DELICIOUS SIOMAI

A traditional Chinese dumpling. This popular dumpling has made its way to the heart of the Filipino’s as evidenced by the hundreds of stalls, eateries, and restaurants who serve them. Traditionally cooked through steaming, siomai nowadays are also served fried complimented with soy sauce and calamansi.

1 kg ground pork (suggested proportion of fat to lean meat is 1:3)

1/3 cup chopped water chestnuts or turnips (singkamas)

1/3 cup chopped carrots

2 medium or 1 large minced onion(s)

bunch of spring onions or leeks

1 egg

5 tablespoons sesame oil

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon salt

50 pcs. large or 100 pcs. small wanton or siomai wrapper

soy sauce, calamansi (lemon or kumquats), sesame oil and chilli paste (for the sauce) 

Wrapper:

1/4 cup water

1 egg

1 tablespoon vegetable or corn oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Mix all the ingredients for the filling in a bowl.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of mixture into each wrapper. Fold and seal.

Meanwhile, boil water and brush steamer with oil.

When the water gets to a rolling boil, arrange the siomai in the steamer and let stand for 15-20 minutes, longer for larger pieces.

Serve with soy sauce, calamansi and sesame oil. Chilli past is optional.

Update: Someone asked me for the recipe of chilli paste and siomai wrapper that’s why I’m reproducing it here.

Wrapper:

Beat egg and mix with flour till free of lumps.

Bring water, cooking oil and salt to a boil, then pour in flour.

Remove from heat and beat until mixture forms a ball.

Divide the dough into 1 1/4 -inch balls.

Roll each ball on a floured board until paper thin. Set aside.

Simplest version of chilli sauce would be to chop chillies well and fry them in oil, sesame or vegetable oil, never olive oil if you want it to have an Asian taste.

The chilli paste found in restaurants is a combination of chillies, garlic and oil. Combine chopped chillies and mashed garlic then simmer for around 20 minutes or till most of the water has evaporated. Add oil, simmer and stir well. 

Healthy tip For a healthier siomai, use very lean ground pork and increase the proportion of vegetable. You can also add mushrooms and shrimps. If you do, you may need to add one more egg to help bind the mixture.

Tasting tip  Don’t forget to check the seasoning by microwaving a spoonful before wrapping with siomai wrapper. Adjust the salt and pepper, if necessary.

USA BASKETBALL MEN'S OLYMPIC'S TEAM MAKES GOLD

Team USA picked up their second consecutive gold medal at the 2012 London Summer Olympics over Spain in a narrow margin of victory of 107-100.

The final game in the North Greenwich Arena saw Kevin Durant continue his scoring success with 30 points, giving the Oklahoma City Thunder player a total of 156 points most points scored throughout the London Olympics, but just one point less than Argentina's and San Antonio Spurs' Emanuel "Manu" Ginobili with 155 total points.

The United States beat Spain 107-100 Sunday morning to win their second straight gold medal in Olympic basketball.

Mike Krzyzewski gets to ride off into the sunset from his Olympic coaching career, getting his second gold medal and finishing his career as Team USA’s coach with a 62-1 record.

The game was very reminiscent of the 2008 gold medal game. Spain came out playing better than they had all Olympics and trailed by just one point entering the fourth quarter.

Team USA came out great in the fourth though scoring seven quick points. Then LeBron James picked up his fourth foul, came out of the game and Spain remained within striking distance.

When LeBron came back in, he made a backbreaking 3-pointer over Marc Gasol in the same way Kobe Bryant made a huge three four years ago.

LeBron James caps off an amazing year for him that included an MVP, NBA title and now gold medal making him the first player since Michael Jordan in 1992 to do that. Pau Gasol led Spain with 24 points, eight rebounds and five assists in the game.

The U.S. made the plays they needed to down the stretch. It wasn’t the prettiest win. Each team committed 27 fouls in the game and Spain also battled foul trouble with Marc Gasol picking up four in the first half and sitting the entire third quarter.

The U.S. made 15-of-37 threes in the game while Spain wasn’t as good at 7-for-19. Team USA also held their own on the boards outrebounding Spain and getting 12 offensive rebounds.With the win, the United States capture their 14th gold medal in Olympic basketball history.

BRAD AND ANGELINA WEDDING RUMORS FLARE UP

Forget garden-variety buzz. The possibility that Brad Pitt is marrying Angelina Jolie this weekend in France is getting "real buzz." So says an excited but unnamed source to the U.K's Sun, based on rumors that the couple are hosting some kind of event at their château with guests including Pitt's parents and Jolie's engagement-ring jeweler. But multiple sources tell People there is no wedding this weekend. The local newspaper Var Matin also shot down a France 3 TV report of a Saturday wedding. And officials in the village say they don't know anything about it and that it likely couldn't happen anyway. "Under French law couples have to get married at the town hall," Patrick Mareschi, deputy culture secretary of the nearby village of Correns, tells Reuters. "Unlike with a religious wedding, there's no way a couple can hold a civil ceremony at their own home." Which is pretty much what the photo agency X17 found out. It grumbled on its website: "We sent an X17 photographer all the way down to the south of France - it's pretty much in the middle of nowhere - to check out Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's chateau Miraval to see just what's going on and ... drumroll, please ... there's Nothing going on!" the site says. Not only did its photographer not find any signs the couple, engaged last spring, were tying the knot - no security guards, no party planners - it didn't even see evidence of other rumors that Pitt was hosting a wedding anniversary party for his parents. 

HOW TO COOK SPECIAL CHAMPORADO

A simple and easy steps to cook.

Champorado is a sweet chocolate rice porridge that uses sweet glutinous rice (locally known as malagkit) and cocoa powder as main ingredients. A more traditional approach would be using tableya (pure cocoa blocks) instead of cocoa powder.

Ingredients:
8 tbsp cocoa powder (or about 4 pieces tableya)
1 cup glutinous rice (malagkit)
1/2 cup sugar
3  1/2 cups water
condensed milk (optional)

Cooking procedure:
1. Pour 2 1/2 cups of water in a pot and bring to a boil
2. Put-in the glutinous rice and allow water to re-boil for a few minutes
3. Dilute the cocoa powder in 1 cup warm water then pour-in the pot. Stir continously
4. Once the glutinous rice is cooked (about 12 to 18 minutes of cooking with constant stirring), add the sugar and cook for another 5 minutes or until the texture becomes thick.
5. Remove from the pot and place in a serving bowl.
6. Serve hot with a swirl of condensed milk on top.

Now you can enjoy your yummy champorado.

JUNK FOOD DIET ON PREGNANT WOMEN

Pregnant women who gorge on junk food could be putting themselves at an increased risk of breast cancer that is passed down generations, say researchers.

In their rat-based study, researchers at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center showed that pregnant females that ate a high fat diet not only increased breast cancer risk in their female daughters but also in that daughter's offspring.

A DIET laden in fat during pregnancy may lead to an increased risk of breast cancer that is passed down generations, say scientists.

Pregnant women who dine on junk food could unwittingly be risking the future health of not only their daughters but also their grand-daughters, research suggests.

The US study, conducted on rats, provides further evidence that environmental factors can cause inheritable genetic changes. Scientists believe the findings have an important message for humans.

"The implications from this study are that pregnant mothers need to eat a well-balanced diet because they may be affecting the future health of their daughters and granddaughters," said lead researcher Sonia de Assis, from Georgetown University in Washington DC.

The researchers fed a group of mother rats either a high-fat or normal diet and looked at what happened to their offspring and the subsequent generation.

They found that not only did a high-fat diet increase the risk of daughters having breast cancer, but also granddaughters.

The risk was not only passed on by daughters but also sons.

Daughters of male and female rats who both had fat-consuming mothers had an 80pc chance of developing breast cancer.

But the risk fell to 69pc if the mother of one parent -- either father or mother -- had a high-fat diet and the other grandmother had a normal diet during pregnancy.

Granddaughters of grandmother rats given a normal diet had a 50pc chance of developing breast cancer. The scientists cannot explain how diet influences breast cancer risk down two generations but believe "epigenetic" factors are involved. These are genetic changes caused by the environment that can potentially be passed on to future generations of offspring.

In the rats, something linked to diet made it more likely for "terminal end buds" -- structures where tumours can develop -- to appear in the breast tissue of daughters and granddaughters.

Meanwhile, a separate British survey has found that most people have no idea that their spare tyre is putting them at increased risk of cancer, diabetes and heart disease, a poll found yesterday.

Excess weight around the middle generates oestrogen and excess chemicals in the stomach, which put people at higher risk of killer diseases.

BEER, A GOOD OR BAD TO YOUR HEALTH?

Most men drink Beer because it makes you feel good. You knew that. But you don't realize just how good. Recent research has revealed bioactive compounds in beer that battle cancer, boost your metabolism, and more. And these benefits come on top of the oft-touted upsides of moderate alcohol intake: clot prevention, cleaner arteries, and reduced stress. We set out with a stack of studies, a panel of parched testers, and a full fridge to find the best-tasting, healthiest brews available.

Beer is nutritious if consumed in moderation 

• That beer is fat-free and cholesterol free? 

• Beer has a relaxing effect on the body thereby reducing stress. 

• It can help you sleep better 

• It helps prevent heart disease and improves the blood circulation 

• It has proven to have positive effects on elderly people. It helps to promote blood vessel dilation, sleep, and urination. 

An average beer contains the following:

0mg of cholesterol 

0g of fat 

13g of carbohydrate 

25mg of sodium 

protein, calcium, potassium, phosphorus and vitamins B, B2, and B6 

Beer in cooking is deeply rooted in Western Europe. Beer is incomparable as a cooking tool. With its unique flavors and versatilities is it unmatched. Due to the fact that alcohol has a much lower boiling temperature than water, it evaporates quickly while cooking your recipe and thereby only leaves the characteristic taste of the beer.

Beer also contains vitamin B6, which prevents the build-up of amino acid called homocysteine that has been linked to heart disease. 

What’s interesting is that it was proven (New England Journal of Medicine – Nov. 1999) that those who drank one beer a week compared to those who drank one beer a day experienced no variance in reducing stroke risks. It is said that light to moderate drinkers will decrease their chances of suffering a stroke by 20%.

THE GOLD MEDALIST SWIMMER, MICHAEL PHELPS

MICHEAL PHELPS IMAGE

Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is a retired American swimmer and the most decorated Olympian of all time with 22 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for gold medals (18, double that of the next highest record holders), gold medals in individual events, and Olympic medals in individual events for a male. In winning eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games, Phelps took the record for the most first-place finishes at any single Olympic Games. Five of those victories were in individual events, tying the single Games record. In the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Phelps won four golds and two silver medals.

Phelps is the long course world recordholder in the 100 metres butterfly, 200 metres butterfly and 400 metres individual medley as well as the former long course world recordholder in the 200 metres freestyle and 200 metres individual medley. He has won a total of 71 medals in major international long-course competition, 57 gold, 11 silver, and 3 bronze spanning the Olympics, the World, and the Pan Pacific Championships. Phelps's international titles and record-breaking performances have earned him the World Swimmer of the Year Award six times and American Swimmer of the Year Award eight times. His unprecedented Olympic success in 2008 earned Phelps Sports Illustrated magazine's Sportsman of the Year award.

After the 2008 Summer Olympics, Phelps started the Michael Phelps Foundation, which focuses on growing the sport of swimming and promoting healthier lifestyles. He expects to do further work with his foundation after the 2012 Olympics, which he has said will be his last.