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Did you guys have a good Easter yesterday? To my non-Christian brothers and sisters, I wish you Peace, Namaste, As-Salamu Alaykum, etc. Easter is about forgiveness, redemption and renewal, so Christian or not… many of us need that in our everyday lives (of loud or quiet desperation). Over the years, my family’s Easter meals have become less elaborate… in terms of planning, preparation and number of courses. Easter weekend this year at Casa da fruity was fairly quiet, but enjoyable and delicious nonetheless.

The photo above is a plate of a hefty piece of my sister’s best ever date squares and 2 scoops of Neapolitan ice cream. Yes, vanilla would’ve been a more appropriate pairing, but my neighbourhood grocery store ran out of vanilla (proof that the masses really do have banal tastes). I was standing for about 15 minutes in the store’s freezer aisle when an amused man next to me said, “Go with Neapolitan. Chocolate, vanilla and strawberry in one tub? How can you go wrong?” (Apparently, my indecision in life extends to ice cream.) Yum, ice cream with still warm date squares! The smooth date filling was not overly sweet (the brown sugar didn’t overpower the taste of dates and orange essence). Wow, the oat crumb topping was buttery and crispy. You could say it wasn’t only fruity, it was oaty too! I know, corny.

Next, a photo of a steaming bowl of my Mom’s mussels in broth (flavoured with ginger, fish sauce, onions, garlic, spring onions, watercress). I read somewhere that mussels have aphrodisiac properties. Considering I haven’t had a date in ages, I probably should’ve had 2 bowls. Make that 4… or 8. Trust me, it tasted better than it looks. Mussels always look so… strange.

Next, a pan of my unbelievably good lasagna… declared by my father to be “the best ever… ang sarap!” The rest of my family agreed. Really good.

Mmm, alternating layers of pasta, lovely tomato sauce (made with diced tomatoes, puréed tomatoes, fresh Italian parsley, basil, oregano, and sautéed diced carrots & celery & onions & garlic in extra virgin olive oil), green peppers, ricotta cheese, browned crumbly hot Italian sausage & lean ground beef, sautéed mushrooms and thin slices of eggplant browned in olive oil, chopped spinach (steamed first and squeezed of its liquid), and my sister’s stunning creamy cheesy white sauce (cream cheese, butter, milk, flour). It’s topped with lots of grated mozzarella and baked until hot and bubbly. I rarely ever cook with a recipe (I have a concept in mind)… so yeah, don’t ask me for a recipe. Lack of recipes is probably what stops this blog from being a real food blog… ehrr, among other things. Uh-huh.

Down below, a photo of a generous portion of lasagna served with 2 crispy fried chicken legs. Umm, if you take away the fried chicken, ground beef and sausage, it could have been a vegetarian meal. And just as good too.

Lastly, we went to a 12 o’clock Easter Mass at our local church where Bishop John A. Boissonneau (Auxiliary Bishop of Toronto with responsibility for the Western Region) presided over the Holy Mass. He usually comes every Easter. I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that our church exceeds its monetary collections quota by 240%. OK, I’m cynical.

Message to my friend Evilgenius: As much as I love your snapped photo of the adorable bunny rabbit, Easter is really about this dude down below:

Adieu,

fruity tomato

P.S. Bear with me (no, not bare… Shari) as I try to figure out my blog’s focus. I’m experiencing blogger’s constipation or rather ennui (bored with blogging). It’s not simply a matter of lack of ideas (because my mind is bursting with ‘em). I just don’t want to write, but I do know that I have to write something… as I’d probably lose my public readership if I went away for a long time. Hi JJ… RE: food blog, I was half kidding, maybe… You want hybrid adobo recipes? Yeah, balsamic vinegar… presto… Italian adobo!