Chef Niño Logarta’s Fruity Cornish Hens

That’s how chef Niño Logarta describes his style of dishing out a romantic dinner for his special someone. Fuss-free preparations. No-frills approach.

“So you have less time in the kitchen and more time with your SO (significant other),” says 29-year-old Logarta, who says he’s in a relationship right now.

Though cooking for his partner is a spontaneous action, a spur-of-the-moment thing, Logarta makes sure the kind of food he cooks compensates for all the missing trappings.“The taste says a lot more than the presentation,” Logarta swears. “I don’t have a big house so I don’t do a six-course meal. When we go out or watch a movie, we’d drop by at a nearby grocery and whatever I see there fresh I get it. Like fresh pampano. I’d stuff it with spices and herbs. Or, lamb which I’d grill or bake in the oven. Simple things lang. No elaborate ones.”

Much like this Fruity Cornish Hens, which he glazes with different fruit flavors and nuts and roasted to perfection. The Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole is also an easy-to-prepare meal, where most of the ingredients are mixed together into a bowl and baked.
“Fruits are not necessarily for desserts but also for savory dishes,” Logarta says. “They’re high in fiber so it makes the dish healthy as well. Not to mention that fruits add elegance to any type of dish. ”

Cooking for himself

Interestingly, if he prepares simple stuff for his SO, then expect that he comes up with an even more straightforward, basic meal for himself.

With his busy schedule, he hardly cooks at home. In fact, he’s got a cabinet-ful of Century Tuna Light which he can eat almost every day.

“Sometimes I eat it straight from the can with lots of rice and top it with kalamansi juice. Yummy,” says Logarta, a culinary arts graduate of the Center for Culinary Arts in Katipunan, Quezon City. He is the son of journalist Louie Logarta and grandson of former Inquirer Lifestyle section editor Llita Logarta.

“Or, sometimes, I just eat in a carinderia before heading home,” he says. “I’m too tired to cook and serve myself. But, of course, unless there are special occasions at home and my cousins will come I will prepare something gourmet-ish.”

Logarta is currently the product endorser and chef consultant for Kinox, a high-end line of pots and pans. He’s also one of the chef-hosts of “Ka-Toque; Lutong Barkada,” aired every Saturday, 11 a.m., on QTV 11.

The show teaches viewers how to make delicious yet affordable meals with ingredients available in their kitchens.

Fruity Cornish Hens(Cornish hens with fruit, walnuts, and honey kalamansi glaze)

Ingredients:

2 tart green apples, peeled, cored and diced

1/3 c dried apricots/peaches, cut into thin slices
2/3 c raisins/prunes1 c walnuts, chopped
¼ tsp cinnamon2 tbsp butter, melted
½ c green peas ½ cRed and green bell peppers, julienned

½ c kalamansi juice
½ c honey

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tsp salt

2 (1¼ lb) Cornish hens, halved

¼ tsp fresh-ground black pepper

Procedure:

Heat the oven to 425°F. In a roasting pan, combine apples, apricots, raisins, walnuts, cinnamon and butter. Spread the mixture over the bottom of the pan.

In a small bowl, combine the kalamansi juice, honey, thyme, and ¼ teaspoon of the salt to make a glaze. Sprinkle the Cornish hens with the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper and set them breast-side down on top of the fruit-and-nut mixture. Brush the hens with some of the glaze and then cook for 10 minutes.

Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Stir the fruit-and-nut mixture and turn the hens over. Brush them with more of the glaze, return the pan to the oven, and cook until just done, about 15 minutes longer. Glaze the hens one final time and serve them with the fruit-and-nut dressing.

Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter or vegetable oil

½ c bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, peeled and diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 c cooked chicken, diced

2 c green beans, parboiled

1 c diced carrots, parboiled

1 c celery, diced

1 c red bell peppers, diced

1 (10¾-oz) can condensed cream of celery/asparagus soup (Campbell’s)

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp dry mustard

½ tsp fresh thyme

1 c heavy cream

500 g cooked brown rice

1 c grated sharp Cheddar

Salt and pepper

Chopped parsley

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat butter or oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add bacon, onion and garlic, then sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl. Add all remaining ingredients to bowl and mix together until thoroughly combined. Pour into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.

By Vangie Baga-ReyesPhilippine Daily InquirerFirst Posted 21:28:00 03/26/2008MANILA, Philippines—“The simpler, the better.”

Discovering friendship through delicious food

Raiding celebrity kitchens to create impromptu recipes fit for TV viewing can be a stressful task. But on QTV 11’s hit Saturday morning cooking show Ka-Toque Lutong Barkada, chefs Jeremy Favia, Niño Logarta, Mitchie Sison and Jonah Trinidad seem to be having the time of their lives instead. Onscreen, they seem to be happy human cook books, confident in their culinary expertise and efficient in their knowledge of each other’s cooking styles. Offscreen, this bustling energy translates into an easy fellowship that goes on long after the cameras have stopped rolling.

The transition from co-workers to friends has been effortless. “Even when the show was just starting, we were all instantly comfortable with each other. We never felt any awkwardness and we were always bonding,” shares Jonah. “It was like we didn’t need a workshop to get us to bond. It all happened so naturally,” adds Mitchie. Despite their busy schedules for tapings, mall shows, out-of-town shows and guestings, Jeremy, Niño, Mitchie and Jonah still find time to go out. Even out-of-town work trips turn into full-fledged barkada vacations, thanks to their easy banter and determination to enjoy the companionship wherever they go. Clearly, despite their fine palates and expanded gustatory knowledge, they are still just a regular barkada at heart. “What you see is what you really get,” admits Niño. “I think that’s why people who watch the show can easily relate to us.”

Their real-life friendship caught the attention of Greenwich, the Philippines’ leading and largest pizza chain, to get them as ambassadors for its current friendship-themed campaign. “Even if we’re chefs, it still goes down to what we really want to eat. And the truth is the taste of Greenwich pizzas is something we personally recommend even to our other friends. I always look for the creamy taste of cheese, for example. With all the toppings in the pizza, the character of cheese is still present.

Tamang-tama lang talaga yung mix of toppings and very delicious,” notes Mitchie. “Sobrang timing lang din kasi I’ve been eating their pizza kahit dati pa kaya I’m so happy to be associated with the Greenwich brand especially with my Ka-Toque barkada.” Jonah, the meticulous meat expert, was equally pleased. “It’s exciting since it will be my first time to be in a TV or print ad, and I’m so glad I like the delicious product I’m supporting. When I tasted Greenwich’s pizzas, I noticed the tasty and chewy crust that’s even garlic flavored and how the pizza is meaty but not oily, Panalong-panalo,” he adds.

Through fantastic celebrity kitchen coups and their Greenwich campaign, expect the Ka-Toque bond to grow even stronger as they promote the joy of sharing delicious food with friends. “Our shared passion for good food has strengthened our friendship,” shares Jeremy. “Food helps you get to know people better through what they choose to eat and how they eat. And even if Nino, myself, Jonah and Mitchie have different tastes and preferences in food click kami sa Greenwich Pizzas!” Delicious and impeccably plated dishes may be central to Ka-Toque Lutong Barkada, but it’s the warm camaraderie among its hosts that spill over to TV audiences and flavor Saturday mornings with plenty of good cheers.