Coleen's Recipes: Yellow Chicken Curry

I've been cooking a lot lately.  Experimenting, feeding myself, rediscovering our kitchen.  Since I will be leaving tomorrow evening, I decided to cook something today and just pack it in the freezer for later consumption, in case anyone in the house gets hungry.  Let me present to you, my version of Yellow Chicken Curry.  I had help, care of McCormick Philippines but I still think this is my original recipe since there's a twist to it.  Read on to find out what. :)

#DoItAllBella: Pantene Pro-V's 3-Minute Miracle

I may be months late but it's because I really want to sample and see the results of products I try.  A couple of months ago, BDJ (Belle de Jour) sent me a trial pack of Pantene's newest product – the 3-Minute Miracle.  The pack had a small bottle of shampoo, conditioner, and the 3-Minute Miracle conditioner.  According to its packaging, the 3-Minute Miracle Conditioner will make your hair "stronger, shinier, and smoother in just three minutes."  Sounds impossible and kinda unbelievable, right?  Yes, but with Pantene, not really.

Coleen's Recipes: Sinampalukang Manok

I think I've mentioned it a couple times before that I really, really love soups, especially sinigang.  I learned this recipe more than a decade ago from my aunt and I've considered it as one of my specialties ever since.  This version has been modified according to my taste so beware. :)

Coleen's Recipes: Sinigang na Sardines

It's been a while since I last posted a recipe on my blog.  I guess I was a bit overwhelmed with all the good food, beauty products and new places that have been popping up the past 2-3 years that I completely forgot about posting my own recipes (or maybe I wish to keep them secret haha).  Anyway, tonight will be different.  I've been sick the past week (since Monday, if you constantly read my blog).  I was bedridden for about three days, including New Year's Eve AND day.  I was able to walk around a bit today but I still tire easily.  Since it was only Nan, the kids, and me tonight, she didn't cook anymore.  But I was craving for some sinigang – something hot and sour to relax my tired body (and soul).  So the kids had some chicken sopas from lunch, while I decided to hit the kitchen and concoct something for myself.

I originally planned on opening a can of fried sardines and cooking sinigang soup for dinner.  But as I was rummaging through our fridge, looking for some vegetables I could add to the soup, I got tired.  I don't eat sardines straight from the can.  I always have them sautéed in garlic and onions before eating them but my body was not ready to get tired just yet.  I had to think fast.  I want hot sinigang soup and I want to try this hot and spicy fried sardines but my body is telling me to just lie down.  What to do?  What to do?  

Bam.  Why don't you cook Sinigang na Sardinas (Sardines Sinigang)?  

Old School Finds: Vinyl x Batchoy

Wake up call at 7 in the morning? Check.

Friend actually arrives at 7:30 in the morning? Check.

LTO sends us on a complete wild goose chase? Check.

Ending up a winner after all the (mis)adventures of the morning? DOUBLE CHECK.

One of my law school friends asked me to accompany her as she ran some errands yesterday.  After a couple of (mis)adventures along the way, she asked me if I could still accompany her to Cubao Expo to look for some vinyl discs for her new turntable.  I didn't have any plans so I decided to come with even if I wouldn't really find anything interesting in the shop.

Surprisingly, I did find something in the store that caught my attention.  The Vinyl Dump, a vinyl records store located in the middle of Cubao Expo, was home to a hundred and more vinyl records.  This is what my friend came here for but what caught my eye was that the same store offered La Paz Batchoy for sale.  Yup, an old records store selling original la paz batchoy for only P45.  Since I wasn't feeling well, I decided to give it a try because 1) hot soup is good for a sick person, and 2) I wouldn't have anything to do for the next hour or so (while my dear friend searches every nook and cranny of that store for something she might like).

La Paz Batchoy

P45 (regular)

All in a Day's Work: SxP Steak and Paella

After a really exhausting day compiling term papers for our labor class, one of my law school friends said she wanted some buffalo wings for dinner.  I gladly obliged since I was also feeling very hungry at the time (imagine carrying around 25 bound term papers around the mall hahaha).  When we got to Frankie's Buffalo Wings, I was surprised to find that it was located in the food court area of the new Fashion Hall of SM Megamall.  The other food choices quickly caught my attention and I forgot about the buffalo wings and started checking out the new food stalls.

Cakes Made with Love: Love Cakes by Ann and Gan

I actually don't remember how I stumbled upon the Instagram account of siblings Ann and Gan, but the next thing I knew, I was already salivating over the photos of their gorgeous and delicious-looking cakes. I wanted to buy all of them and just taste how good they really are. Since mom's birthday was coming up anyway, I asked our uncles and aunts for financial help and decided to buy one of their cakes for her 52nd birthday.

I decided to get their 10x10 Fresh Fruit Cake since this seemed like the perfect cake for mom's age group (no offense, momma). I wanted to get the Strawberry Shortcake since I love strawberries, but I thought, this isn't for me. Their Naked Chocolate Cake and Heavenly Chocolate Cake looked tempting too, especially with the additional strawberries you could request, but the chocolate cake seemed more like for kids than mom and her amigas. The Mocha Cake was equally tempting but I wanted to try something different. We could get mocha cake from Hizon's anyway. 

They require at least a 2-day lead time when ordering any of their fabulous cakes. I ordered mom's cake a week before just to be sure. When we got the cake, it was just perfect! It was such a heavenly sight – white frosting with a ton of fresh, colorful fruits on top. It was also heavy so we all assumed this cake was siksik.

12 Days of Christmas

Nothing can describe the past two weeks. Hours and hours of studying, comprehensive exams, plus feelings of failure and defeat. Eating just isn't enough anymore.Thankfully, I found a wonderful surprise waiting for me in my inbox.

There's a 12.12 Sale going on right now featuring the biggest and best online shops and establishments offering the ultimate deals! ShopBackPh is also offering increased cashback from 10 to 15 December 2015!

Calyxta, Ticketworld, Powerplant Cinemas, and Luxola are just some of the brands and establishments offering the best deals this weekend! Click on the link to check them out. 

Powerplant Cinema is offering two (2) cinemas passes with a purchase of four (4) tickets. Just in time for the end of finals!

ShopBack PH is also offering P100 for every referral and P999 for three. Isn't this just the perfect destresser? Online shopping while getting rebates. It's like a sale on a sale! 

So for all of you who are still crying over that torts exam by THE Atty. J. Lo, why don't you take a break, go online and indulge! 

Daily Digest: Stuffed Wings at the Best Food Forward 2015

Who could resist buffalo wings? I mean really. If there's a non-Filipino food I would never say no to, it would be buffalo wings. The spicy, New York-style buffalo wings with bleu cheese dip. During the Best Food Forward 2015 weekend, I chanced upon this new buffalo wings stall. It looked like your typical buffalo wings but I just had to stop and ask about it because I found the price a bit too expensive -- P120 for two, TWO wings.

My bad. Apparently, I wasn't reading their price list in its entirety. The reason why it was expensive was because the buffalo wings were 1) deboned, and 2) it was STUFFED.

Buffed Wings

Buffed Wings is new in town. They introduced their Stuffed Buffalo Wings a couple of weeks back. Their buffalo wings are deboned and stuffed with a mix of rice, meat, vegetables and spices. Think buffalo wings stuffed with fried rice. It's like a meal on its own.

 Stuffed Buffalo Wings

You can choose one from three chicken flavors: Buffalo, Buffalo Wings Original BBQ Sauce, or Sweet Chili; and one from two dips: Ranch or Bleu Cheese. I went for the original buffalo sauce with bleu cheese dressing.

P120 for two stuffed wings, your choice of dip and flavor

It was a unique experience. Interesting concept and good choice of flavors. I liked how spicy their buffalo sauce was and how the bleu cheese dip complemented it (some "bleu cheese dips" claim to be such, but only taste like sweet mayo with bits of cheese).

Here's the however. However, I feel like there's something missing in their rice blend. I think they should either add or change their spice blend mixed in the rice. It doesn't go well with the buffalo wings. I'm not saying it doesn't taste good. What I'm saying is, they could improve the flavor of the rice blend so it could really complement the buffalo wings. They could also do away with the meat in the rice. The chicken wing itself is enough. The addition of the meat mixed with the rice inside the chicken just confuses one's tongue.

Either way, this is still a must try. It's a new concept plus, it's easy to eat. You have a complete meal with just one order. According to the owners, they still don't have a stall or permanent fixed location since it was their first time joining a bazaar. For more information, you can reach them in the number below.

Price: P120/serving (One Serving = Two Stuffed Wings)

4 out of 5 for Buffed Wings Stuffed Wings (the rice mix could be better)

Buffed Wings
0917 865 0801
0917 809 0516

MNL Creamery at the Best Food Forward 2015

Finally got to try MNL Creamery's delicious gelato yesterday at the Best Food Forward in Rockwell Tent. Their unique take on some of their gelato flavors, especially the Manga't Suman, caught my attention and I've been wanting to try it since then. I have always been a fan of classic/traditional types of food (not a big fan of fusion) but I just couldn't resist not trying this unusual concoction.

MNL Creamery offers familiar flavors with a bit of a twist. These are just some of the flavors they have. Small, single scoop cups are sold at P120, while small, double scoop cups are sold at P150. I wanted to try their other flavors so I got the double scoop -- Manga't Suman and Ricotta Cheese with Orange. I was so tempted to get the more classic flavors like chocolate and strawberries and cream but I was able to resist the temptation. Thankfully, I did not give in.

The Manga't Suman was not as I imagined it to be. Or maybe I was just enjoying it too much that I did not notice the latik that was supposed to be in the mix. But I loved the sticky rice and the somewhat sweet-sour taste of the mangoes combination. As for the Ricotta Cheese with Orange, I was just influenced by the owner because he kept sharing that it was his personal favorite, and now I understand why. The saltiness of the cheese plus the surprising burst of orange pulp was just a joy waiting to be experienced. These weren't my usual gelato flavors but I loved every spoonful. I have yet to try their other flavors but so far, with this experience, I have a feeling the others will be just as unique and flavorful as the these two.

They don't have a standalone stall yet but according to the owner, they will be opening one in UP Town Center sometime next year. Check out their Facebook and Instagram accounts for their next pop-up stall/bazaar participation.

Price: P120 to P150/cup

4.5 out of 5 for MNL Creamery (a bit too pricey for "ice cream" on my kuripot days)

Manila Creamery (MNL Creamery)
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Daily Digest: Wooden Spoon's Pancit Lang Lang

The past two weeks have been really stressful so food became our best friend. On the last day of midterms week, we decided to have merienda (mid-afternoon snack) in Wooden Spoon because I told my friend Pearl that I wanted pancit. Traditional pancit with the works. She suggested Wooden Spoon's afternoon menu because she swears their pancit (lang lang) is good.

Pancit Lang Lang

P175

I thought the noodles were a bit too overcooked because it looked and felt too soft. Whether or not it was overcooked became irrelevant because once I took a forkful of the pancit, the texture of the noodles mixed with the crisp adobo flakes on top and the poppy shrimp was just perfect! Add a squeeze of calamansi and you have the perfect afternoon snack post-exam. I had no complaints because she was right. It was good. Really good.

Price: P175

5 out of 5 for Wooden Spoon's Pancit Lang Lang

Wooden Spoon

Basement Level Powerplant Mall

Rockwell Center, Makati City