Another Baked Macaroni

I guess we are just fanatics for baked macaroni so I made with what was available in the kitchen. It came out pretty well - a Filipino-style sauce which mom likes.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo (1 lb.) lean pork, ground
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup onion, minced
1/3 cup green and red bell pepper, minced
1 kg tomato sauce
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. chili powder
2 tbsps. sugar
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup milk
500 grams elbow noodles, cooked
1/2 to 1 cup grated cheese
2 tbsps. parsley, chopped

In a sauce pan, saute meat on medium heat until everything is brown. Keep sauteing until the meat is dried out of its juices. Set aside. Add 2 tbsps. olive oil and saute onions, bell pepper and garlic until the onions are translucent. Add in the meat and continue to stir until the ingredients are well blended. Add the soy sauce, salt and black pepper. Pour the tomato sauce and stir until it boils. Reduce the heat and add the sugar and chili pepper and bay leaf. Simmer the sauce for about 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally to avoid the bottom from sticking and burning. Adjust the seasonings based on your taste then add milk to make a creamier sauce. Simmer for additional 3 minutes then turn heat off. Let the sauce cool and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator to allow the spices to marry together with the sauce.
Cook noodles and drain. Mix the noodles with the meat sauce. Pour into a baking dish and top with the grated cheese. Sprinkle the parsley and bake at 350F for 5-8 minutes until the cheese melts and tops slightly turns brown.

Recollections - Humba

Mom and I were trying to reminisce the old times and the conversation ended up with how Grandma and Tita was able to cook really well. One of these dishes was Humba - a sweet and salty concoction for pork belly or pata mixed with banana blossoms. So this is the recipe version that I tried with adjustments that passed our taste buds. It was nothing close to my aunt's but it is a working progress :)

Ingredients:
1 k. pork liempo (belly), cut into big cubes
1/2 head garlic, crushed
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tbsp. muscovado sugar
2 pcs. bay leaf
1 star anise
1 tsp. peppercorns, crushed
salt
1/2 cup banana blossoms 

Sear the pork pieces until all sides are brown in a thick sauce pan. Add garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, bay leaf, anise and peppercorns. Add water enough to cover the meat and bring to a boil. Remove all scum that rises, add more water if necessary. Set to medium heat and simmer until pork becomes tender for about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours. When pork skin turns to gelatine like texture, adjust the saltiness and sweetness according to taste. Add the blossoms. Set heat to low and continue to simmer until all the liquid has evaporated and pork start to render fat. Now cook the pork on its own fat until brown on low heat stirring occasionally to avoid burning the bottom.
Serve over hot rice.