Review on a Purchased Deal : Focaccia Italian Restaurant

50% OFF! Enjoy Pizza, Pasta, and More Mouthwatering Italian Food from Focaccia Restaurant. Only P250 for a Food and Drinks Voucher. (P500 Value)

Comments :

I'm so happy that I discovered this pizza house. It's my top pizza store outlet at the moments. Their pazzo rollios are mouth watering.


And they have a hefty serving of their argula and alfalfa sprouts. It's a sooo worth it purchase!

You can follow this link for another post I made about Focaccia.


Rating (5 being the highest) : 5++++


Focaccia Italian Restaurant

A. Venue Mall Branch
Ground Level, A. Venue Mall
7829 Makati Ave. corner Valdez St., Antel Lifestyle City
Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines
Phone Number: (63 920) 921-8891, (63 2) 729-9403

The Fort Strip Branch
Katipunan Circle cor. 7th Ave., Bonifacio Global City
Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines
Phone Number: (63 2) 475-3724

*Images taken from the Serial Tripper

Review on a Purchased Deal : Shokuji Restaurant

Only P250 to Enjoy Succulent Sashimi, Crunchy Maki & More Healthy Japanese Treats at Shokuji Restaurant! (Original Price: P500)

Comments :
Me and my sweetie were supposed to spend this deal on our 5th wedding anniversary. But since, we didn't have the luxury of time to visit Shokuji's branch in Makati on that day, we decided to visit this place after a working day.

This is one deal that was really a sure value for our money. The service was great. Crews were nice and attentive to our requests. I so much enjoyed eating their Shitake Beef Rolls. Just hearing the name makes me want to come back and order it again. I still can't get over the taste. The sweetness of the sauce was just right, the mushroom was juicy and the beef was cooked perfectly. I love how the taste come all together in my mouth.Yum!Yum! I also enjoyed their Gyoza! It was soooo tasty. Since this is one hidden resto at the heart of Makati, you won't really find this place crowded even if the area is not that big. They also have a small area where you can have a small gathering for i guess 20 or 25 pax?


Rating (5 being the highest) : 5 ++++

Shokuji Bar & Restaurant
G/F LPL Center San Agustin cor. Sedeno St., Salcedo Village, Makati City
Tel. (632) 812 9235

Cj @ 3rd birthday celebratio at Dad's and Kamayan's

We had a simple celebration of Cj's 3rd birthday at Dad's and Kamayan's at SM Megamall Sunday last week. It was only exclusively for my family and my hubby's family. Some got their foods from Dad's merienda buffet (already priced at P190 per head) and for some who still opted to eat rice, they chose Kamayan's lunch buffet (priced at P360 per head).

Both buffet treat were satisfying. I cannot recall the selection available for Kamayan's lunch buffet, but for the merienda buffet (where I also got my meal), there were:

1. Dimsum (Siopao, Mami, Siomai)
2. Chocolate cake
3. Kakanin
4. Spaghetti
5. Carbonarra
6. Cream Puffs
7. Puto and Dinuguan
8. Pancit Bihon
9. Pancit Palabok
10. Ginataan


After the food trip, hubby's family went ahead while we still stayed at the mall and headed of to Kidz Republic! My two girls enjoyed this playground better that Dave's fun house. They were both very energetic at this point and were so much full of excitement as they went up and down the slide and the trampoline, round and round the hanging rubber trees, running around the hanging bridge etc. They can still recall what they did and where they went. And every time they remember that playground, they would always tell me, 'mommy let's go to the jungle playground!'. lol.

How I wish we could go back this weekend but we are so preoccupied with three events. Hopefully we'll be back there again next weekend. I'll be bringing the camera for sure!

What's cookin for Christmas Eve=)

Lavishing Christmas decors are now seen on the main roads and malls of Metro Manila. With Christmas songs playing here and there, you could really feel that the most awaited time of the year is just around the corner!=)

This year's Christmas is extra special for our family. With my two naughty girls, who are now fully aware of what is happening around them, and my new 6-month old niece, whom I haven't seen in person since she was born, I am pretty sure that this will be one of the merriest day of our year.

So with that being said, allow me to share to you our initial menu for our Christmas Eve's family dinner party.
Those listed below have been edited to include hubby's suggestions.


Image credits : imagesaver1206 of photobucket


Appetizer
1. Bruschetta
- This is toasted baguette with cream cheese, diced shallots, chopped tomatoes, pepper, basil, and grated quick melt cheese.

2. Swiss fondue, Nachos, Sauteed Spiced Beef, and yummy Chipotle Salsa. I sooo love the how the jalapeno chillies spice up and give a rich taste to this salsa!

My two girls embracing and asking Santa for their gifts! lol

Entree
1. Roasted Chicken

- I'm using chicken because it's 80% cheaper than turkey. . I'm borrowing Ina Gartner's Recipe for this one. Recipe can be found here.

1. Cream of Dori Fillet with Butter and Lemon Sauce
- I'm borrowing Market Manila man's shared recipe for this.

2.Chicken Potato Salad
- I'm using elbow macaroni, mayo, potatoes, chicken, onions, celery, cheese, salt, and pepper to taste. I'm sure my girls and niece will enjoy eating this one!

3. Christmas Ham with fresh sliced tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese


Dessert
1. Mango Cherry Choco Cream Parfait
- I'm using sliced fresh ripe mangoes, canned cherries, rice crispies, pecan, roasted slivered almonds, crushed graham, heavy whipped cream, and choco whipped cream, . How I really wish the mangos were strawberries..but sad to know that until this month strawberries are still out of season and it is primarily due to the destructive Pepeng typhoon that drowned and wiped all the ripe strawberries in La Trinidad, Benguet (where fresh and affordable strawberries are harvested)

2. Gingerbread cookies
- I'll be baking these yummy yuletide season cookies, cutting them into different shapes, and decorating each using red, green, white, and yellow royal icing & nonpareils, and adding some edible silver and gold beads. I can't wait to decorate these cookies together with my two daughters!

CJ looking exhausted from their hour pictorial at BUB. Will share our Christmas themed family picture next week!

3. Almond Choco Chip Biscotti
- I can never forget the taste of the Almond Choco Chip Biscotti from Deli France. It had a mild crunch and was amazingly flavorful! So happy I came across the smittenkitchen yesterday because she has posted an almond biscotti recipe on her blog. I'm trying out the recipe but i'll be adding bittersweet chocolate chips for more flavorful look and taste. Wish me luck! Planning to bake lots of these so I could share it with our relatives as Christmas present =)


I can't wait to start my cooking!=) Advance happy holidays!

My Vanilla Choco Chip Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream Icing!

I wanted to try my new cupcake liners and the other baking equipments I got from Wilton's and Ateco last Saturday so I decided to bake these yummy cupcakes for my girls.


For the lavender white chocolate icing, I simply mixed my sky blue and burgundy wine gel food coloring from Chef Master. So glad I got the color I wanted because this lavender and pink (using a touch of burgundy wine) one will be Missy's cupcake icing colors for her coming birthday celebration on Aug 9.

I used ChefMaster's leaf green color and one of Ateco's leaf icing tip for the leaves i decorated on top of the cake. Also, I added edible silver beads to enhance the look. It really looks like a nice wedding cupcake..=)

Here's another close up shot of my cupcakes resting on top of my new cake turntable from Wilton's.

Delifrance Cafe's Christmas Promo

Just want to share this Delifrance Cafe promo link that was sent to me by my hubby awhile back.

We grabbed our treat at Delifrance Cafe Valero branch an hour ago. Be sure to get yourself this treat too because the Chocolate Chip Almond Biscotti is extremely delicious! By the way, they also offer a free hot chocolate if you dine in.

Their promo is valid until Dec 7 and only in this participating cafe branches:
Makati : AIM, Ayala Tower One, Insular Life Building, RCBC Plaza, SM Makati, Valero, Zeta Building
Manila : Robinson's Place, UN Avenue
Multinlupa : Corde de las palmas, Festival Supermall
Pasay : SM Mall of Asia
The Podium : The Podium
Quezon City : C5 Libis, Philippine Heart Center, St. Luke's
San Juan : Greenhills Theater Mall, Roosevelt

Basic Kitchen Equipments to start Baking Cakes and Cookies!

Baking cakes and cookies for my family is a hobby I loved and enjoyed doing since I was in my third grade. I can still recall those days when I used to sell chocolate and banana cup cakes for Php3.50 each. I would always bring 20 pieces each day and everything would literally sell in an instant even before our break time starts. What’s great is that I get to keep all the money I get from my sales even though my mom purchases all the ingredients for me! haha..

I really need to buy some kitchen equipments for baking these goodies soon though since both my girls already appreciate eating solids. Below is what I have on my list of items to buy. If you’re a mom or someone who’d love to bake cake or cookies for your family, check out these basic baking equipments that you need to have to start:

For baking cakes:

1. Oven
2. Mixer
3. baking pan
4. measuring cups
5. measuring spoons
6. bowls in different sizes
   

And don’t miss out on these items if you want to bake cookies too:

7. rolling pin
8. cookie cutter

If you plan to buy these items online, you may want to explore them at shopwiki. Aside from giving you a wide range of brands to choose from, it also let's you pick the best item since this revolutionary shopping search engine checks the item you want to get from all the online stores you can possibly think of. Plus, you're ensured of choosing the best product from the best online store because aside from showing the price and the online store where the item is being sold, customer review and rating can also be seen.

Go check it out right now and register if you want to get an Ipod Nano for free!=)

Learning the Art of Cooking

I have always loved cooking since I was a kid. I actually started baking cakes and other pastries ever since my 3rd grade. I would say it was influenced by my mom's colleagues who were mostly Americans. And since my family loves the foods I prepare, would you imagine that I have even thought of enrolling in a chef school!?

There are a lot of culinary schools out in the market right now. You can easily find the perfect culinary school for you on the web through the help of culinary school finders like Culinary-School-Finder.com.

This site helps you choose the best culinary school without difficulty because the schools are arranged either by theme or by city. It even features culinary articles that discusses topics such as Typical Courses and Foods Prepared in Culinary Schools, Salaries of the Culinary Industry, A True Day in the Life of an American Culinary Student and a lot more!

My Bet for the Great American Seafood Cook-Off

The Great American Seafood Cook Off which is annually presented by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board has once again started to cast out votes for the best seafood recipe in US. This prestigious seafood cook off event has been going on for 5 years and is aimed to bring together the best chefs in US and to showcase their creative and unique domestic seafood recipes.

Among the five recipes to choose from, my best pick would be Maryland’s best bet: Chef Tarfi Campbell's Pan Rasted Glazed Rockfish with Peas and Carrots. If you check out the image of this recipe, you can see right away that the presentation of the food already looks so enticing. I so love the taste of crab and shrimp sautéd in salt, red pepper, and butter because it really brings out the flavor of the crab and shrimp. I believe this also adds more flavor to the rockfish. I love the combination of peas and carrots. The pea puree surely looks extremely tasteful too!

And since it used domestic seafood, you are definitely assured of its quality and freshness. Cooking this recipe will be easy on any mom’s budget too since domestic seafood normally are cheaper. This definitely is my best bet and I will surely try this one out for my family.

So if you love cooking, seafood recipes, and good food go check out the top chefs’ recipes at www.GreatAmericanSeafoodCookOff.com, cast your vote for your favorite recipe and have a chance to win a trip to New Orleans!

My New Breakfast Recipi

I got interested in one of the recipi shared by a chef on Ka Toque (QTv 11) last week. And finally, this morning I made that same recipi I learned for my family. I gave it a different version though. Instead of adding ham alone, i added tuna with a bit of onions and dried basil leaves.

My Crunchy Cheesy Tuna Delight


To share, here's the recipi for my Crunchy Cheesy Tuna Delight

1. 1/2 of white onion - minced

2. pinch of basil leaves - you may use the one from McCormick




3. 1/2 box of cheese - sliced
4. 6 pieces of white or wheat bread - I used Gardenia



5. 1/2 butter
6. 1 cup of cooked tuna
7. 1 can of evaporated or fresh milk - I used Carnation Evaporated milk



8. 1 pack of bread crumbs **please do not use chicken breading here

How to prepare:
1. Mix the tuna and minced onion
2. Using the white/wheat bread, spread your tuna mixture on one side of the bread. Then, sprinkle the tuna mixture with basil leaves. Cover it with another bread. Add the sliced cheese and close the sandwich with another bread.
3. Soak the tuna and cheese sandwich in the milk.
4. Cover the soaked tuna and cheese sandwich in bread crumbs. Set aside.
5. Heat the frying pan and melt the butter. When the butter is melted and hot, put in your tuna and cheese sandwich and cook it in low-medium fire.
6. Slice the Crunch Cheesy Tuna Delight into four. Cool and serve.

**Makes 12 servings