I think they ordered this dish, Sweet and Sour chicken:

Sisig:

Salt and Pepper wings:

Chopped up lechon - I was wondering where the pig's head was (it was M.I.A.):

Baked salmon with some sort of mayo based sauce (didn't try it):

Meat empanadas (loved the crust!):

Shanghai lumpia. It was kind of sparse since we got there an hour after the "said" time. The tray kept getting replenished though. These were nice and crisp!

These foil wrapped things were actually "fresh lumpia" (sans the lettuce). More pix of this unwrapped later in the post. At first I thought it was suman (steamed rice cake) but the ends were open and I saw that it was fresh lumpia.

Fried rice:

The desserts table: boiled peanuts, a bowl of fresh cut up fruit (melons, blackberries, pineapple and mangos), putong puti (steamed rice cake), and freshly grated coconut.

Here's the JACKPOT - my auntie's homemade cassava tarts (better than Goldilocks), and cassava cake. What was missing though were her famous Pecan Tarts. Sad panda.

Here's the other half of the dessert table: kutsinta with grated coconut (steamed brown sugar rice cake), flan, pandan gelatin cubes with coconut strings and evaporated milk, more puto, and Bibingka Royale! Yes, Royale with Cheese!

Of course, they also had the rainbow assortment of rice cakes (purple rice, puto, kutsinta, and layered rice cakes with toasted coconut on top).

Here's more of that Bibingka Royale. I hardly see this at parties. It's for special occasions. My mom used to make this when we were young. You can see that they made this with banana leaves which imparts a "green" flavor to the cake. The cheese within was cream cheese. I haven't had this in years, so I made sure to get a piece!

My auntie was going around with a tray of fried shrimp..."You get some!", "Take more!", "You eat this!"

Here's a close up of some nice pork belly (see the fat) which was from the pinakbet (no photo of the big dish), but this is a type of Philippine stew made with vegetables, pork belly, and bagoong (fermented shrimp paste).

I loved this crust from the empanada:

My auntie's embutido with the egg and sausage (hot dog, ha ha). My mom makes hers without the egg and she chops up her sausage (Chorizo de Bilbao).

A tale of two lumpias: Shangai and Fresh.

The fresh lumpia skin was nice and pliable. The filling hadgarbanzos, sweet potato, carrots, and cabbage...The dipping sauce (not pictured) had loads of garlic flavor too.

Because my niece is still a teenager, they also got food for the teenage crowd. In the front yard, there was a taquero. All the tables in the front had all of her teen high school friends while us old folks (haha) were in the back yard. The taquero had carne asada tacos...

as well as Carnitas. These were Bert's. I was too full from the Filipino food to even attempt having a taco, as good as they looked and smelled.

Well, we did have some dessert. Some of that fresh fruit, purple rice with coconut, and a few boiled peanuts.

And that bibingka royale too! Can't forget that!

Just look at that caramelized edge...

It was funny sitting the back yard with our other friends. When we were young, the "kids" would be hanging out in the front or in the house, and definitely NOT the backyard where all the older uncles and aunties were. Oh shit, well, how the tables have turned and now it's US sitting back there yackin' away and drinking beers and all (not me of course, ha ha).

TC ended up hanging out with a group of girls that she sees every so often at these parties. They played several games of hide and seek while Bert chatted with a former neighbor from childhood whose daughter plays ball with my niece. Small world, right?

For more on Filipino values and culture, click here and here...

Currently reading:

The second book of The Hunger Games trilogy, "Catching Fire". Last summer TC was and still is obsessed with these books, the first of which was published in 2008. Bert and I just finished the first book a few days ago so we would be "prepared" when watching the movie which comes out this Friday. Plus it's fun to read what she's reading so we can all have an intelligent discussion later on..

We'll most likely end up watching "The Hunger Games" in in Portland during our trip, but there's a lot to look forward to in this film adaptation. Former "Cheers" actor  Woodie Harrelson (loved him in "Zombieland") plays Haymitch Abernathy, the often drunk mentor to the main characters: Katniss Everdeen (played by the young and talented Jennifer Lawrence who was nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actress last year for "Winter's Bone" and most recently starred as Mystique in "X-Men First Class"), and Peeta Mellark (who makes up these names?), played by Josh Hutcherson, the child actor who was in "Bridge to Terabithia", "RV", "Firehouse Dog", "Zathura", and most recently, "Cirque du Freak - The Vampire's Assistant" (TC hated that movie because it deviated so much from the book). Most of all, I want to see rocker Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, Katniss's stylist!

I still haven't finished "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" yet and I've only read a few pages of "A Discovery of Witches". But first, I feel compelled to finish this trilogy! Aaaagh!