Dec 20, 2011

Baking 101: Dulce de Leche Cupcakes

My hibernation from the blogsphere stopped when Christmas songs are constantly playing everywhere. I realized that I have not posted anything since August.  My workload is preventing me from posting and cooking! Haha! Seriously, It was simply "no time to cook and experiment". Though there were days that I cooked, but was to tired to write about it. 

Since it's almost Christmas, I forced myself to cook...er bake. Every year, I am giving my office friends my homebaked goodies. This time, I whipped a new found recipe, which i am loving to the max, Dulce de Leche cupcakes. 

I can say that this cupcake is very close to us Pinoys. When you taste this, you'll be reminded of our favorite pinoy candy...the infamous yema.

To make this cupcake, you have to make Dulce de Leche by simmering a can of condensed milk over low fire for 2 hours. But I found out that when you simmer a can of milk, there's a tendency for it to explode. So, what I did is cooked it the yema way - opened the can, poured in a pan and simmer while continuously whisking it to prevent the bottom from burning. The problem was, I overcooked the poor milk and still did not achieve the dark golden color of Dulce. The milk became close to solid hehehe. So to make it thin and pourable again, I placed them under low fire and added water and continuously mixed them until the hardened milk melted, then the dark golden color was also achieved.

The dulce de leche was added to the buttercream and made the tast of the cing milky-caramel-y. Wondering if it's too sweet? All I can say is that it complemented well with the cake (the cake itself is not too sweet).

The cake? I don't know how to describe it, but it's dense ala pound cake, but soft. You know what I mean? And I really enjoyed eating the cuppies.  

   

Dulce de Leche Cupcakes
makes about 27 regular sized cupcakes

Cupcakes
3 cups All purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 tsps baking powder
1 1/2 tsps baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup softened unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cup buttermilk (I used the regular pour and drink milk)

For the Frosting
1/2 cup unsalted butter
8oz cream cheese
3/4 cups dulce de leche, plus more for topping
1/4 tsp salt
3 cups confectioners sugar

Dulce de Leche
2 cans of regular size condensed milk

Instructions

1. Prepare dulce de leche. Pour the milk in a saucepan and continuously mix it ove low fire until thickened but still pourable. Set aside then cool. You can prepare this a day before you bake the cupcakes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Line cupcake pans with cupcake liners.

3. In a bowl, whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and powder and salt. Set aside.

4. In another bowl, using a mixer (or a beater, if you have powerful arms) beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

5. Add 1 egg at a time, beating them for 1 minute after each addition. Add the vanilla extract.

6. Add half of the flour mixture and slowly mixed them until incorporated. Add the milk. Add the rest of the flour mixture, then mix them until just combined.

7. Pour the batter into cupcake pans, about 3/4 full. Bake for 15 minutes or until the toothpick inserted comes out clean.

8. Cool the cupcakes in a wire rack completely before frosting. 

Frosting

1. Place butter in a bowl and beat using a mixer until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese and dulce de leche and beat them together until smooth. Add the salt. Add the powdered sugar in batches, mixing well after each addition. 

2. Pipe the frosting or generously smear them onto the cooled cupcakes.
3. Drizzle or pop a small dollop of dulce de leche on top of the frosting.

Why not share this with your friends and love ones this Christmas?

Merry Christmas everyone! Love y'all!!!




Aug 11, 2011

Easy Peasy Beef Enchilada

Enchilada is made from tortilla dipped in spicy tomato sauce and stuffed with your choice of meat. A popular Mexican dish, the term enchilada means dipped in chili.

Because of the popularity, there are so many versions of enchiladas nowadays, depending on the preference of the cook.

Well, my version is a non-traditional enchilada, because it is not spicy. My husband is not into spicy food, so I omitted the chilis.

But nevertheless, this dish turned out to be a cheesy, flavorful and wonderful version. This might be a pinoy version of enchilada, since I added a bit sugar into it.

Here are the recipes for the beef filling and tomato sauce. You can make (approximately) 3-4 enchiladas.

Beef filling
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium size onion, chopped
250g. ground beef
salt
pepper
half a teaspoon of dried basil

1. Saute garlic and onion, add the meat. When the meat is no longer pink, season with salt, pepper and herb. When the liquid has evaporated, turn off the fire and set aside.

Tomato Sauce
3 cloves of garlic
1 medium size onion
1 can of dice tomato
1/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano
salt
pepper
about a teaspoon of sugar to remove the acidity of the tomatoes (or more if you want it sweeter)
chili flakes / chili powder (this is a must! but i omitted it)

1. Saute garlic and onion. Add the tomatoes. Season with dried herbs, salt and pepper. Simmer until the mixture reduced in half. Add the sugar.

To assemble you will need the following:
a pack of corn tortilla, but I used flour tortilla.
beef filling
tomato sauce
quickmelt cheese, grated
parmesan cheese, optional.

The picture below is the process on how to prepare the enchiladas.


We loved them much!!! 

Aug 7, 2011

Baking 101: Fudgy Revel Bars

My world stopped. There is no turning back, I can smell the aroma...the warmth...I am so into it...so addicting. I found myself slowly and gently biting it. Then felt the sudden burst of that warm and sticky-gooey filling. So delicate and sweet and...CUT!!!

Now that's food porn! hahaha!!!

That is exactly what I felt when I ate my homemade revel bars. Revel bars include chocolate and oats...it's like sinner or saint! Junk yet healthy food.





Whatever it is, this recipe is worth a try. Some said, these are best eaten cold, but I still go for the warm revel bars. 

Here's the recipe. This recipe is good for two 8x11 pans or 48 bars.

Ingredients

1 cup butter, room temperature
2 cups brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
2 tsps. vanilla
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups quick cooking oats
1 can condensed milk
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Procedure

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.

1. Set aside 2 tbsps of the butter. Beat the remaining butter until creamy. Add the sugar and beat until well incorporated. Add the eggs and 1 tsp vanilla and beat again.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and the baking soda. Add the oats and mix until well combined.
3. In a saucepan, over low heat, melt the chocolate chips with 2 tablespoons butter and condensed milk.  Add the remaining vanilla. Remove from heat then set aside.
Assembly
1. Set aside a quarter of the oat batter mixture. Divide the 3/4 part of the mixture into two, then gently press in the 2 pans. 
2. Generously spread the chocolate filling on top.
3. Course crumble the remaining oat batter on top of the two pans.
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
5. Cool completely before slicing. But since I want my bars warm. I did not wait for it to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Cake Pop Project: Mickey Mouse Silhouette

Cake pops are simply crumbled cake, mixed with frosting, shaped, stuck in lollipop sticks and dipped in melted chocolates. From the single recipe of your favorite cake recipe, you can create so many shapes and characters...the possibilities are endless.

Next to cupcakes, this is I think the latest craze now.

Remember the time when you enjoyed playing with your clays? Yup! It is as fun as making these treats...the only difference is you got to eat your "creations"! How fun is that?

Got the inspiration from Angie Dudley of Bakerella, the Queen of all cake pops! Her imagination is crazy awesome!!! Since I discovered her blog, I have been dreaming of making my own cake pops. And when I completed all the ingredients, including the "courage", and found the perfect time, I made a batch...and lookie!!!


Sorry for the picture, heheh! Looks pretty decent for a first timer huh?  '

For instructions on how to make these, please check this link.

Note:
1. I used Pillsbury Devil's Food cake mix.

2. In the recipe, they used Wilton candy melts for the dip and sadly, the brand is no longer available in Living Well (slow moving daw), I used Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips instead. If you'll be using the white chocolate, you need to color it but please make sure to USE OIL-BASED FOOD COLORING. I found Wilton food coloring from living well and it costs P200+ for a set of 4 colors.

3. For Mickey's ears, I bought Goya Easy Melt Chocolate buttons.

4. Betty Crocker frostings are available in major supermarkets. This is the one that I used.

If you want homemade, please check here.

5. Will the frosting make the cake too sweet? Nope, just the right sweetness.

Enjoy!

Jul 7, 2011

Mochi Buns

These korean mochi buns are crunchy outside but super chewy inside. This is because of the glutinous rice flour included in the ingredients. It's like having fried "palitaw" with a twist. Best serve with condensed milk...

First tasted this in Chicken Park Petron Eastwood. They are selling these at P20.00 (?) each. For the dip, you can choose condensed milk or chocolate syrup. We chose the condensed milk and the combination is to die for. Actually, i suddenly remembered my nutribun-condensed milk combo that i had when i was in grade school...hehehe!

My officemate found the mochi bun mix from the grocery, tried it and here's the end-product.

YUMMY!!! 




Here's the box of the mochi bun mix, i just can't read the brand heheh!
image courtesy of happyhomebaking.blogspot.com
Enjoy!

Jul 6, 2011

Poptarts...Pinoy Style

It's been more than two months I know!!! I've been busy with a lot of things. Mostly with work, but I also had a short vacation, my first vacation outside the country! Yay!

My sister went home last May and brought us to Hongkong. I enjoyed the stay there...the places we visited were great and the food...HEAVEN! A bit disappointed with the shopping part though...everything's expensive. The tiangge items here in the country are expensive there.

When we came back, I must say I missed Pinoy food. I wanted to eat comfort food so off we went to Mom and Tina's for some simple homecooked style food. yum yum...truly soothing and comforting. You have to try to eat there.

Yes, nothing really beats homecooking, just like this Ube Poptart-style pie. Who would've thought that poptarts are so easy to make. That even a newbie cook can whip up these treats with a minimum effort (I can't say "with no effort" because of the kneading part hehehe)!


homemade poptarts!
 I got the idea and the dough/pastry recipe from Smitten Kitchen. But instead of using chocolates and other sugar laden fillings, I chose our humble purple yam or ube spread for filling.

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
1 large egg
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) milk

Purple yam (Ube) filling - I used the one bought from Baguio. 

1 egg for egg wash
1 tbsp water

Instructions:
1. Mix flour, sugar and salt thoroughly.
2. Add the butter. Using your hand, mix everything well until they hold together when squeezed.
3. Whisk the egg and milk together and pour it in the flour mixture. Mix everything until you form a ball.


Note: If the dough is soft, because the temperature is too hot, wrap it using a cling wrap and chill it for 10 minutes.
4. Spread flour in a flat surface. This is to prevent the dough from sticking on the surface when kneading.
5. Whisk the remaining egg and water set aside.
6. Divide the dough into half and roll the first half into rectangle. Divide them into the desired size. Brush with egg wash and put the ube filling.

knead...

kneaded, trimmed, brushed with egg wash

with ube filling

7. Roll the other half and divide them again, the same size as the first half of the dough. Lay each on top of the first batch.  Using a fork, seal the edges and prick the top of the poptarts. Brush top with egg wash.


8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
9. Line the baking pan with parchment paper and place the poptarts.
10. Bake for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
11. Serve warm.
yummy poptarts!!!



Note: You can also reheat these treats and you will still have the same result.


ENJOY!

Apr 25, 2011

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

I think most of the bakers out there will agree that their baking careers started with a humble recipe of chocolate chip cookies.

Who wouldn't? It is very easy to make a batch -- no special equipments needed, ingredients are very easy to find, and the best of all...the bliss of eating these treats! From this simple cookie (usually a hit, never a miss!) you'll soon find yourself ready to try the more complicated baked goodies. I bet you...you'll get addicted to baking!

It is said that Ruth Graves Wakefield, accidentally invented the chocolate chip cookies. She ran out of her bakers chocolate and substituted it with chopped Nestle bars, thinking that it would melt with the batter. But she was wrong, the chocolates just softened...and the rest is history.

I have tried the chocolate chip cookies many times before. I must say that I perfected it. But I have to try the chocolate version. So I look for a promising recipe and found this from my favorite baking site Joy of Baking. I followed everything, except for the nuts, which were not available when I baked this.

The cookies are just perfect! Cruchy, caramalized edges but soft and chewy in the middle. It might be because of the 2 kinds of sugars in the recipe.


perfect with a tall glass of cold milk


so yummy!!!
Here's the link to the recipe. Try it and let me know your feedback!

Enjoy!!!

Mar 27, 2011

Nora Daza's Cream of Chicken Soup

Will make the chicken chunkier next time.
Of all the soups, the cream of chicken is my hubby's favorite. I used to buy the soup mix in the grocery until I found this from my Nora Daza cookbook.

This is waaay much better than the supermarket bought soup. Healthy too since there are no preservatives added into it.

This will have a regular appearance in our dining table I swear!

Recipe

1/4 kilo chicken breast with bones
6 cups of water
half onion, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsps butter
1 large onion, chopped
6 tbsps flour
1/2 cup evaporated milk
salt and pepper to taste
fresh or dried parsley for garnish

1. Make broth by boiling chicken in water, onion and salt. 
2. Once the chicken is done, slice the chicken in cubes or shred it.
3. Set aside both the broth and chicken.
4. In a stock pot, sauté chopped onion in butter. Once transluscent, add the flour and cook over low heat until smooth and bubbly.
5. Add the stock and chicken. Boil until the liquid is thick.
6. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Add the milk and turn off the heat. There's no need to boil the soup after the addition of the milk to prevent milk from curdling.
8. Garnish with parsley.

Serve hot.

Mar 25, 2011

Baking 101: Ham and Cheese Bread Roll


I was not feeling well last week, so I took a 2 days off from work to rest. I went to a doctor for a check up and apparently, I had a slight asthma attack na pala...I didn't even know I have that! So the doctor adviced me to take a rest. The whole thursday, I just stayed in my room and just literally sleep and rest...sarap!

Friday, though I can still sleep again the whole day J, I can't deny that I was bored. So my best way to kill boredom was to bake. For so many days, I've been wanting to bake breads...and I'm glad that i found the perfect time. I started early, 12 noon, because it will consume a lot of time, you need to rise the dough for 1 to 1 1/2 hours then knead, and then rise again for an hour before baking them. I finished at exactly 4PM just in time for snacks.

...and the bread? Soft and delicious! I just need to add more filling to make it more flavorful.

 
inside of the bread
 My family loved it! Will definitely try this again.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
2 1/2 tsps instant active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
4 to 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
egg wash
ham (of your choice) slices
Cheddar cheese

Procedure

WITH MIXER
1. Melt butter with milk in microwave oven. Let it cool to room temperature.

2. In a mixing bowl, mix the yeast and warm water and let stand for 10 minutes until creamy, thick and bubbly.

bubbly and creamy yeast in warm water

3. Whisk the sugar and eggs to the yeast mixture. Add the butter and milk mixture, mix well.

4. Add 4 cups of flour and mix over low speed, using a mixer with dough hook. Sprinkle the salt.

5. Knead at medium speed until the dough comes together and sweeps the side of the bowl clean. If the dough is too moist, add the flour by tablespoons from the remaining 1/2 cup flour. Total kneading time is 10 minutes.

6. Transfer the dough to a large and lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise and develop the flavors for 1 to 1 1/2 hours
The before and after
7. Punch the dough and transfer to a clean surface lightly dusted with flour. Cut the dough equally into 16 pieces. With a rolling pin, roll out each dough and put the ham and cheese filling at the center. Carefully tuck the filling inside the dough. 

8. Lightly grease a baking sheet and place the rolls in it.

9. Cover with slightly damp kitchen towel and let rise again for 1 - 1 1/2 hours. preheat the oven at 350F, 10 minutes before the rising time ends.
After the second rising
10. Brush the top with egg wash, and bake 25 minutes. 
uncooked bread inside the oven...
WITHOUT MIXER

Note: My cheap mixer broke down when I was mixing the dough. The dough became heavy that's why the mixer gave up (need to buy a new one). I decided to manually mix and knead the dough...my goodness labor of love!! I saw this process from my mother when I was younger. She manually kneaded all the breads that she baked before.


Those who do not own a mixer, you can still make the bread, here's how:


1. Follow steps 1-3
2. In a clean, flat surface, dump the flour. Add the salt. Make a well in the middle and pour all the liquid ingredients (from steps 1-3).  
3. Using your clean hands (or use gloves), carefully mix everything together. Knead the dough well until they become elastic. (I had swollen arms i swear!)
4. Follow steps 6-10.
Note: I used the bread recipe of yummy's cinnamon roll 

Enjoy!!!

Feb 14, 2011

Baking 101: Easy Chocolate Cake



Happy valentines everyone! What is the most popular gift for V-day? Of course chocolates! Forget about the diet...why? because chocolate makes you feel good. It also associated with passion, romance and love. Surprise your lovey dovey with a lovely dinner and end with this decadent dessert.


The cake is moist and very chocolatey. I suggest that you eat this at room temperature so you'll have a taste of the bursting chocolatey goodness of this cake. The frosting also tends to harden when refrigerated. If you'll check the ingredients, it has cream in it, which is very high in fat. If you refrigerated them, pop it quickly in a microwave oven to soften the frosting a bit, about 20-30 seconds or lesser.


Ingredients


for the Cake
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 tsps coffee granules, dissolved in 1 cup of very hot water
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 large eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract


Frosting
1 cup cream, I used Nestle cream in can
1 stick unsalted butter, cut in small pieces
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
450 g semisweet chocolate, chopped


Procedure:


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Farenheit.


1. Sift together sugar, flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Pour the hot coffee over the chopped chocolate. Stir until chocolate has melted completely. Set aside.
3. In another mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, sour cream and vanilla. Add the melted chocolate. Mix until well blended.
4. Stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture by thirds. mix until well blended.
5. Pour batter into 2 lined 9" round baking pans.
6. Bake for 45 minutes or until the toothpick inserted comes out clean.
7. Remove from the oven, allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before turning out of the pans. Cool completely before frosting the cake.


Frosting
1. Heat cream, butter, sugar, salt in a saucepan until the butter is melted. Add chopped chocolates and melt over low heat. Stir constantly until the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat.


2. Cool the frosting while stirring constantly. For faster cooling, put the bowl inside the freezer for two minutes, then take them off and stir. Repeat the process until the frosting is cool and of spreading consistency.


To assemble
1. Trim the dome part of the cakes to have an even surface. Place 1 cake in a cake stand.
2. Pour frosting on top of the first cake. Spread the frosting until the top of the cake is covered.
3. Put the remaining cake, upside down on top of the first cake. Spread the remaining frosting all over the cake.


Enjoy!

Jan 16, 2011

Yogurt with Banana and Honey

This is the continuation of my yogurt project. I have to put flavor in it so I can enjoy it more and wouldn't be just tasting the tangy taste of the yogurt. The addition of fruits means additional helath benefits. 

So as part of my experiment, I added the staple fruit in the house to my homemade yogurt...bananas!!! Ideal for breakfast, snack, or dessert!

To sweeten the yogurt, I drizzled it with honey and topped it with sliced bananas...easy eh? If you want it sweeter, feel free to add more honey. It tasted like the store bought yogurt...but cheaper!

I super love! love! love!

Here's the picture of my flavored yogurt.


Happy eating!

Jan 14, 2011

Nachos

The recipe of the dip is basically the same as my Taco filling, which I posted here. I just used the store bought nachos instead of the taco shells. The only addition was the melted cheese, which is just the cheese spread (chizwiz), mixed with milk to make the consistency thin.

The hubby requested this because I think he had a hard time eating tacos, coz the tacos kept on breaking and reminded him of nachos. So he said that we have try the nachos next time... so here it is!

Homemade Yogurt (Yoghurt)

According to Wikipedia, Yogurt (or Yoghurt) is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk.  The milk is heated to kill the undesirable bacteria and to denature (I need a biochemist here!!) the milk proteins so they won't curd but set together instead...whew!

 Yogurt, is a rich source of protein, calcium, riboflavin. Flavored yogurt can easily be spotted in the supermarkets and specialty stores. Put some garlic and herb and you'll have fat-free dip. It is so versatile!


Nowadays, the frozen yogurt (I'm so into it by the way) is so popular and making a huge rave, because it's refreshing, healthy and...EXPENSIVE. 

Since I love yogurt and I can't really afford to buy that everyday because I will more or less spend 700 pesos a month for a daily fix of yogurt, I started to research on how to make my own. When I found the perfect recipe, I immediately tried it. And wow..that was easy!

The prep and heating time is short. The ingredients can be easily found in the supermarkets. After you prepared the yogurt mixture, you just need to wait for 6 hours for it to set...and you're done!

I got this from the ever reliable Yummy Magazine (jan-feb 2011 issue). I cut the original recipe into half, coz I won't be needing 2 liters of yogurt since I don't want to waste money in case the "experiment" will not be successful.

And the finish product? I can safely say that it was a success! I tasted it and it was like the commercially bought yogurt, a bit runny though. But that's the difference between a store-bought and homemade yogurt. To make it creamier, I strained the yogurt using a cheesecloth that I put over a strainer...I turned it to greek style yogurt!

For those who want to make their own yogurt, here's the recipe. Original recipe is not yet posted on Yummy's site.

Ingredients


1L Fresh milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt (read the label, make sure it has "with Live Microorganisms")


Heating the Milk
 1. Heat the milk in a saucepan until small bubbles appear on the side. While continuously stirring, cool the milk a bit until you can comfortably dip you fingers for 5 seconds.

2. Pour 1/4 cup of plain yogurt in a small bowl. Yogurt must be at room temperature.
yogurt that i used. use 1/4 cup per liter of milk
Make sure it has live micro-organisms
The plain yogurt will serve as a starter. I don't know if my biology is correct but the live microorganisms will "procreate" in the warm milk and will help the milk to ferment.
 3. Laddle a cup of warm milk into the yogurt. Mix well with a wire whisk. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan with milk.
 4. Cover the the saucepan with lid and wrap it with a thick towel and secure with clips.
 Fermenting the Milk
 1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees F. Turn of the oven. Put the milk and yogurt mixture inside the oven and let it rest for six hours.
Wrapped in a thick towel and place inside the preheated oven.
Chill the yogurt. Wth this recipe, you can now make your own flavored yogurt.

ENJOY!

Jan 3, 2011

Baking 101: Cassava Cake with Coco Custard Topping

I don't know, but aside from the meat and pasta, we always have kakanin in our Media Noche...suman, bibingka, biko, kalamay basta anything kakanin. We usually order them or buy them in the market. 


This year, I thought of making the cassava cake. Tired of the usual yema like topping (which I can buy from a nearby kakanin seller here, even everyday), I searched for something new and interesting twist of the usual cassava cake. And voila! The goddess of all Cassava cakes (well, for me!)...






I got the recipe from here, and the recipe was from Ms. Nena Zafra, though I don't have any idea of her, I can't find any information about her in the net, I thank her for this recipe...uber yummy! 


Even if I tweaked the recipe because I don't have enough amount of the ingredients, it still turned out wonderful. 


For the original version, click here. For my version, see below. hehehe!


My recipe is good for one 11x7x2 pan or 13x9x2 pan.


Ingredients


Cassava Cake


3 1/2 cups grated cassava
1 cup white sugar
2 small cans (154g) evaporated milk
1 cup coconut milk
3 eggs
1/4 cup melted butter


Mix all the ingredients, pour in a baking pan and baked for 35 mins or until done. 


Coco Custard Topping


2 small cans (154g) evaporated milk
3/4 cup condensed milk
1 cup coconut milk
2 tbsps flour
2 egg yolks, slightly beaten


Mix the evap, condensed, coconut milk and flour in a sauce pan. Cook over low heat, stir constantly. When the mixture is thick, add the egg yolks. Make sure to stir the mixture to incorporate the eggs well. 


Turn off the fire and pour the mixture evenly on top of the cooked cassava cake and broil the cake until light brown.


Enjoy it warm. 


Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Christmas Eve Dinner

I know it's already late, but anyhoo...Merry Christmas and Happy new year everyone!


Again, I've been very busy and I finally found a little time from my super hectic schedule to update my blog. Nothing special happened during those days, and I barely touched anything in the kitchen...well except for the utensils that I'm using to eat hehehe!


So, to rekindle my love affair with food, I volunteered to cook for our Christmas eve dinner! Tiring but happy! Coz I literally was the only one who prepared the food, no help period!


But it was worth it...really. 


Here are the pictures of our food. I prepared the lasagna (click here for recipe), which is now my official choice of pasta, the herb roasted chicken which I got from here with gravy from chicken drippings, and the cheesy vegetable, my family's all time veggie favorite!


The dessert, buko salad, not included in the picture was prepared by my mommy (oh yes, she helped pala). The sandwich, also not in the picture, with ham (that i preferred fried rather than just sliced straightly from the big circle of ham) went with the bread, some lettuce, tomato and a little mayo...simple but yummy!


Cheesy vegetables, (fried) ham slices, lasagna, roast chicken
a little of everything...
Of course, I enjoyed the night because I ate and spent time with my family. That's the most important thing right! The family that eats together, gets fat together! heheheh...


Again, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Everyone! I wish you all the best and happiness in life!!! 


Cheers to the wonderful year ahead!!!