I Scream Ice Cream series (mint & real strawberries.)

Yesterday's trip to grocery and Asian market was a schock. We exceeded our very practical budget and we didn't even fill up the cart! Hubby and I stared at each other when the cashier has finished punching all the stuff we bought. I made sure to take most stuff that were on sale. We were even able to grab 5 big cans of Delmonte Spaghetti (four cheese and garlic/onions) at 50 cents each. We just assumed that most of the food commodities prices have increased, blame it on the escalating gas prices. When we were at the Asian Market, we had to forego our fish and beef because the prices were skyrocketing!!! We are settling on veggies, pork and chicken for these 2 weeks.

Instead of having 5 half gallons of Edy's, we only got 2! And here's our flavors for the next 2 weeks: Mint Chocolate Chips and Real Strawberries.

I Scream Ice Cream series (no updates.)

I realized this ENTRY was never followed through. I stopped with Edy's cookie dough haha! I still have them in my fridge, though and is making me terribly sick because everytime I look at my bulging tummy, I blame Edy's!

Anyways, this is not about my flavor of the month but something I want to buy for my ice cream delight!

Cuisipro® Ice Cream Scoop & Stack

Make delightfully amusing treats with our playful Cuisipro® Ice Cream Scoop & Stack. The scoop & stack creates cylindrical blocks of ice cream that can be decorated or stacked for a colorful and creative presentation. The ergonomic scooper cuts through the hardest ice cream with a simple twist-and-lift action. Push button release. Each scoop holds 3.75 oz ice cream. Dishwasher safe on top rack. Choose from three colors.
9.8 oz.
Plastic,Stainless Steel

So what do you think of your ice cream, in scoop or in stack?

new new new!

I said I'll stop at my 5th, but no! Blogging is truly addictive and therapeutic for my homesick moments. No one can stop me, so I made my 6th! (which has more updates now). I hope to see you all there, sharing with me your cooking and baking tips or probably even your secret recipes and kitchen gadget wishes. Welcome to my kitchen in the blogosphere! See you all there.

I Scream ICE CREAM #1

I was never a big fan of ice cream until I got here. Oh no! I have been eating gallons and gallons every single week. Ice creams here are so cheap and have varied unique flavors. I usually pair them with Cheetos! Sobrang pig-out for me. I will try to post every ice cream discovery I encounter here.

Lately, I am into Edy's Ice Cream and their Edy's® Slow Churned® ice cream. They have the best tasting flavors! I just can't get enough of it, I blindly ignore my increasing flabs in my thighs and tummy as I get so high in every scoop of Edy's! Fortunately, this Slow Churned collection has 1/2 fat and 1/3 fewer calories as compared with the regular but the taste is just the same. My flavor of the week is Cookie Dough! I tell I can finish eating half a gallon in one seating as I can't stop looking for the dough in every scoop and the chocolatey chips are just too enticing to stop. Hay naku! Temptations temptations!

hapag kainan

I keep forgetting to blog this other side of me, not the cook or the baker wannabe but the hungry big-mouth eater in me. I have been craving for my mom's specialties and of course, all the other pinoy foods that are so easy to get and very very cheap to make. I tried doing my own version, that's the least I could do now huhuhu! Still waiting for my mom to visit us.

1.) TORTANG TALONG. I miss my yaya's tortang talong. Yaya Chona knows that I could eat more than 10 tortang talong in one sitting if she's the one who whipped it. What she does, is she grills the talong 1st before doing the torta. I couldn't grill as often as I want here, so what I do, I just boil it and then peel off the skin, then do the torta. Malayo pa rin sa gawa ni Yaya pero pwede na!

2.)ADOBO ALA TITA PILITS. I have been craving for this very cheap adobo that my officemate, tita pilits aka effie brings in our pantry every lunchtime. My goodness mamatay ka sa sarap ng taba and oil! Super sarap! We could finish more than 2 bowls of rice with all the oiliness in it. I made my own version last weekend. The pictures do not look appetizing but I swear pwede na rin! I just wonder why pork meat here are not so mataba hmmm.

3.)TILAPIA. It's so expensive to buy fresh tilapia here. The closest and cheapest we could get are tilapia fillets packed in a bag cost around $5.00. Okay na! I marinade this with onion mushroom soup, chopped ginger and garlic salt, then baked it. Hmmm! Pwedeng pwede na! Di na naman appetizing ang picture hhaha! Kaya nga may mga food stylists eh haha!

4.) Again, I miss Yaya Chona. Back home, she always makes sure that my son has a merienda waiting for him everytime he wakes up from naptime. Now, I have to think all of that on my own. I did this yummy pretzels with my son last week. Read the rest of the story HERE.

surely doo.

I know now where to spend my paidblogging earnings. Mommy will be very proud of me! I think I'll start collecting them like she used to. While looking for gift for hubby's 31st birthday on Monday, this is what I saw for myself! I am more excited to have my very 1st Kitchen aid in purple over those luxury bags... trulylee! I called up hubby and we immediately set our online shopping date tonight. Yahoo!

rosemary

...and about the my new cooking discovery and baked chicken/fish/pork recipe which I blogged HERE, this is an additional ingredient to make those baked dishes more gourmet tasting, add a sprinkle of herbs like rosemary or basil whatever your tastebuds desire =) I guarantee you sasarap pa sya!

another cooking discovery

I have talked about how Hoisin Sauce can make your mixed veggies a hit in this entry. Now, I have another cooking discovery which was an accident discovery that would make your adobo or baked fish/chicken/pork very very easy and really sumptous. Tada! The SWEET SOY SAUCE! It's not your ordinary soy sauce nor your premium soy sauce, it's a SWEET soy sauce! A bit pricey than the other popular kinds of soy sauce but guaranteed every meal whipped with this a hit in your dining table.

I was about to cook adobo for our Washington, D.C. sidetrip baon (request kasi ng marami) then I found out, we no longer have one in our pantry. It was too late to grab one at Walmart so I just used the available LEE KUM KEE sweet soy sauce that I saw in our fridge. It instantly gave my adobo a different taste twist. I thought of baking fish. So what I did was melt 1/4 cup of butter then mix it with 1/2 cup of sweet soy sauce, a bit of pepper and salt, and squeezed a whole lemon on it. Then occassionally brush it on the fish filled with onions, garlic and ginger. Instant voila! It was a hit. For some people who found it matabang, ask for more sweet soy sauce and dip their fish on it. Ang sarap talaga! Kahit ako naparami ang kain. The following weekend, I baked a whole chicken and used the same ingredients I used on the fish. Baking the whole chicken for an hour then broiling it 10 minutes each side. Sarap to the bones sabi ni hubby! You better grab one now and this sweet soy sauce is really a must in your pantry!

Disclaimer: I haven't tried this ABCbrand, I just can't find a photo of LEE KUM KEE sweet soy sauce, that, I guarantee you the best sweet soy sauce, better than kikkoman!

hoisin sauce

I've discovered that Hoisin Sauce is better than oyster sauce when cooking mixed veggies with pork, shrimps or chicken. Yes you heard me right, better than oyster sauce. Eversince I invented this recipe, my mixed veggies dish has been a hit. Try it!

As defined by Wikipedia, Hoisin sauce, or Haixian Sauce, (hǎixiānjiàng) also called suckling pig sauce, is a Chinese dipping sauce. The word Hoisin is a romanization of the Chinese word "海鮮" as pronounced in Cantonese. Despite the literal meaning of "seafood," Hoisin sauce does not actually contain fish. It is similar to the sweet noodle sauce made from fermented soybeans, but has the added ingredients of garlic, vinegar, and chilli peppers. Additionally, it tastes less pungent than sweet noodle sauce. Mandarin-style Hoisin sauce ingredients include water, sugar, soybeans, white distilled vinegar, rice, salt, wheat flour, garlic, and red chili peppers, and several preservatives and coloring agents. Traditionally, Hoisin sauce is made using sweet potato.

chow before i say ciao Manila!

My mom said i'm cramming--cramming to be a knowledgeable cook and baker like her haha. Maybe she's right!

Titan requested for only 2 things to do/bring when I leave for US: 1)Ethan, of course and 2)learn how to cook my mom's tom yum series and seafood paella! You see, my husband is the biggest fan of my mom when it comes to her palatable dishes and pastries. When he used to have provincial assignments,  he would call in advance if he'd be coming over the weekend. Naku busing busy na si mommy in preparing my husband's favorites from the main dish down to titan's favorite dessert, brazo de mercedes, all home-made! Alagang alaga talaga! Maybe he married me thinking that I can cook and bake as good as her LOL. I know how to cook and I'm a seasonal pastry chef, but when it comes to household chores, cooking only comes next to cleaning as my favorite household activity.

I grew up making delivery receipts on wedding/birthday cakes, pastries, catering orders etc... Sabi nga ng mommy ko ka-age ko ang baking/food business niya. Let me refresh your memory, she made our wedding cake, from the fondant down to the gumpaste flowers.

here's a glimpse of our 2003 wedding cake

As much as I love food, I can't be the best cook and baker because I have a very big appetite for almost anything that is edible, in short matakaw! Everything seems to be masarap lalo na pag nagkecrave ako hahah! A good cook and baker should have a very distinguishing tastebuds! Since the day I quit my day job, I've been into baking and cooking. I have tried out mom's recipes to the point that I baked, put icing on and decorated Ethan's 2nd birthday cake.
pwede na ba?
Last week, I was surprised to see a hardbound notebook filled with my mom's recipes she manually written with a love note: To my daughter love, mommy.  Yun pala ang pinagkakaabalahan niya all these time, she kept it all along to me.  Aww natouched talaga ako! I'm beginning to miss her.

So whenever I don't have shoots or weddings, you can see me in our kitchen attending my one-on-one refresher's lessons with my mom.  Whipping some cheesecake, muffins, crepes and puffs or trying out my mom's exotic dishes.

Last sunday, I was craving for cheese cupcakes!  Buti na lang may ingredients sa bahay, so in 30 minutes, voila! Here are some of the 36 cheese cupcakes I baked fresh from our oven, waiting for my brother and Ethan to munch!  I gave some to my cutee twins neighbors (2 pairs of identical girls twins, magkakapatid ang apat!), they love it! I'm selling it now for P8 each =P. 
Then I saw some prawns in our fridge and so I cooked tom yum goong(king prawn soup with chilli and lime) for sunday lunch. I swear it was a big hit but the picture shows otherwise hahah!


Next project tom kha gai (chicken and coconut soup) and sotanghon salad the thai way. =) For desserts, revel bars. Mia, I promise to give you the whole pan! haha. ciao! 

(message me if you want the recipes)