Last Meal at Wrap and Roll

We wrapped up our Vietnam trip with a meal at Wrap and Roll, the same restaurant where we had our first bite of Vietnamese dish.

Vegetarian Samosa (Cha Gio Samosa) served with rice noodles and greens.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Christmas celebrations in Vietnam were so much fun. People from all walks of life joined in the merry making. Parents dressed their kids up in Santa Claus suit. Thousands of motorcycles ran to and fro.

After hours of strolling  the city and a quick  trip to Ho Chi Minh City's biggest market, we headed back to our hotel. Our plan was to have a nice Vietnamese meal for Christmas Eve but the plan failed again. It was past 9 in the evening when we left the hotel again to find food. Our bodies were weak and our legs aching. We took a detour hoping to find a Vietnamese Restaurant but we found ourselves walking farther from the city center. As we arrived on the main road, we saw hundreds of people walking towards one direction. Our instincts said to follow them. Minutes later, we found the big statue, the landmark for locating the way downtown.

We looked for restaurants and they were packed. Then we saw Pomodoro, an Italian restaurant. We peeked through the glass window. We saw empty tables. It was not the right time to be choosy. We were too tired from too much walking and we were so hungry. All we needed was a place to relax our feet and to fill our empty stomach.

It didn't take much longer til our order arrived. We had carrot and orange juice.

Daikokuya Japanese Restaurant

One might wonder why we would go Japanese when we could eat the local delicacies of Vietnam. The first thing we wanted to do after the church service  was go back to our hotel, change into our casual clothes and get something to eat. It was our first time at Vietnam  Church  so the Kodak moments took a while. Our tummies were growling already when we flagged down a cab.

We arrived at the hotel, rested for a while, threw on our clothes and left again to eat.We drained our last bit of energy looking for a restaurant nearby which served Vietnamese cuisine. The hotel where we were lodged was located in the "Japanese area". Most restaurants  we saw were  Japanese restaurants. We were exhausted and starving so we decided to eat at any restaurants close to the hotel. We found Daikokuya and our decision to eat there did not disappoint.

I liked the cozy feeling of the restaurant. The staff and the Japanese chef were friendly. And the food was excellent.

The salmon was tender and juicy, the salad had just enough dressing.

Our First Vietnamese Meal

Our plane landed at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam shortly after 6 pm.  The trip that normally takes 20 minutes  from the airport to the city center became a one-hour-and-a-half drive due to traffic. It was a long and crazy drive. We were getting anxious so I started a conversation with the driver. His broken English made it difficult for us to understand each other. Then I remembered an article I read on the internet that many Vietnamese could speak Chinese so I asked him if he could. He replied to me in Chinese. That was the start of an enjoyable ride through Vietnam's rush hour.

We were not so hungry as we ate at Bangkok airport before our flight. I suggested to my sister we get something light that night. We checked in and left the hotel to look for food. The restaurants in the surrounding areas were mostly Japanese due to a high number of Japanese staying in the area. We passed by a convenient store. We went inside to buy water. I asked the cashier if she knew a nearest Vietnamese Restaurant. She said there's a fast food called Wrap and Roll which serve Vietnamese dish. We asked for the direction. After walking past 2-3 blocks, we found it.

We were greeted as we entered the restaurant. A waiter took us to our table and gave us the menu.  To drink, my sister had carrot juice, I had Vietnamese lemon iced tea. The tea was so refreshing due to its mild taste.

Battered Eggplant in Onion Gravy

Christmas is just around the corner. It is this time of the year when my family do Christmas shopping. Two days ago, my sister and I went to Makro  for groceries and Christmas decors. While at the vegetable section my sister spotted these round purple eggplant. She hurriedly called my attention to show them. It was unusual to see these kind of eggplant in Thailand. The long, green and slender kind were always available at the supermarkets. We bought a couple of them . I knew right then that I could cook a different dish.

A day after, when I came home from work I opened the fridge and  saw these beautiful eggplant. I remembered a good eggplant recipe  I used to cook  while living in China.I was so excited that I started cooking right away.

After You at Siam Paragon

Getting a good dessert is always a must when we dine out. So while having lunch at The Loft on my birthday, we discussed about where to  get dessert. My suggestion was to go to Siam Paragon and get dessert at After You. I had been telling them about it for months now. Since it was my birthday they all agreed.

When we arrived at Siam Paragon we found the place packed. The food we ate had not been fully digested so we didn't mind waiting. We booked for a table and sat in a corner to wait.

Mags ordered chocolate cake served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. Irene and Marthina had brownies with whipped cream on top

My Post Birthday Celebration

 For the continuation of my birthday celebration I took my sister and friends to lunch at The Loft , located on the 6th  floor of Central Chidlom. The place had an extensive selection of Thai and foreign dishes. Unlike other food court where you purchase a meal card before you could buy a meal, at The Loft the customer would be given a meal card with a balance of Thai Baht 1000 at the entrance. Any purchases he made would be deducted from his balance and after dining, present the card to the cashier.

As the four of us entered, a lady handed each of us our meal card. We looked for a convenient location to sit. We wanted to have a close access to the food but not too far from the toilet. And we found the right place. We sat and alternately ordered our food.

Mags ordered pizza. Irene had naan bread and chicken biryani which she shared with her daughter Marthina.

My Birthday Dinner

This was the first part of my birthday celebration. Not all my friends could make it to my birthday dinner so I planned on having another dinner for them. Our plan was to find another restaurant downtown so we could eat something different but my cousin who was in town for a week was flying back home to Philippines on the same day. He couldn't go farther so we decided to go to a nearest restaurant. Since my cousins hadn't tasted Chinese food at the restaurant where my sister celebrated her birthday in February, I suggested we go Chinese. My decision to let them have Chinese food did not disappoint. All of them liked the dishes we ordered. Not one single plate had leftovers in them.

Ma Po Tou fu

3rd Trip to The Bay Restaurant

 We were invited to a Saturday afternoon concert at one of our Adventist Churches in Bangkok. We were not expecting the concert to be a back-to-back performances of the visiting singing group from the Philippines and the other choir from the church where I regularly attend. The concert ran for a few hours and by the time the group sang their last piece, our tummies were growling. Soon as the Kodak moments were finished, we all agreed to eat together. The thing was, we couldn't decide  where to go so while my friend was driving, we had a little discussion on our preferences. We wanted to eat something good but reasonable in a place which wasn't a long drive from our places. We excluded The Mall, our common meeting place because we usually got dinner from there. One by one we said names of restaurants we had gone to before. It was either too far, too expensive, service was not too good. When one friend suggested The Bay,  we approved.

So off we went.

We ordered the usual garlic bread that came with tomato salsa. My sister's meal wasn't complete without mushroom soup. We also shared vegetarian pizza.

Tuna-Cheese Pizza Rolls

A few weeks back,  I happened to find a good bakingbook at 30 percent off at Asia Books. I skimmed through the book and when I saw the lovely recipes it contained, I  decided it was worth purchasing. I had been meaning to try the recipes at home but due to my hectic life (well, compared to my life before as a university instructor) I was unable to.

Ninth Cafe at Siam Paragon

Irene's high school friend was in town to get her work visa to Kazakhstan. Her visit to Thailand fell on the same day we had our monthly get together. Because it was her first visit in the Land of Smiles, we thought it would be better if we had Thai food so she could taste them. I worked Sunday so I was unable to help them scout for a good place. My friends said most restaurants were packed and the only restaurant that had enough tables and chairs for the eight of us was The Ninth Cafe at the basement of Siam Paragon.

Cupcakes for Marthina's Birthday Celebration

These vanilla cupcakes frosted with vanilla butter cream were for our birthday celebrant. Blue butterfly cupcakes were for boys, pink flower for girls. Each kid was given one. A candle was put on each cupcake and the kids got to blow their own candle.

Marthina turns 4

Our Marthina is no longer a baby. She turns 4 today. She's the apple of the eye of everyone in our group. When she requested a "princess cake"  for her birthday, I said YES right away. Who could turn down a request from an adorable little girl like her?

Her mother brought home the six Disney princesses from her trip to Uncle Sam and I put them all on her cake. I "built"  2 towers to make the cake look more princessy.

Mini-reunion

Yesterday, some of my pastry friends and I met for the first time since we left culinary school in July 2010. One of our classmates was back after a 6-month  stint on Disney Cruise in Florida. We agreed to have a welcome dinner for him at Siam Paragon, a  place which has extensive choices of restaurants.

Choosing a good place for a meal would always result to a never ending conference among my culinary friends as each of us prefer different taste. We couldn't decide  where to eat so we walked around for a bit to check out some places and discuss their menus, a habit we have grown to love. Then we spotted a restaurant  we'd gone to several times while we were still students at Le Cordon Bleu. We figured it would be nice to take a trip down memory lane so everyone agreed to go.

Kate ordered Lad Na, a Thai Rice noodle in gravy. Naung ordered a set of Thai dish. We were so focused on catching up that she finished almost 3 quarters of her  food  before I remembered to take a picture of it.

Charlie Brown on Sukhumvit 11

Mexican food had been the subject of conversation for many months among my circle of friends. There is one place foreigners frequent on Sukhumvit Road so Mags suggested we go. Due to our schedule differences going Mexican with every one in our group seemed impossible.

Then came the big day, the 13th anniversary of Mag's 25th birthday. Figure that out! It didn't take much convincing when Mags said we  celebrate it at Charlie Brown Mexican Restaurant on Sukhumvit 11. The six of us went.

We were greeted by David, the manager of the restaurant, as we arrived. The tables were booked. We were told. We didn't know that booking was necessary before going there but the manager was kind enough to give us a table. We were ushered to our seats after David and a waitress put two tables together.

We ordered drinks and while sipping them, we busied ourselves discussing what to eat. After a long conference, we hailed a waiter to order.

Nachos were served first. Only after a few moments of munching nachos, there came the parade of the entrees. People looked in amazement when our orders arrived.  All main dishes were served with Mexican rice and refried beans.

 A toast for the birthday girl!

Cheesecake House

July 18 was national holiday in Thailand. Unlike my sister who gets loads of holidays due to the nature of her job, I seldom get holiday at work. That's the catch of being a chef. So when my supervisor at work informed me Monday was holiday, I was delighted. I took advantage of my one day break by going to a garage sale with my sister, friend and her daughter. A friend of a friend is moving out to a new apartment. She wanted to get rid of some stuff she might not need at the new place.

After our purchase, we said our goodbyes and headed back home. We were just half a mile away when all of a sudden my sister proposed we have our afternoon snack at Cheesecake House. We were already in the area so why not maximize our time there. My friend was quick to make a U-Turn. The next thing we knew , she was pulling over in front of an old building which housed the shop.

As we entered, the shelves of cookies, pastries and cupcakes greeted us.

Spectacular Space

Still months away but my sister had already came up with a theme for her summer class at NIVA International Kindergarten. This year's theme was Spectacular Space. I was pretty sure she would ask me to make a cake that would present the concept of her topic. She did! But imagine my surprise when she demanded a cake with all the planets on it. How would I do that?

So we surfed the web, checked the recipes and design and after some thoughtful discussion we agreed on one design that I used as a model. She let me decide on flavor. I opted for a chocolate chiffon cake. I doubled the recipe so I could have 2 layers. I spread chocolate mousse filling on each layer of the cake and masked the entire cake with black buttercream.

The decoration took a while as I had to mix 9 different colors for the sun and each planet. To ease the trouble in drawing the planets, I piped the buttercream spirally. I used tip number 8 for the sun , number 6 for bigger planets and small tip for smaller planets. Had I known that the sun didn't look like how it was supposed to look like, I would have piped the buttercream using the star tip.

It was kind of difficult to get the right hue of black but I managed to arrive to the closest shade by mixing black with blue and adding a bit of brown. Using only black dye would turn buttercream into grey color.

  The inscription said Spectacular Space.

Oishi

My sister and I had been talking about visiting the Shabushi Japanese Buffet Restaurant for weeks. Yesterday after work, we went . Two friends tagged along. The highlight of the restaurant is the steamboat buffet or more commonly known as hot pot.

Hot pot is a metal pot set in the center of the table and placed over a hotplate. At Shabushi, there are 3 choices of soup and we picked the normal one. There are wide range of dish selections such as seafood, meat and vegetables. You pick what you like, dump it in the simmering soup and cook it yourself .

There is also a section of sushi and other hot foods. A variety of drinks are also available. The price is 29o Baht per person.

The pot divided into 2 is a great concept. Our friends eat pork and seafood. We don't. We ordered the same soup. We both had the freedom to cook what we like to eat without asking each other.

Children's Potluck

It was only half past nine when we arrived at church and the kids were all gathered at the gazebo impatiently waiting for us. We could tell they were ecstatic just by how excited they became when our car pulled over. Every one raced to hug and greet us. Even the older ones, not aware of what the commotion was all about , joined in.

After our endearing moments, each kid bragged about the food their parents prepared for the occasion.

Then came lunch. We went to the house of the head of the Children's Ministry Department, unpacked our lunches and said grace before consuming all the food served at the table.

Below are some photos I took during the 3-hour long potluck.

Saying cheese/ jeez first before praying.

Fudgy Brownies

The Children's Ministry Department at church will be having a potluck after the service on Saturday. My sister , one of the few Sabbath School teachers, is bringing carbonara and as one of the Primary kids' "sponsor" I made this fudgy brownies especially for them. I know kids love chocolate and this is the closest I can do to show them my support.

My First Wedding Cake

For a novice baker like me, making wedding cake is a huge undertaking. Never had I thought making it shortly after I began my journey down the baking trail. When I visited Aunty Myrna in April, she told me about a wedding in June. She's one of the principal sponsors and she wanted to give a wedding cake as a present. She told me her preference. For weeks I couldn't stop envisioning the cake. It would be my first time and I was just too excited. I browsed the web, read wedding cake cookbooks and asked a friend who is a more experienced pastry chef for suggestions and ideas. With these as a guide, I came up with a nice design and flavor. I chose Devil's Food cake for the base. I settled for cookies and cream filling. I was told it would be a garden reception so I chose to make buttercream with half amount of butter and half shortening. I was confident the cake would survive this heat.

Mags Farewell Dinner

I was supposed to go to a cheese seminar at Le Cordon Bleu but I received a text message from a friend who was supposed to go with me saying she couldn't make it. I felt bad. I didn't want to go without her so I went straight home. Just as I was opening the door, my phone rang. It was my sister calling me to say that she and her colleagues had arranged a farewell dinner for a friend who's moving to a new school. She asked me if I wanted to join them. My appointment was cancelled so I said yes. I went to meet them at their school and drove together to the restaurant. The place is called Virgin River along Nawamin Road.

We rented a private room equipped with KTV. We ordered loads of food and ate them with gusto. At the end of the night, I felt much better.


Above is deep-fried fish ; below is cashew nut salad

Sinful chocolate cake

This is by far second to the most delicious and sinful chocolate I have ever made and eaten. Why sinful? The answer lies in the things it consists of. Same amount of butter and chocolate, 1 cup of sugar, 4 eggs and a heaping tablespoon of flour. No kidding!

Mushroom Sandwich

I had never thought that plain mushroom could enhance the flavor of a simple sandwich until one Sunday when my sister's student brought us some mushroom sandwich. I was curious as to how boiled mushroom taste in sandwich so I opened the pack soon as the girl handed it to me, took one piece and ate. The first thing I felt at first bite was the smoothness of the champignon. The taste of mayo, cheese and mushroom was unbelievably delectable. I will have to ask the girl's mother where she bought it because I want to eat some more.

Kiwi-Strawberry Smoothie

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Jako is 2

My godson Jako turned two yesterday. His mom, having tasted my chocolate mousse cake at a friend's birthday dinner, ordered the same cake. This was the second time she asked me to make her son's birthday cake. Last year on his first birthday, I made him a chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream frosting.

Anyway, when she called to say she wanted chocolate mousse this time, my mind started to visualize the cake. I wanted a decoration that would fit the occasion, a cake that would look pleasing to the kids' eyes. It's a children's party after all. I googled children's birthday cakes to get ideas. Most cakes I saw were wrapped in fondant. I could make fondant-wrapped cake but with all the work I do at the bakery ( I do all the work from weighing to packing), I was afraid I wouldn't be able to finish it on time. So I continued my search and found some that inspired me to create Jako's birthday cake.

Chocolate Fudge Cake II

I got an order for a birthday cake last week. The customer requested a chocolate cake that wouldn't ruin her budget but would still taste delicious. Thinking of all the chocolate cakes I have done so far, the chocolate fudge fall into this category. Simple, cheap yet tempting.

Chocolate Fudge Cake

This is one simple recipe. All you need is the chocolate sponge cake base and ganache for frosting.

For the chocolate sponge cake, you need:

4 eggs
1 eggyolk
100 g brown sugar ( I reduced it to 90)
100 g flour
20 g cocoa powder

1. Grease an 18 cm pan. Line the base with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 160 deg C.
2. Sift the flour and cocoa powder together. Set aside. ( Or you can sift the dry ingredients over the egg mixture later.)
3. Place the eggs, eggyolk and brown sugar in a mixing bowl. Whisk until creamy and fluffy. This will take about 5-7 minutes.
4. Gently fold the flour/cocoa powder mixture into the egg mixture until well incorporated.
5. Pour into the pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the skewer inserted onto the center of the cake comes out clean.
5. Unmold. Set aside to cool.

Lemon Tart

When I was still a student at Le Cordon Bleu, I dreaded the day when I had to make tarts. Almost everytime I did it in practical , my teacher had always something to say about my tart shell. It was either too thin, thick or uneven. He reminded me to practice more at home. I did but I still couldn't get the hang of it. When I learned that making a tart shell was part of the final exam, I panicked. I only had a couple of weeks to master it. So instead of practising 2 times a week, I made it a habit to make a tart shell every night before going to sleep. My hardwork paid a price. I passed my tartshell exam:-)


Now that I'm working, making tarts has become one of the things I enjoy the most. Since I decide about the menu, I serve 3 different tarts in a week. Here's one that has become popular among my customers.

To make the tart shell, you need:

1 2/3 cup flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup icing sugar
2 egg yolks
vanilla extract

Sift the flour and icing sugar together.
Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the eggyolk and mix with a spoon.
Lastly, add vanilla. Mix to make a soft dough.
Knead for a bit to have nice smooth dough.
Chill for at least half an hour.
In a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry until it is 2.5 mm thick.
Line a round aluminum tart tin. Trim off the excess.
Prick the base with fork. Chill.
Bake at 170 degrees C for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Chill.

Pasta with Garlic Salsa Sauce

The month of April has lots of holidays. There's the Thai New Year that lasts one week and another holiday I can't seem to remember. I am thankful I can get to relax for a few days but having days off work is annoying because I have to double the amount of cakes I make to make up for the days I'm not working. Last week, I made 10 cakes in one day. I made the same amount 2 days after that. At the end of the week, I felt like my body reached its limit. Usually, on my way home, I plan on what to cook for dinner. But on that day, I was so exhausted I didn't even bother to think of what to eat.

Once home, I couldn't ignore the urge inside me to prepare something for dinner.I checked the cabinet and my eyes laid on a bag of pasta I just bought. So I made this pasta dish with the last bit of energy I had. For me, pasta is one of the easiest dish to make. I like it because not much preparation is required to do it.







I placed the pasta in a saucepan. I added oil and salt, and boiled it for seven minutes. I transfered the pasta in a colander. I placed it under a running water to remove its greasiness and drained.

For the sauce, I used the leftover Garlic Salsa sauce from days ago. The label says use within 2 weeks after opening. We don't have nachos in stock anymore. I might as well use it before it gets bad. I poured the salsa into a sauce pan, added mixed Italian herbs, freshly ground black pepper and a bit of salt to taste. I added tuna right before I removed if from heat so it would retain its shape and flavor.

I mixed the sauce with the pasta and served it with fresh basil leaf. We had a wonderful dinner.

Hearty Dinner

For many weeks now, we have been making a full use of the grill a friend gave us. A week ago, we invited our adoptive father to join us in our new found hobby- grilling that is. He enjoyed our conversation over the dinner table and liked the food so much. While we were eating he mentioned he had the same grill at home and said why not do it again the following week at his house. He said we didn't have to worry about food. Every thing was on him. We all answered "sure" and said we would bring ice cream.

We got to his house a little past 6. The smell of the salmon filled his house. We got very curious as to how he cooks so we all joined him in the kitchen. I found a few lemon slices on top of the fish. The guy certainly knows what he's doing. He asked us to toss the salad while he cooked the rest of the fish.

The table was all set for dinner.




The salad consisted of cherry tomatoes, cucumber, lettuce and bell pepper. He had many choices of salad dressing. I ate my first serving with French dressing, then Italian with the second.





The salmon fresh from the grill.

The potato was well baked.

We had a great time together.

Vegetarian Sandwich

It was Saturday. My sister made some pumpkin patties but I forgot to take notes of what she mixed with the grated pumpkin.We were running out of time. We had to leave early for church because she was the Sabbath School teacher that day.

I took the buns out of the plastic package and assembled the burger. First, I spread Thousand Island dresing on the bottom bun. Next, I placed the pumpkin patty. Then, I put 2 slices of tomatoes followed by the cheese. I laid the lettuce and put the top bun last.

It sure was a huge burger. I had 2 of them and it supplied me the energy I needed til lunchtime.

Mango Mousse Cake

Being the one in-charge of the cake production at work, I have the liberty to decide on what to sell. We serve Strawberry Cake on Sundays. The price of strawberries had gone up towards the beginning of summer so I had to make some changes in the menu. In tropical countries, summer means mango season so I took advantage of the abundance of this fruit. We Asians love mangoes and I am pretty sure the new cake will be a big hit among our customers. I was right!


This mango mousse cake was based on the recipe of happyhomebaking. I made some modification and it turned out good.

For the sponge cake:

100 g cake flour ( I used all-purpose)
3 eggs
75 g brown sugar
20 g unsalted butter (melted)
2 TBSP evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla extract.

1. Grease an 18 cm round pan. Line the base with parchment paper.Preheat oven to 160 deg C.
2.In an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy. This will take 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the butter. Let it cool to room temperature.
3. Sift the flour over the egg mixture. Fold it gently with a spatula until well blended.
4. Fold in the melted butter.
5. Add the milk and lastly, add the vanilla extract. Fold it gently until well incorporated.
6. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Unmold and cool completely before frosting.

Baked Tortillas

I was still on my way home when I thought of baking the leftover tortillas for dinner tonight. I remember there was a can of baked beans left in the pantry. I could use them as a filling. My mouth went watery as I picture a plate of baked tortillas.

Going Mexican

At the start of the new year, my sister and I had agreed to try out different dishes to get new cooking ideas and inspirations. This would mean allotting money and time to find restaurants around Bangkok. A few weeks ago, we passed by Siam Paragon on our way back from Chulalongkorn Bookstore. As we wandered around the basement, we spotted a small Mexican Restaurant. We looked at each other and the same idea came to our minds. Start our plan right then. We browsed through the menu and after a few minutes, we decided to have Mexican food. Our decision did not disappoint.


We had Nachos with guacamole dip to start with.

Grilling at home

A friend was giving away some of her belongings that she woudn't be needing in her new apartment. One afternoon, my sister came home with an almost brand new grill. I knew exactly where it came from. Our friend was gracious enough to give it to us.

To show my appreciation, I invited her and another friend over to our house for a meal. I cooked fish in lemon soup base and bought vegetables and fish to grill. To taste, I prepared a marinate with vinegar, soy sauce, freshly ground black pepper, chopped onion and finely minced garlic. The food was so delicious that we planned to do it again in a week.

Happy Birthday Sister

My sister celebrated her birthday recently. It was her special day so I thought of creating something different for her, not the normal cake with a frosting but a cake that people from my circle wouldn't expect to see at a birthday gathering.

So for a few days I spent many hours browsing the web, looking for a really nice recipe when I stumbled upon this website of a woman in Singapore. I browsed the site, checked her recipes and had decided to try her chocolate cheesecake. Through her site, I was able to come up with a wonderful gift I could give my sister.

The colorful rocklets made this chocolate cheesecake tempting

Chocolate Fudge - True American Dessert

My friend, whose dad had been craving for a chocolate fudge cake, introduced me to this American dessert. He requested me to make one for him. It was my first time to hear about this particular dessert and I wanted to make it right so I googled it and found out that this cake can be baked or chilled. I found a simple recipe that only required melting the ingredients. I rang my friend to ask if that was the one he wanted. He said yes and I started preparing every thing I needed to make this dessert.


Marshmallow, butter, sugar went into the pan.

New Year 2011

My family had a simple get-together dinner at my place to welcome the New Year. Tita Noims prepared the Korean kimbap, a dish that resembles the Japanese Sushi. I baked some corn muffins a friend requested me to make, my sister tossed some salad and for the dessert, we had Mais Con Yelo, prepared by me and my sister.

Table was set for our New Year's Eve Dinner (Media Noche)

Post- Christmas Dinner

After an eight-month shutdown due to the extent of the damage caused by the fire in May 2010, Central World has opened its doors to the public again days before Christmas. My cousin, sister and I had decided to check out the newly renovated shopping mall.

The place has a new look. Some shops were still doing their last minute cleaning and piling, others were closed, the rest were already open for business. We walked around for a bit, not really interested to do some shopping but just to see how much work had been done since it began its construction a few months back.

The Bay

A close friend had invited me, my sister and my cousin to a dinner before he left for Christmas holiday break. He let us choose the place. We'd been talking about taking him to this restaurant which my sister and her friends frequented. It didn't take us much convincing when we told him about the place. It was only my second time at The Bay restaurant on Ladprao 15. The food there I have tasted so far were all good and the prices were reasonable, too.


On the day we went, I had a meeting with my boss. We finished late. Getting to the restaurant on time would be impossible given the traffic in Bangkok so I rang my sister to tell her to wait for me because I was still coming. I took all means to make it to the dinner although I knew they'd probably be finished by the time I got there. I was right. When I arrived I found their plates empty and saw what they had ordered for me. Salmon steak. It had been sitting on the table for an hour. It was cold. I was too tired and hungry, I didn't say a thing. but sat down, ate the steak and a couple pieces of bruschetta they'd left for me.