My City, My SM, My Cuisine launched in Santa Rosa

MANILA, Philippines - Food lovers, food experts, and some of the city’s prominent families gathered together when My City, My SM, My Cuisine recently made its first stop at SM City Santa Rosa.

A joint project of SM and The Philippine Star with support from Homeworld, My City, My SM, SM Cuisine celebrates the flavors of Philippine regional cuisine through a culinary contest featuring two signature recipes from 14 cities where SM malls are located. Held in time for its traditional baraka festival, the event was also very much like a town fiesta where prominent families from Santa Rosa brought samples of their prized heirloom recipes for the guests to enjoy.

No less than Santa Rosa City Mayor Arlene Arcillas graced the event, which featured a competition for the best puchero with lauya and puto maya with kilawing puso ng saging. Professional cook Pepito Panganiban and homemaker Nelia Dia won the top prizes for puchero and puto maya, respectively, each bringing home P5,000 worth of SM gift certificates.

The board of judges, which included some of the country’s best known foodies and food experts — Food magazine editor in chief Mickey Fenix; renowned writer Sonny Tinio; artist, chef, and writer Claude Tayag; Metropolitan Museum vice chair Corazon Alvina; as well as the Philippine Star’s Grace Laurel and Homeworld’s department manager Merly Ann Bernaldez — enjoyed savoring each of the entries before giving their final nod.

Other contestants included Ryan Obaldo, Gem Batino, Anafe Anzures, and Crisina Araos for the entrée, puchero with lauya; and Juliet Fadul, Aida Pastidio, Lucky Ian Solomon, and Jessica Eugenio for the dessert, puto maya with kilawing puso ng saging. They each received Gift Packs from SM Homeworld and P1,5000 worth of SM Gift Certificates.

During the event, guests also had a glimpse of the rich culinary tradition of Santa Rosa in a video featuring Metropolitan Museum vice chair Corazon Alvina and My City, My SM honoree Philippine Tatler managing editor Chit Lijauco as they visited favorite food stops and homes of prominent families, who demonstrated their signature recipes.

Guests, including City Councilor Edward Tiongco and tourism officer Nescy Esguerra, as well as Hollywood beauty expert and My City, My SM honoree James Cooper, then had a taste of good old Santa Rosa hospitality as prominent families shared with them the heirloom recipes featured in the video and more in a fit-for-a-fiesta spread in the antique table very generously lent by architect Mario Zavalla. SM officials led by SM vice president for marketing Millie Dizon and mall manager Omar Caringal, Jr..

Chit Lijauco and her auntie Ossie brought the family’s famed Tinadtad recipe, while Nonia Tiongco brought her family’s renowned Lengua recipe. Guests couldn’t have enough of these, as well as the Silva family’s rellenong manok and kula-o (ulo ng baboy), the League family’s Sochay, the Lijauco family’s kilawing labanos, and the Delfino family’s pansit grade 1. And of course, no foodie gathering in Santa Rosa would be complete without the delicious Bok’s ice cream.

“Communities source their food from the environment, and a lively cuisine has been put together by Santa Rosa and its folk from field and lake,” says Metropolitan Museum vice chair Corazon Alvina, who helped select the recipes for the competition. “Rice fields that have greened the landscape hosted delicacies such as kohol, a snail, and dampalit, a weed. Laguna de Bae has been fished for kanduli, as well as some eel, dalag, karpa, biya, and ayungin. Coconut trees abound, and the cream from the nuts has provided rich velvety sauces for dishes and desserts.”

With that, “households boasted of cooks in the family that in intimate kitchens cook up tinadtad ( a soupy chopped meat dish soured with kamias), lauya or puchero. Gata or coconut cream enlivens dinalawang tigiti (young tiny kanduli with tumeric) and yapyap (small freshwater shrimps with big heads), and biya cooked and wrapped in banana leaves. Kilawing puso ng saging is not only eaten as a vegetable, but as accompaniment to puto maya, either as a dessert or snack.”

My City, My SM, My Cuisine will make its next stop at SM City Lucena just in time for the Pahiyas and Pasayahan festivals on May 26. Ten contestants will compete for the best Hardinera and the best coconut dessert. Alvina and My City, My SM honoree from Lucena James Cooper will also take guests on a culinary tour around the city, with prominent families sharing their prized heirloom recipes.

My City, My SM, My Cuisine is a joint project of SM and the Philippine Star with support from SM Homeworld.

* * *

SM shoppers and Philippine Star readers can submit their recipe of their city’s selected entrée or dessert along with their name, address, and occupation to sm_starculinary@yahoo.com. They can also mail these to the Publicity Department, Building C, SM Corporate Office, JW Diokno Boulevard, Pasay City, or the Lifestyle Section of the Philippine Star at R. oca, jr. and Railroad Streets, Port Area, Manila.

Ten finalists will be selected from the recipes submitted, five for entrees, and five for dessert. Two winners – one for entrée and one for dessert – will be selected from each city during the culinary contest that will be held in time for the city’s festival. The two winners will each receive P5,000 worth of SM Gift Certificates, while finalists will receive gift packs from SM Homeworld.