Lasang Pinoy 1st Anniversary: Definitive Pinoy!

Welcome to the First Anniversary Edition of Lasang Pinoy. We’ve had an outstanding year of friendship, sharing and celebrating our Filipino heritage through food. Just see our archives at lasangpinoy.org to feast on the last twelve months’ blog posts and round-ups of Pinoy dishes, both traditional and innovative… but always food that’s sariling atin (all our own).

For this month’s theme, I am inviting all of you who love Filipino food to find one (or two!… or three!) dishes that for you DEFINES what being Pinoy is all about. Some questions to grease those wheels and get them turning:

• Is there a Filipino dish that you’re most proud of that you would unhesitatingly offer to someone who is not familiar with our cuisine? The dish that makes you say the words, “You’ve GOT to try this.”
• What is the one dish that unfailingly brings about nostalgia? Especially if you currently live outside Philippine shores, this may be one you most crave for because you can’t have it, or maybe the one dish that you prepare to remind you of home.
• So your palate is more international and maybe recently you’ve gorged on pasta, pizza, brie, paprikash, mapo tofu, paad thai, sushi, poutine, funnel cake, or any number of foreign dishes… until you realize that maybe those dishes warmed your tummies but failed to warm your hearts. What Filipino dish then do you feel you just NEED to make (or buy) and eat, because one more bite of that foreign food and you’re going to implode?
• Or tell us about the dish, that after eating and leaning back in your chair, smiling and satiated, makes you happily sigh, “Iba talaga ang pagkaing Pilipino.” (“Filipino food is different indeed.”)
• Or you step into the room, take one whiff, and know IMMEDIATELY what’s cooking, because the smell is just so undeniably Pinoy? And what dish is that, the name of which is enough to make your mouth water? Or maybe there’s food prepared lovingly and waiting in its platter on your dining room table, and one look brings such pleasure (maybe even tears) to your eyes?
• Maybe it’s your region’s specialty, that not only brings the word “Pinoy” home to you, but defines what Ilocano, Ilonggo, Batangueño, etc. is all about.
• If you could translate the word “Filipino” to the language of food, how would you do that and what dish would you choose?

Just like last year when Lasang Pinoy made its debut, our family is busy with traveling for the hubby’s work, and schoolyear planning — so I apologize for the late announcement. But as usual, we are in a place where we’re surrounded by family and good Filipino food day in and day out, often highlighting the fruits of the garden — Filipino gardens grown by family and friends: gardens that feature kalabasa and kamatis and kangkong. For me personally, it’s a transitioning from the old year to the new as well. As we enjoy the remaining days of summer and make our way towards fall, it’s a perfect time to gather in the harvest of the season. And celebrating the first anniversary of LP feels like a harvest celebration too!

Now, there are many ways to join the party! You can do it through pictures, a story, a recipe, a poem, or a combination of any of these.

The guidelines for this month’s theme:

All Filipino food bloggers are highly-encouraged to join the event, be they in the country or abroad. Non-food bloggers of Filipino ancestry are also invited; no matter how many generations they have been out of the country or who have never been to the Philippines but still identify themselves as Filipino (or part Filipino, married or related to Filipinos). Entries from other Filipino food and culture enthusiasts are very much welcome. Non-bloggers may also join as long as their entries are hosted in any blog.

For those who identify themselves as Filipino but believe they do not know what Filipino food is, thoughts on this issue are highly encouraged to be written about. The Filipino is still on a quest to find his/her identity, food included.

Post a link to your entries by 31 August 2006 (your timezone) in the comment section here, or send an e-mail with your permalink and location to lasang.pinoy@gmail.com. If you don’t have a blog and would like to participate, just e-mail us and we’ll be happy to host your entry. I’ll do a roundup shortly after August 31st. This announcement may be completely posted on any blog or forum.

Questions? Comments? Let us know. I look forward to reading and savoring your entries!

To help facilitate the roundup and make for easier searches, it would be great if you can incorporate this little tag into your post:

<a href="http://technorati.com/tag/lasangpinoy" rel="tag">lasangpinoy</a>