Valentine Cupcakes

Valentine's Day happened to be on a Monday this year, so I decided to bake a Chocolate Cake from scratch that morning at work...I used the Williams-Sonoma recipe and made almost four dozen cupcakes...I frosted some of them with sweetened whipped cream just in time for the afternoon break at 2pm...I sold a dozen pretty fast for $1.50 each...

I had bought these Valentine themed sprinkles the week before from Target...I thought these were so cute and would make a great decoration for cupcakes...I've been planning for this for quite a while...I didn't even think twice as soon as I saw it at the store...I also bought a Valentine themed pink hand towel and a vase...I had already pictured it in mind on how it would look in the photos...And yes, I was very pleased with the result of the pictures :) Just how I wanted!

The pictures above were taken outside the house under the shade...I wasn't quite satisfied with the pictures below that were taken indoors...It could be the bright sun shining through the windows that was a challenge for me to tone down...It's all because the windows in the living room is facing west...I didn't get the chance to do it in the sun room because of our house guest occupying the space that same day...The shadows are very noticeable :(

These pictures below were taken at the school kitchen right before I sold them...Boy, don't they look cute? Of course, they also taste great, Hey! that's a Williams-Sonoma recipe...It's very chocolatey since i've used Dutch processed cocoa...Then the buttermilk added moisture to the cake...They're good by themselves without the frosting...My hubby really liked the cake, he didn't care for the whipped cream...I don't mind...Who needs to gain weight anyway?

The lighting from the school kitchen is just the white fluorescent daylight that's why the cupcakes look more natural in my opinion...At first, I never really liked it but now, I like it even more...I think I should bring my props to work next time, atleast, the lighting is always the same...I don't have to worry about the sun being too bright or setting...

Assorted Cakes

I've made these three cakes within a week...It's very unusual for me because I get so busy at work that I can't always find time to bake...It just happened that we were on our short 2 days semestral break and we didn't have to prepare snacks for the cafeteria...So, I used my spare time to bake some goodies since I had these over-ripe Bananas sitting on the counter...

I made the Carrot Cake and Banana Cake using one type of batter (refer to my Carrot Cake recipe)...That really made it easier for me beacuse all I did was make a big batch, divide them and folded in the grated Carrots into the first batter and mashed Bananas into the other...I made a big sheet pan of the Carrot Cake and also this small one for my photography that I frosted with Cream Cheese-Butter mixture...I took it home to take photos of it and returned it to work the next day to turn it to cash :) My hubby doesn't really like Carrot Cake so I couldn't keep it at home...

I took different angles of this cake...I couldn't seem to find the perfect angle because it was almost sunset and I really had a hard time focusing...I sprinkled some orange colored sugar on the Carrot design to give it a little sparkle and life...

I also made a small pan of Banana-Walnut Bread for my photography...I just left it in the pan so it will look like it just came out of the oven...What else can I do with it? Again, my hubby doesn't like this one either...I had to take it back to work the next day together with the Carrot Cake...He doesn't know what he's missing :) Banana bread is very popular in our cafeteria...They sell better than hot cakes! I don't make this often, it all depends on how much ripe Bananas we have...And when i'm too lazy to make this, I would just make Banana bread pudding which is also a favorite at school...This way, I don't have to deal with all the measuring...

I've used 2 table covers for my background...I thought, the multi-colored one which I had bought recently looks better against the brown bread...While the Paris printed cover looks too brown on brown...Still, isn't bad but I settled for the other one instead...

As for this Oreo-Marshmallow Cake, I baked the cake at home out of a cake-mix box...I had this Oreo and Mini Marshmallows sitting in the pantry that are about to expire...I gotta do something about it! So I decided to decorate the cake with it...I saw this kind of decoration before, an Oreo-Lemon Cheesecake in Tony Wong's Patisserie Book, so why not copy it? The marshmallows are just an added personal touch :)

Thought the Strawberry added contrast to the cake...Who knew that these Oreos would be useful in decorating a boring white cake? It's also my way of covering the flaws of the cake sides :)

I'm glad that I could finally use the shawls i've collected over the years...They've been sitting in my drawer and I had never used them ever...Now, I use them as my props, who would've thought? But i'm still gonna keep collecting shawls and scarves for my photography use...Atleast, they have a better purpose now :)

In the meantime, let me enjoy a bite of this cake...Until then...

Manila Trip Spring '10

As always, my brothers and sister-in-law would pick me up from the Centennial Airport in Manila...They took me to the Mall of Asia aka MOA, said to be the biggest in Asia, where we stopped by for a snack...Couldn't remember the name of the restaurant...I was quite overwhelmed and excited since it's been 3 years being away from home...This part of Manila has really changed a lot, now, it's a destination for Filipinos because you'll find everything here under one roof...Wish I had taken a picture of this humongous establishment...


Below is the famous Pancit Palabok that most restaurants serve...It's a very typical Filipino noodles topped with crushed Chicharon (Crispy Pork Rind), Tinapa (Smoked Fish), Hard boiled Eggs and Calamansi (Lime)...


Of course, we had this refreshing Halo-Halo (Mix-Mix literally) It's named Halo-Halo because of the different ingredients used that's served in this Parfait glass...Some restaurants serve it on big bowls so that it would be easier to mix the stuff together...The traditional ingredients are Red Mung beans, Tapioca Pearls (sago), Nata de Coco, Jackfruit, Jelly, Macapuno, Pinipig or Rice Crispies, Sugar, Ube, topped with crushed ice, Leche Flan and finished with Evaporated Milk...Some would even top it with a scoop of ice cream...This is actually a summer treat and since Philippines is a tropical country, we have it all year round...


On our way home, we swung by this place for Bibingka...It's a type of cake made of Rice flour and baked using charcoals placed on top and bottom of it...It's normally wrapped in banana leaves, so no worries, the charcoals aren't touching the batter...Then it's served with grated Coconut on top, mmm...Some would put salted eggs over the batter which is equally good...


Everytime I go home, I always end up pigging out...We eat out a lot, my brothers would take me to places i've never been, places they thought I would like...I always get this Chicken Feet aka Adidas from Hen Lin at SM Shoemart food court...They're pretty consistent, it tastes the same as far as I can remember...I love the cartilage and the meat between bones, Yum! My mom used to cook this often when we were kids :D


They thought I would love this one, Turk's Shawarma, and I did!!! Love the sauce oozing down the Pita bread...It's so good that even my mom loved it when they took her there...



Vacation won't be complete without having my favorite home-cooked dishes, Banana Hearts in Coconut Milk and blanched Sweet Potato leaves seasoned with Soy sauce, Sugar and Calamansi juice...I don't get to eat this kind of food til I go back home...Although, these ingredients are available nowadays where I live...I just don't have the time to search or go to specialty stores...Too busy for that :(



We took a day trip to see my Aunt Gloria in Cavite...Then drove up to Tagaytay City for dinner overlooking the Taal Lake...It was after sunset so we could hardly see the view but we still enjoyed being there...Afterall, we always visit this place everytime i'm home...



I spent my birthday back home, so we went to this restaurant at Eastwood in Libis, Quezon City...If i'm not mistaken, the restaurant's name is Seafood Island...You can opt for a Family style menu where they serve the dishes on Banana leaves placed at the center of the table and dig in just like in the Ethiopian restaurant...But we chose a la carte so we would have more variety since some of us have dietary restrictions...I get to order my favorites such as Adobong Baka (Beef), Kare-kare, Grilled Tilapia, Pumpkin in Coconut and so on...







Max's Fried Chicken restaurant has been in business for ages and they're still growing...One thing's for sure, their chicken is superb, crispy and savory...The fresh Lumpia, it's a thin crepe-like wrap stuffed with vegetables and drizzled with a Garlic sauce and sprinkled with chopped Peanuts is also hands-down...We ordered Sizzling Tokwa (Tofu) and to my surprise, it was out of this world...Who would've thought that this underrated Tofu would taste this good, mmmm...Out West, you only find Tofu in the vegetarian section of most groceries...Not many restaurants offer Tofu on their menu but most Asian restaurants do...Well, it's an Asian thing...




Before I came home, my brother and his wife were bragging about this new Chinese restaurant, Hap Chan that had just opened in Antipolo City...They rated this place so high that made me wanna give it a try and so I did...It didn't let me down...The Beef and Broccoli was close to the one I had in Hong Kong...The Young Chow Fried Rice was also good but my favorite was this Crispy Butter Chicken...It was sooo yummy! I wonder what's in it...You just couldn't stop eating...

My vacation was too short (a week), wish I could've stayed another week and visit more restaurants and hang out with my family and friends...But it was time well spent, I accomplished a lot...I organized my stuff in the house, did some home improvement, I was able to see my high school friends and my long lost friends who were also visiting from Canada...I also attended a family reunion and our company, ICONICS excursion where I was the guest Chef :D What a hectic schedule...That's what usually happens when I go home...Instead of relaxing, i'm even busier...Well, until my next homecoming and hopefully it won't be long and not just for a week...