Oatmeal "Arroz Caldo" - A new Fall Favorite Comfort Food

The air smells like Autumn - crisp and delicious. Daylights are shorter and early morning temperature started to drop (sometimes to single digit). The sunflowers are everywhere, my own way of telling  fall is near.

In the coop, my "girls" egg popping activity is slowing down due to shorter daylight. Surprisingly, Maleficent {my black anacona hen} who lays egg every other day is now popping these cream colored eggs every day. There must be something in the autumn air that she likes ....

I decided to garnish Maleficent eggs in my new fall favorite comfort food: Oatmeal "Arroz Caldo"! 

Arroz caldo (Filipino congee), as the name implies is simply rice soup usually garnished with chicken, hard boiled eggs and spring onions. It is a very popular breakfast in the Philippines specially on a cold rainy day. Since I am trying to get rid of some unwanted pounds, a good friend of mine suggested to use oatmeal  in my recipe instead of rice. So I did and I love it! Now, I can enjoy this comfort food without feeling guilty!

While slicing and peeling my ingredients, this beautiful cedar waxwing bird landed in the backyard. What caught my attention are its single bloody red dot on its wings and the neon yellow accent on the tip of ts tail. When I looked closely, the bird's eyes are accented with black coloring as if it is wearing a mask! Simply gorgeous.

Now back to my recipe.... it took me less than 30 minutes {yes, that's even counting the photo session with the waxwing bird!} to prepare this .... equally delicious but definitely a healthier version of  my favorite comfort food ....

Oatmeal "Arroz Caldo"

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons canola oil (or other vegetable oil)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 thumb-sized fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped 
1 onion, finely chopped
2 1/2 cups chicken stock  (add more if  needed)
2 cups shredded chicken meat (I used left over roast chicken breast)
1 cup instant oatmeal
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 hard-boiled eggs for topping
2 spring onions, thinly sliced for topping
Calamansi or lemon

Procedure:

In a large stockpot,  saute the garlic, onion and ginger in oil over medium heat. Cook until onion is translucent. Do not burn the garlic.
Add the oatmeal. Stir and coat the oatmeal with sautéed garlic, onion and ginger. 
Add the shredded chicken meat and cook for another minute while stirring.  
Pour chicken stock, and fish sauce. 
Cover the pan and simmer over medium to low heat. 
Stir frequently and simmer until the oatmeal are cooked. Add more chicken stock if oatmeal is getting too sticky.
To serve, ladle oatmeal "arroz caldo" into bowls and garnish with spring onions and hard-boiled egg.
Drizzle with lemon or calamansi (optional)

The GOOD, the BAD and the BEST about Living in the Countryside

A few weeks back, some friends and family are asking about the changes we have to make when we moved from the city to the country. I told them, ask me in a month or so. Its been seven weeks and now I have a good sense of the good, the bad and the best of  country living. Let me start with....

... THE GOOD ...

• Life is basically simple. No need for fancy wardrobe (except for going to our day jobs. By the way, contrary to rumors, hubby and I are still working full time!). Jeans, T-shirt and rubber boots are essential. Sunblock and hat are my usual accessories.
• I can dance in the rain to my heart's content and no one will mind. Oh well, maybe my ducks who love the rain as well.

• We learn to communicate with our "pets". You will be surprise to know that each and every hen in the coop has her own character/attitude. Like any other female species, they can be very competitive even without the presence of a rooster.
• My two inseparable ducks, Katniss and Peeta are role model for what "relationship"  is all about. They are totally opposite in character but they make a perfect team. I can watch the two of them all day and learn a lot about what partnership is all about.

• We hang our clothes outside and let the wind and sun dry them. I can't remember the last time I did this! No, I don't hand wash our clothes!!! I will not go that far. That's what washing machine is for.

• The nearest mall is about 45 minutes away. So we go to Country Store instead. Love it!  

• The country atmosphere and our access to fresh veggies and fruits made me want to cook more than I should. There is no doubt in my mind that cooking is my passion and how I wish I can do this full time.

Honestly, living in the country is not as rosy as it sounds. There are things that I wish different. So let me tell you ...

... THE BAD ...

• Spiders, frogs and chipmunks are the "bane of my existence"! I am scared of  big spiders and frogs so you can just imagine how many times I called hubby to shoo them away to clear my path. The hardest part is during  early morning following a rainy night. There's a good walk between the main house and chicken coop and there will be tiny green frogs on the grass joyfully leaping on top of my boots. If only my scream can kill them!
• Oh the chipmunks, Grrrrr! They are cute but what a nuisance! They eat my tomatoes (oh yes, they like them ripe!), uprooted my peppers and oregano, ate the duck feeds and the list goes on. We are learning how to humanely trap them. Good luck to us!
• Some of our chickens are old already (they are from the previous owner of the house) and we were warned to expect that some of them will die this year. We buried one on our 2nd week here. I hate funerals!

• It is foggy in most mornings. We are near the lake so this is expected. No harm really but it makes me want to stay home.

• There is ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS something to do for me and Jayvee! The work never ends. Since we both have a full-time day jobs, we need to find time to do the chores at home. So far we are enjoying them. Ask me  again after a year :-)
• No wonder I caught dear Jayvee napping several times even in the most uncomfortable position!

I am saving this for last. These are the reasons why we chose to be here.

... THE BEST...

• It is so serene and peaceful! Our property is sandwiched between acres and acres of cornfields (NOT ours!) The neighbors' houses are at least a kilometer away so you can practically run naked in the backyard if you want to. We've never tried it yet. :-)

• I can have many chickens in the backyard and no one will complain. Nothing beats a really fresh free range eggs for breakfast!

• Our water is from dug water well so we don't pay monthly bill. The water makes my skin and hair smooth. No need for hair conditioners.

• During spring, summer and fall, the weekend farmers market is my happy place! You get to know the baker (our Gerry bakes the best potato rosemary bread), the butcher, the farmers and even the coffee connoisseur.

• There are always pleasant summer visitors in the yards. Beautiful butterflies, dragonflies and even fireflies at night. When we were pruning the trees, we found different kinds of birds' nests.

• At night, we would sit by the porch and look at the stars shinning brightly. There are so many of them! I would always look for the brightest one and know that one is my dear Papa shinning from heaven.

• Every weekend is like a mini vacation. We would do all our chores in the morning so we can enjoy the sun (on good days) and the booze!

• We wake up thanking God for the beautiful and promising sunrise. Every morning is different. Alive, vibrant and bold.

• I never get tired of taking these sunset photos from our backyard deck. There are days the sunset is calm and peaceful and others are fierce as if burning the skies. But always, they are dramatic and romantic. They make you feel loved ....

• It is always fun to invite friends for a barn-themed get-together lunch. No fuss, no frills. Just pure fun and lots of laughter!

By and large the summer edition of The Good, the Bad and the Best is pleasant and exciting. We will see what's in store for the next seasons. Will there be coyotes instead of butterflies? How many inches of snow do we have to plow before we can feed the chicken in their coop? How are we going to make the chickens and duck warm during the winter months? What are the recipes I'm going to invent in the kitchen when the leaves change its colors? .... Stay tuned!

Linking with : Tilly's Nest