Just had breakfast. And I enjoyed it. Nothing fancy, just kesong puti (white cheese) and sunny-side up egg, the yolk of which broke. I usually make perfect sunny-side ups, but today... It doesn't matter. I still savored it. The rice was a bit drier than usual, but somehow, it went perfectly with the egg and cheese.
The cheese, imported from Sta. Cruz, Laguna (courtesy of Gil's Kesong Puti), is something I haven't had for almost two years. Yeah, it's the pandemic. But it tastes the same. And it's something you miss, and crave for.
Oh, it's made from carabao's milk, fresh everyday. It's not available all hours of the day. Two o'clock, the salesman will tell you. If business is slow, you can probably have what's leftover the next morning. But it usually doesn't last that long. So what we used to do is upon arriving in the morning, we drive to Gil's and place our order. Just in case it goes quickly, and it can, we've reserved ours for pick-up right before we head home.
So for the last two mornings, I've been having my fill of kesong puti and fried egg. And I don't mind doing it on repeat. Besides, keeping the cheese longer means losing out on its freshness. So the faster it's consumed, the better. And we'll simply have to wait for the next trip to get more.
Why am I so hung up on kesong puti? Because it's Dad's birthday today. And he loved it, and introduced us to this product that his hometown is known for. In marketing parlance, it's the OTOP - One Town One Product - that the town showcases during trade fairs.
Yes, there are other kinds of kesong puti elsewhere in the country's many, many provinces, and it's all different. Besides, it's not their OTOP as far as I can recall. And I don't enjoy it as much as Gil's.
Come to think of it, if it's not made by Gil's, I really don't enjoy it all. When we were much younger, our go-to kesong puti maker was a lady, Maurita, and she supplied us with the cheese. It was always like treasure hunting to find her "store" because while it was along the highway, it was so nondescript and so easy to miss.
Truth is, there is no actual store. For any of the cheese makers. They're all home-based. There are small stalls along the street, advertising the keso, and if you stopped by when someone was manning it (usually from 2 - 4 PM), you place your order then wait and pay.
I think Maurita was among Dad's many relatives, so many times removed. But as she aged, and eventually passed on, we had to look for another supplier. And someone recommended Gil's. In fairness, they produced something similar in taste to Maurita's. So, there!
It's very soft cheese, and will go good with either rice or our favorite pan de sal. If you're on the go, just slice and stick it in between the opened bread and get your fill. But it's so much better sitting down at the breakfast table savoring it early in the day with whatever carbs you choose to go with it.
And Dad preferred it with rice and sunny-side up. He had this habit - which required perfectly cooked sunny-side up - where he would neatly cut up the egg with the yellow yolk flowing like lava, then mix it with steaming hot rice until all the rice is coated in light yellow, thin strips of white visible. Then he would scoop up cheese and enjoy.
So simple, right? But he loved it. I could tell just by watching him eat. And he cleans up his plate in no time, maybe sipping coffee after, to wash down the meal. I especially enjoyed those moments when we were at the farm, with its idyllic environment.
Pan de sal, freshly made, is another food memory. Or the monay - another kind of bread that is a bit sweet and slightly firmer than pan de sal, which are tiny rolls, topped with slightly salted, finely ground bread crumbs. They're soft and fluffy, and perfect for dunking in hot coffee.
It is most everyone's favorite in the province. You had the pan de sal peddlers tooting their horn as they biked around selling hot bread that gets sold out before 7 AM.
It used to be very cheap, but with prices of flour and gas and other ingredients rising, it had to go up, too. I can get a decent pan de sal here in the city for 4 pesos (USD 0.08 ) a piece. Two to three would fill you up.
Now back to breakfast... dunking pan de sal, yes. So, you've a cup of coffee in front of you and a couple of pan de sal. You tear off a piece of the bread then dunk it once or twice in your cup and straight to your mouth. I liked eating it with a little butter slathered before dunking and the taste was delicious!
Of course my father did that, too. And would be content after two or three pieces, with kesong puti on the side.
Alas, as I got older I realized coffee didn't sit well with me. Whatever kind. It would make my stomach roil a little. So I stopped. If I'm in the mood for some pan de sal dunking, I do it with hot choco or some chocolate drink. And that satisfies my craving enough.
Life is really simple... We just over-complicate things. We want more when we don't really need much to be happy. It's true when you strip down your life to the basics, you find it easier to survive and be content. And enjoy life's pleasures.
Will you look at that... remembering Dad, and kesong puti and pan de sal somehow brought me joy today. I am blessed!
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