MANILA, Philippines—“Fr. Dennis, they are so pretty!” These were the first words I uttered when I saw his icons.

“Do you have anything for my favorite part of the house, the kitchen?”

Fr. D said, “Any! The kitchen is a place for thanksgiving. It is where we acknowledge the gifts of the Lord’s bounty. It is where our bodies and minds are nourished, where we come together with our loved ones to partake of a meal. Heaven is the gathering, the coming together, to share in the banquet of the Lord.

“In biblical times, the first harvest, the first fruits of the land were offered to God.”

This made me decide to bring home a kitchen cabinet shrine and surround it with pumpkins, gourds, vegetables and flowers as offering of thanks.

Each work of art from Fr. D’s workshop is packed, wrapped and ready-to-give.

Proceeds of the sale go to the education of the icon makers themselves and the poor migrant youth of Don Bosco.

The icons will be sold Friday until Oct. 18 at the Rockwell Tent. Supply is limited. For info, call 0917-5270928.

Speaking of gourds and pumpkins for Halloween and Thanksgiving, get them at Waling Farms. (Call 0917-5262365 or 9299306)

Christmas is a time of giving. Whether big gifts or small, it is the thought that counts.

If we’re able to give something beautiful and hand-painted, so much the better.

Art of Gold makes napkins, trays, hand towels, place mats, table cloths and trash cans.

The owner and my long-time friend Raffy Caballero gifted me with a Purefoods Corned Beef apron with my face on it. What a kick!

The quantity, Caballero says, doesn’t matter. “If you have a design, we’ll do it for you in three days. If we have to design it for you, that will take just a bit longer, but we sure can do it.”

Considering that each piece is done by hand, P50 for cocktail napkins, hand towels at P150, wooden serving trays at P495 are quite reasonable.

Their products are worth it. (Call 0920-9622890).

‘Did you know’ by Dr. Ricardo Soler

Kalderetang kambing, a spicy stew made with goat meat, is a dish especially favored in Northern and Central Luzon but is not as much relished in other regions where people are put off by it and are not too keen on goat meat since the meat doesn’t have the most pleasant of smells. To avid goat lovers, however, it tastes much like lamb. Those who don’t like it merely say it tastes like goat (lasang kambing).

Few Filipino food pundits consider it as an original Filipino meal. I could not find much information on the origin of kalderetang kambing or its counterparts from other regions. It certainly is not related to the goat dishes of India.

But I do remember conversations with the erudite gourmet and film producer, the late Rafael Anton, who at that time was a consultant to Lopez companies, including Meralco. Anton believed that kalderetang kambing was definitely of Spanish origin, probably brought to the country from Mexico.

He said it was derived from caldereta de cabrito, which most presumably originated from the Spanish province of Extremadura, where the wild goats continue to exist freely in hilly districts.

He suggested that the conquistador, Hernán de Cortez, who was from Extremadura and who caused the fall of Mexico’s Aztec empire in the hands of the Spaniards early in the 16th century, most probably brought the dish to Mexico where goats roamed the land freely and plentifully. From Mexico, caldereta de cabrito reached Manila at some point during the galleon trade, which ran from 1565 to 1815.

This is plausible enough to me. It could debunk the notion that kalderetang kambing is an original Filipino creation. In truth, it is just one of the many Spanish dishes introduced during the colonial period and which we developed in new forms and fusion that now rightfully make them ethnic dishes of the Philippines.

It is good to recall the words of the famed Spanish novelist, essayist and critic, the Countess de Pardo Bazán, “Each epoch of history modifies the stove as each country eats according to its soul—often before its stomach.”

Dr. Soler cooks. Order Paella and Costillas Adan (Orange-flavored Ribs). Call 0927-3817613 / 6312805.

My New Holiday Cooking Class Schedules and the Holiday Gourmet Cocinera Series for household cooks and beginners are out. Call 9289296 / 9273008/ 6474744 / 0908-2372346.

E-mail the author at raspiras@inquirer.com.ph.