Day Off.

Today is just a lazy day. Nothing planned ahead. I guess just gym at the end of the day as usual. The previous week was pretty good. Finding my feet in the kitchen. Before I went off from work yesterday, My Boss shouted... "Who made the lemon tarts today?" my co-chefs answered-- Elaine. He looked at me then congratulated me and said. "Elaine, it was perfect!". :) Hmmmm... That was a nice way to end the week :) The lemon tart, as simple as it is, is a bit tricky to do and one of the items on the dessert menu that gets picked on by the chefs in the resto most of the time. The crust should never be soggy. Nicely browned and crisp. It should not have any traces of custard leaking anywhere or you will end up with burnt scramble eggs on the sides. Of course, the top should be smooth, bubble-free and mind you, no cracks nor puffing on the edges. It should be firm and set all the way through, but not curdling whatsoever. It should have the right sweetness and just the right tang to it. Lemon zest gives it that wonderful citrusy scent. It should be strained off before baking though. Just so you have a smooth melt in your mouth custard filling.

Woke up to a nice cool breeze in the morning. Had my breakfast of sourdough bread with my St. Agur and Australian parmesan coupled with a few slices of fresh peach and roasted nuts. Australian parmesan has a milkier taste than the more popular Italian reggiano. At first taste, I thought, hmmmm.... quite different from the Italian ones, liked the original better. After a few munches of the cheese, it grows on you and soon, I found myself sprinkling it on salad, pastas and just munching slices of the cheese after work. Hmmmm.... think I'm kinda starting to like it.

Took a nice warm shower. A loooooong shower. :) One of the simple activites I enjoy doing during my free time. I got a soap from lush. They call it "snowcake" it says-- "smells like christmas cookies". Hahahaha. That would be cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and a little bit of clove. Its just lightly scented, good thing I didn't smell like a gingerbread man after shower. The bathroom smelled nicely after though. I rubbed on intensive lotion (it is a must here. very low humidity plus the cold harsh wind, it will definitely give me cracked dry skin without it) Then I used Burt's Bees almond milk for my hands.



Have been looking for an intensive hand lotion for my over worked hands. This is quite okey. I like it better than its counterpart from Body Shop which is the Almond Hand and Nail Cream .



Body Shop's is nicely scented though not that intensive. I guess for normal people that would work, but for me, it just doesn't. I also tried using Neutrogena Hand and Nail Cream Norweigean Formula. Its a pretty generic hand cream. Does work, yes, but it feels like putting on petroleum jelly. Very neutral scent as well. Its okey but not something that I would really rave about. Burt's Bees is made from 99% natural almond oil and beeswax. It feels like butter at the start though the skin does quickly absorb it. I love how it smells so that's definitely a plus. I have not used it long enough to be able to rate it fairly, but so far, so good, kinda liking it.

Will be searing the steak and mushrooms in a while for lunch. Then off to shop I guess. We'll see. :)

One of My Favorite Places

If there is one place I can recommend to food lovers as a must-visit here in Melbourne, It would be Victoria Market. I'd give it a big WOW! with two thumbs up!! Fresh, good quality and clean. The selections are endless! You can start off at the seafood section. Atlantic Tasmanian Salmon (bought a few slices of course!), shrimps, crabs, scallops, and of course, Oysters! Coffinbay! Yummm! -All FRESH! (not frozen). Nicely arranged on beds of ice or on glass displays. Then followed by the meat section.Lamb chops, veal, all types and cuts of beef (hmmm think about having porterhouse steak for dinner). Then there's a doorway going towards the deli area. I love it here! You can get pastrami, ham, salami, prociutto, sausages. There are also stalls where they sell olives, some European in origin, and some Greek. I got myself marinated kalamata olives and marinated semi dried tomatoes I love them. having it with the Sourdough Ciabatta that I got from the boulangerie! Artisan bread, needless to say, is one of my favorite things. It wouldn't be complete of course with out Cheese! Different kinds of cheeses from all over the world as well as those locally made fill the stall displays of a number of cheese vendors. So much cheese variety you wouldn't know what to pick! I got myself a St. Agur. Whew, that was a bit over the budget.... eeek but I promise it is a happy potion ;). For pasta and salad I got parmesan cheese, and tried a creamy havarti. (What's nice about the cheese vendors is that you can just get the quantity you want.). Breakfast wouldn't be complete with out butter of course! Fresh creamy butter sold in the market! Got a little. Then off to the Vegetables and Fruits section. I got a bunch of asparagus spears (yes! these are big, like around 9"! nice to have with my salmon) Took some swiss brown mushrooms for the steak a couple of waxy yellow potatoes and aromatics for cooking. Black cherries are in season. A rare fruit back in the tropics. Now I have almost unlimited supply of these! Hahahaha. Nectarines, peaches, apricots, summer berries +++ are all lined up for your picking. Whew its easy to fill up the shopping bag with all that! A must-visit definitely! ;)

A few shots I managed to get. Don't have much though, I was pretty busy hahahaha.








some fruits I got home. Hmmm nice for summer fruit salad with greek yogurt and a little bit of honey.

Just Settled In

Finally! After about a month and a week of waiting, viewing apartments, sending emails to real estate agents and moving from one hotel to another, I have officially settled in my new pad. Nicely situated at the heart of the city, just about 7 minutes walk to the hotel where I work and around 10 minutes stroll to the shopping district. A space just right for me. :)A little area for cooking, a spacious comfy bed where I can stretch my legs and relax, small dining area plus a desk where I can do my stuff and chat with my family and friends back in Manila. There's tv of course (that I hardly open really...) Most of the free time I have last week after working at the hotel are spent shopping for thingamabobs. Exciting it is to get shop around the city getting the best deals for new dinnersets, silverware, sheets, comforters, pots, pans and the works! It could be quite a bit of work to get these things trying to catch the shops before they close down at 6 or 7:30 max and pulling my shopping trolleys from the store all the way to the apartment (that's how its done here. Practical). The weather helps a lot, the sun shines yet the cool breeze blows gently. Humidity level is low so its a comfortable walk around the city most of the time. Summer it is they say, people in the kitchen rave about the nice "warm" weather. i guess I'm just used to the heat in the Philippines, feels a bit cool here. Third week to date on the job. I'm getting used to the pace already.Tomorrow I get back to the pastry kitchen. Can't wait! :)

Cooking and Baking Demo

I just came back to the hotel from literally, a whole day of talking and cooking! That was a pasta cooking demo in the morning followed by a quick lunch then baking demo in the afternoon Whew! This Culinary Festival is one of the tightest I was ever given.

Dabawenyos are a really enjoyable audience to have. Its just knowing how to break the ice and with just the right encouragement and tone, they are a really interactive mix of people. During the on-stage pasta demo, everybody was eagerly asking questions and answering some cooking trivias I shoot to them. They cheer and they show appreciation with zest and enthusiasm.

The baking demo was a bit more formal and structured. I gave them a lot of technical information, pastry being, yes, an art but an exact science as well. The mix of people who joined the baking demo were the more mature, serious types compared to the younger more energetic crowd of the morning audience. I did some samples on how to decorate cakes, desserts and simple breads, then allowed the group to join and try their hands . I think its always nice to have a little hands-on activity in class, it keeps them attentive and interested.




Today was tiring but I must admit, enjoyed itl. The appreciative dabawenyos naturally came up to me, got a few of their souvenir shots and asked for short messages That’s what’s really nice about them, they are a warm, friendly group of people .The best part of the job is, to be able to inspire young aspiring cooks or even passionate home-bakers to just keep on baking!

Dining Like a Local in Davao

After judging the the artisan bread baking competition today, Mayette from URC sales Davao invited me for lunch. She bought me to Lachi’s. A pretty popular restaurant here. Around 3 people suggested that restaurant to me since I came here. They rave that Lachi’s have good desserts and yummy comfort food. I had the Unforgettable roast pork. Really tender and succulent it was.



Then, Mayette casually asked if I would like to try “sawa”. Hmmm… exotic food. Of all animals, I am most afraid of snakes. Just looking at it sends me shivers and goose bumps. I thought though, this one is cooked. Its dead… I have power over it! So I gave it a yes!
Snake is not actually readily available in the city, though it is a pretty common type of meat that they cook at home. Her husband bought the snake from Carmen Davao del Norte. Here you go… Adobong Sawa!





What can I say? Taste like chicken! Hahahahahahaha. Pretty much a hybrid of chicken and tuna meat actually, a boney version of it. No weird smell, no yucky texture. ☺

To end the snake meal off…I went back to the familiar realm and had sans rival – their best seller. I must admit, I am not easily pleased when it comes to desserts, this one though is well done! Crisp airy meringue with a generous sprinkling of cashew nuts and a buttercream layer that’s just right. Something I’d recommend and would actually come back for ;)

From Street Food To Fine Food

Right about 6pm. We rode the MRT going to Jiantian station where the Shi-Lin Night market is located. We were looking for authentic Taiwanese food and this is just the place to find it.



Crowded. Hot. Noisy. The busy market was lined with rows of food stalls. Our first dish was a bowl of boiling hot dumpling in clear soup with chillie sauce and vegetables.




Next, we had oa-tian or oyster cake. It is cooked in these large round griddles. Soft and moist in the center, these cakes were made with eggs, oysters and vegetables.








We also had the stinky tofu! Decades ago, stinky tofu was a staple for soldiers patrolling China's borders. As wars ended and Taiwan's night-market culture developed, so did stronger, spicier and more diverse flavors of stinky tofu. It is now a famous Taiwanese specialty.
Stinky tofu or commonly called tsao tau-hoo is fermented tofu dish which has a very strong odor, is sometimes politely called "fragrant tofu". Its smell has been described as "baby poo," "hellacious" and "sharply foul". My dad had a bite and lost his appetite afterwards. I think its okey, though I would not crave for it. It’s a taste that needs a little bit of acquiring.




We also tried huge Taiwanese sausage which tastes similar to Chinese ham.




After dinner we went to the fruit stand for dessert. Rows of huge mangoes (really HUGE, see photo below) are arranged on wooden crates. Grapes, cherries, dragon fruits are among our choices. We decided get ourselves the giant mangoes so as to compare it to our small but sweet and juicy Philippine mangoes. These huge mangoes are not just pleasing to the eye, but has the nice juicy flesh and sweetness and aroma of this wonderful tropical fruit.







The night was a bit tiring though it was another night of satisfied tummies. Taiwanese street food in general are good. They use fresh and natural ingredients. It is noticeable that they don't use a lot of artificial flavoring which is really good. Food are simple yet are very well cooked. Vegetables are still crisp and meat and seafood are still tender and juicy. In addition to that of course, the food are served really hot, just a few seconds off the fire!

To cap the night off, my sister and I decided to wind down at the hotel, open a bottle of light and fruity red wine from Beaujolais particularly from Appellation Cote de Brouilly Controlée. If I remember correctly, gamay grapes come from this region. Perhaps this is the particular grape variety used for this wine. We paired it with Manchego cheese from Spain (a semi hard cheese coming from sheep’s milk, it has quite a strong and pungent flavor. I really like it), Aged Gouda and St. Agur blue cheese. St Agur is my new favorite so far. I even like it better now than Roquefort which has been my blue cheese of choice for quite some time. St. Agur is a moist, creamy and a mild type of blue cheese that can become an easy favorite even for those that cannot take stronger more pungently flavored ones.








This was it for our adventure today. Tomorrow… Alisan Mountain.

Day 2: Damper Baby Taipei 101

The day started at around 8:00am. The shuttle dropped us off near the Citihall. Most shops were still closed. My sister and I decided to take a quick breakfast at Starbucks. Focaccia with olives and rosemary to share then I had my double shot vanilla latte - short while ma and pa went to Mcdonald's for their first meal.

We went to see the Damper baby at Taipei 101 its like a giant pendulum to counteract the building's movement due to strong winds, earthquakes and other such seismic and atmospheric assaults. 101 stories above ground and 5 stories below. It was indeed a sight to see, just like an emerald and silver jewel in the city of Taipei.
At the 88th floor 349 miles above ground, we had a commanding view of the city and Taipei Basin at all directions. The baby weighs 730 metric tons and is the largest in the world so far. The Observatory is equipped with high-power binoculars, drinks bar, image services, pre-recorded audio tour guides in seven languages, & souvenir shops. The outdoor observatory was unfortunately closed this morning so we went back down to shop for a while. As the clock started to tick. We felt our tummies rumbling a bit. Lunch time. :)

We simply went down to the Grand Market. Rows of food stalls were in the area. Me and my sister decided to share lunch as usual. Before we were even able to decide on the main, we came across a japanese pastry bar where rows of mochi, rice desserts, green tea and black sesame coated sweets arranged all in a row. Thoughts of warm soup and braised pork flew off my mind. But we had to have lunch before we had desserts so we got noodles none the less, it had braised onions and pork in it. and a dish of Taiwanese appetizer made of chile, tofu and salty fish. Looking at the bill, we spent twice the amount for our dessert as compared to our main course! Well, I think its well worth it and I wanted to grab some of those sweets at the instant I saw them. It was quite a struggle to do the shopping though.I wanted to know more about what it is made of or what the fillings were inside so I could choose, but all I got were just smiles, nods and shakes of the head. No English of course. It all looked delicious, we went to pick the ones that well... looked the yummiest! I picked a green tea flavored mochi We also had a japanese style sticky rice ball coated with black sesame seeds, sugar and I'm just guessing... rice flour, ground into a very fine powder. The texture, unlike the local suman is much lighter and not as heavy and gummy. It was wonderful! Other varieties were the mandarin orange flavored rice ball which my sister liked so much. There was also a surprising flavor, the light green colored mochi was flavored with mint and preserved sour plum or much commonly called red kiam-moy. It takes a bit of getting used too. I also liked the chocolate flavored mochi. The texture was indeed very fine, smooth and light. it was dusted with bitter cocoa powder. It tasted like it had a little bit of tea powder as well, quite interesting. After all of the sweets were were finished, I was still having those cocoa -tea powder off my fingers. After lunch was over, we were full, feeling a little sleepy and of course tummy happy. We decided to go back to the hotel to take a short nap. That is to get ready for the next food Trip. Shi-Lin Night Market. Authentic Taiwanese Street food! ;)

Day 1: Taipei Here We Come!

Flight was scheduled at 10am so early on Ma,pa and I went to the Airport to catch the plane bound for Taipei. Atch was on her way too, from Singapore that is. Plane will be landing the same time. Right about 1pm. Flight was smooth, everything was on time. We had a little trouble looking for each other at the airport though, but we finally met! That was past lunch time already. Have not eaten anything yet since breakfast. I was starving to death! Quietly I was just sitting on the bus waiting for the final destination. My sister never fails to bring a surprise. A craving of hers a few days back lead her to get Teuscher chocolates from Switzerland. It is said that these chocolates were shipped to Singapore via air. Not surprising... these were delicate chocolates filled with smooth and creamy ganache centers as well as griotines soaked in kirsh and Grand Marnier filled chocolate truffles . Hungry I was indeed, but the chocolates made me happy. It took quite a while for travel. 4pm already and we did not have proper lunch yet. After Check in we went to the mom and pop food stalls surrounding the hotel. We had pork dumplings with seeweed. It was a bit spicy. We also had noodles with local vegetables and chicken. We were trying the appetizer that was served with my dad's pork chop and we could not really figure out what it was. Gingery, sour and salty with other oriental flavors in it. It has a taste that needs to be acquired I guess. My mom's verdict? Not the food we came all the way here for. Not just yet! Well, satisfied tummies nonetheless, real food trip starts tomorrow.

Inspiration

One rainy thursday night, I was working on some cake drawings for my wedding clients in the months to come. Just sketching on a pattern for a particular cake then sent them off. Was scanning through some floral photos and wedding magazines, usually my source of my design inspiration. Out of sheer nothingness to do, got some colors and a brush. Here's what came out of it :)



pretty nice hobby to start off with. :)

Choices

Life is all about choices. We do it every single day, hour, minute, second. What food to eat, what dress to wear.... some of these choices come but natural, almost like instinct. There are choices however that are life changing.... and for some it may be easy, for others it is not. What if for instance there are two gifts, one as a reward for something you have worked hard for, and the other, a gift of a dream come true. Would it be better to take the practical choice, the logical decision? Or will it bring more happiness to go for life's adventure and self fulfilling experiences? Do we follow the mind, or do we follow the heart?

For Hobby Or For Work

It was 7pm Sunday night. It was a long drive coming home from Tagaytay. Perhaps that's always the case... driving back to the city sends the message that vacation is over. In a few hours its going to be Monday. Start of a work week. The rest of the group went home already. My close friend Marj and I decided to extend the day and have dinner at UCC. We talked about a lot of things. The usual stuff girls talk about over dinner. There's just one question she asked me that kinda got me to start thinking. "What have you done for yourself that does not involve work lately?" Well the previous months admittedly, has been quite heavy. I thought about her question for a while and could not really answer straight up. Ummm... gym?... bake?...cookbooks?. The answers I suggested were shook off followed by a "See what I mean? - Get a massage!"

I guess that happens to having a hobby turn out as a career. The line dividing between the two becomes gray. It works for me most of the time. Most of what i spend on are for my profession, wether it be books, gadgets, ingredients, travels.... Its like hitting two birds with one stone. Yesterday was a bit of an example. I had recipes to be tested and also felt like I just wanted to be comfortable in the kitchen.. just bake for fun. So I did. I started early. Ended a bit late at night. Made 2 types of the rustic artisan breads, the ones I bake when I just want to relax, feel better after a hard week or simply just want to feel happy and accomplished - had them for breakfast this morning... I'm pleased with it. Bake two types of cakes also and tested a millefeuille recipe - these are for work.

I guess she has a point though... sometimes, we need to see and experience the other things that the world has to offer. To appreciate life to the fullest i guess. I'm sure that there's so much more out there that could be experienced and learned alongside this love of mine. :) Hmmmm... capoeira? dance classes? drawing clasess? photography... I'll get to one of those soon! ;)

Bread Class

This entry was supposed to be posted last friday night. Typed it up in the gym while waiting for the jam class. When I got home, really got excited with the weekend Tagaytay trip and totally forgot about it. eeeeek....

BREAD CLASS

My students made really beautiful breads today. Just their second day in bread baking class and I may say. The pizzas were great and the focaccia… Yummy! Crusty and airy. Just the way I like it. The loaves were good as well Both oatmeal and raisin bread had soft crumbs. We went a bit overtime but it was well worth it. I can see the excitement and fulfillment in their eyes despite the physical exhaustion. I asked them to knead their breads by hand this time. No mixers today. Its best that they experience bread baking to the fullest. Feeling it, touching and simply experiencing the magic of doing it the old fashioned way.

One student of mine even said that he never thought he would love bread baking. He thought he would just hate it. But after class today, just got hooked. Planning to get himself an oven and just bake away. Others would also tell me how their first try of focaccias and pizzas went. Hard as stone! Well… everybody goes through that stage in bread baking. Then comes learning and everything just works out like magic.

The Way to a Woman's Heart...

Finally I'm back.... It has been quite a while since I have written something here. Indeed four months flew by so quickly. It has been a hectic past few months. Work comes in one after the other, the usual stuff of course. I want a vacation.... Hmmmm... No, I think I NEED a vacation!!!! Hahahahahaha During these times in the kitchen, every cook (or perhaps cooking or baking professionals) will agree that the person inside the kitchen hardly thinks about what she will have for lunch or dinner, usually, too focused with the work at hand. Well for most of the time when I am in the kitchen, I am in that situation. I guess I am just lucky that during these moments, someone would actually whip up something in his kitchen and bring me warm baked pasta for dinner. :) Lasagna, baked mac and carbonara on the menu. Those are his specialty.... pasta, pasta, pasta. At times, it is paired with Buko pandan salad for dessert. :) As much as there's a sense of fulfillment and pride in cooking for someone special. There is also much gratitude and appreciation in receiving simple home cooked meals. A good way indeed of showing how much one is cared for. Home Cooking warms the heart, soothes the soul, tickles the tongue and of course, fills the tummy. ;) So they say... "The best way to a mans heart is through his stomach," I say same goes to a woman's.