Feast to warm the heart

WE are experiencing a cruel kind of cold these past few days, with the coldest recorded temp this morning reportedly at 7.4 degrees. I am not one to complain about cold weather because I ‘heart’ bed weather, but we are literally going through a crazy one this past week – with cool air and warm sunshine in midday, then biting cold in the late afternoon and evening. I guess it’s high time for those concoctions that can lift dampened spirits due to cold weather, or due to colds, or both.

Good old chicken soup. The bestselling series of feel-good stories in anthologies was not titled “Chicken Soup for the Soul” for nothing. Chicken soup is still the ultimate comfort food for the ailing, for the sad, and even for the brokenhearted (as claimed by some, hearsay for me). My favorite version of this soup for the soul is a very simple broth, with asparagus, tiny carrot cubes, and one whole tiny piece of spring onion, with a dash of salt and sesame oil (note to self: what’s the “very simple broth” with that?)

Champorado with tuyo. When I first mentioned this combination to my girls, they looked at me as though I had gone mad. They take theirs only with evap/ powdered milk and sugar, and sometimes they get an earful from us for not being adventurous enough when it comes to food. But champorado and tuyo is one perfect combination, and warms the soul on cold or rainy days.

Oatmeal with raisins. One of the easiest comfort meals to prepare, and probably ranks high, health-wise. Both grains and raisins boost your energy, so this one is a real winner to aid you during cold season.

Oven-fresh pandesal and butter. Just the scent of freshly-baked bread is enough to warm my