Joomajam Time

We found out about this music driven and multilingual app for kids from a mommy that I follow on Instagram. We downloaded it, joined their contest and won a voucher where we were able to unlocked other lessons.

 My little one really likes it because there's free Tagalog lessons about colors and numbers. She is now very curious to learn her Mother language (the one we were supposed to teach her from the very start but our living situation is always changing and is better to learn to speak differently to avoid confusion) .  She is learning it faster because of the catchy songs and adorable visuals. I'm hooked on it too because there other languages of each lessons available that I can learn with my daughter. I like the app too because you can set the time to allow your kid to use it.

This is now my "go to app" for my little one to use to have my free time without the guilt. 

Classic Cinnamon Roll

I am a self-confessed disobedient baker. I have tried and tested recipes from friends and trusted online sites but I always, deliberately, don't follow them. I shouldn't have gotten those recipes, right?! I'm just too lazy to follow everything to the dot. So I always end up with something less than spectacular baked product or I finally get the recipe right after several (and few pounds on the belly) tries.

As usual, I found this Classic Cinnamon Roll recipe, one of our favorites, from Yummy magazine and I tried making them based on their recipe.

My  version of Cinnamon Roll

Yeah, it was good.

Classic Cinnamon Roll (my "more or less" version 'coz I don't follow exactly the recipe)

1/4 cup milk 

2Tbsp butter

 ------melt/heat; cool to room temp

1tsp of yeast

1/4 cup warm water

------mix until frothy

then whisk to the mixture

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

milk-butter mixture

then add flour to make dough

Knead for a few minutes and proof for, ideally, few hours. (I just hate waiting.)

Roll out dough and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture.

Roll up the dough and cut into equal portions. Arrange them on a greased pan. 

Cover with lightly damp cloth and proof again. (I really hate waiting.)

Bake at 180-200 degrees C for 20-25 mins.

Let it cool and drizzle with some glaze or frosting. I made my sugar glaze by mixing butter, milk and powdered sugar and the choco glaze by melting granulated sugar, butter, milk and unsweetened choco powder.

My version of Cinnamon Roll with Choco glaze

Eat. Bake. Repeat.

Testing Recipes: Vanilla Cake

Time flies really fast. Our little one is turning three soon. All she wants is a nice Barbie or Disney princess cake -- the one with a doll in the center and has edible cake and frosting for the dress. Since I am into a little baking for the past year, I would like to make this cake possible for her --- with my own two hands. It seems easy to make when you watch tutorials on Youtube. But from experience, I know it's a little challenging when you don't have molders, pans and a really go to recipe for the frosting, filling and cake. I only do very basic (not following exact recipe) cakes for no occasion snacks and dessert. Though those would be applicable for the Doll Cake, I still want this cake to be a little special since it's for my child's birthday. So I've been experimenting with some basic vanilla cake recipes and frostings. 

I'm posting the recipe here for reference.

Vanilla Cake:

A) flour mixture

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

----mix and sift before mixing to other ingredients

B) Egg yolk mixture

3 egg yolks, whisked

1/4-1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

--- mix together using electric beater

C) 1/2 cup milk

D) Egg white mixture

3 egg whites

1/4-1/3 cups sugar

--- beat until peaks form

Pour A and C alternately on B. Mix /Beat until well blended. Fold in D to the ABC mixture.

Bake at 180degrees C for 30-40 mins.

The cake was okay, maybe needs a little more vanilla and sift the flour ( I ALWAYS skip this part) to make it fluffier. But I think this is good enough for what I need since it looks like it can hold a heavy (frosting) dress and can keep the doll in the center without falling off and out of the cake. However when I tasted this right after it came out of the oven, it tasted a little "egg-ish". That's why I decided to make Caramel sauce to cover that quite unpleasant taste.

*After resting the cake for a while, there was no more "egg-ish" taste anymore. So the cake can do with or without the sauce

Caramel Sauce:

2 Tbsp sugar

--- caramelize over low-medium heat

then add

1/2 cup cream

---mix till well blended and reached desired consistency

then remove from heat and  add

2 Tbsp butter

--- mix well

Pour over cake.

The cake and caramel sauce tasted good together. I'm now considering using the caramel sauce for filling and maybe for crumb coating  the doll cake instead of buttercream. But I found this Battle of the Buttercream of Nila from the The Tough Cookie. Now, I am tempted to try and experiment again. 

 I am sabotaging my own diet with testing these recipes. 

Simple Apple Cinnamon Cake

My sis-in-law sent me an easy to make Fresh Apple Cake recipe after reading my previous post about apples.

I have to try it because I've been craving so much of McDo's Apple Cinnamon Sundae. Giving into my ice cream cravings would mean calorie overload because that one sundae would surely be paired with a BigMac meal with large Pepsi and Fries. I'm not saying the Apple cake is free from calorie. It's still loaded with sugar. But I'm choosing the lesser evil.

Apple Cinnamon Cake with Caramel Sauce

For the Cake:

Mix 1 cup flour, 1tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt. 

In another bowl, cream 50g butter (the original recipe used 1/2 cup oil). Add 1 cup sugar, 1 egg, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1 cup chopped apples. *Optional: I added half cup water since the batter is too thick. Add in the dry/ flour mixture and mix until incorporated thoroughly. Pour in a greased baking pan and bake for 30 minutes at 200degrees C.

For the Caramel Sauce:

Put half cup of sugar in a small sauce pan and heat till it caramelizes. Remove from heat and add 2 Tbsp butter. Mix well. While stirring, add half cup of milk. Heat again for a few minutes while stirring until sauce reaches desired consistency. Pour over the cake.

Eat in moderation. :)

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away."

(Fresh) Apple is a healthy snack. Read more on other healthy snacks here: Super Snacks

Homemade Cupcake Frosting

I just usually sprinkle with chocolates or candies or use store bought frosting to make my cakes pretty. Now, I have finally made my own cupcake frosting. Yay.

I have tried a couple of frosting recipes I found online using ingredients that I always have at home. But none seems to be good enough to decorate cakes. It's either too runny or too lumpy. I probably  didn't follow the exact amount of ingredients  or hastened some of the cooking processes thats why nothing worked. Today, I diligently followed the process but still didn't follow the listed ingredients. But still, this frosting turned out well.

Mix  half cup milk and 1 1/1 Tbsp flour in a saucepan and heat while whisking continuously for about 8 mins or until the mixture looks like thick glue. Let it cool. Mix 100g melted butter and half cup sugar using electric beater for about 3 minutes or until the mixture forms peaks. Combine the 2 mixtures together and beat for another 3mins or until you get your desired consistency. You may now use it to frost your already cool cupcakes. But since the climate here is very hot, I let my frosting cool again in the fridge to stiffen so that it will be easier to decorate my cupcakes using my piping syringe. You can also sprinkle candies or chocolate chips over the frosting as you like.

The recipe is actually good for frosting 5- 6 cupcakes. (Not in photo is the one I ate.)

*I used this recipe for reference :  Creamy frosting

No Bake Cheesecake

  Hubby and I have been craving for cheesecake for months now. Somehow, we weren't able to have (or enjoy) cheesecake during our more than a month long vacation. I guess we missed too much of too many things and cheesecake was on the lower part of our list. Apparently, there seems no pastry shop here that serves cheesecake... mostly mousse and overly decorated cakes only. So I have to make one (again) to satisfy our cravings.
I think I pretty much nailed it.

 Thanks Betty Crocker! I'm so lucky I found you!

Next time I'm going to make this from scratch. 

Everyday is Valentines

I find it really unnecessary for the hubby to make this Valentines day special. I get my special surprises everyday anyway. He works 45 hrs a week and still manages to wash the dishes, do the laundry, vacuum the floor and iron our clothes. (Yes. It is possible for that testosterone driven being to do work around the house.) If he has extra energy, he even arranges the toys.  I'm a spoiled, "chore-less", stay-at-home, milk-producing-mom. Lucky me!

But I still got these anyway:

Everyday is Valentines with you Sweetie! Let's stay together, always and forever! I love you!

Lazy, Preggy and Stormy

Since I have declared how bored I already am being 20lbs over weight with another human being in my tummy, I will say it again. I am officially bored more so with this week-long stormy season back home.

So what to do when you're almost half crazy being at home 24/7?! Cook. I have cooked a week's worth of dumplings, egg rolls and my all-time favorite on a rainy day -- CHAMPORADO!

Champorado is chocolate rice porridge made of obviously, chocolate tablea, sticky rice, water, milk and sugar. It's the all time favorite breakfast and snack of Filipinos especially on a rainy day. Champorado paired with dried fish (tuyo) and everything is perfect.

I have to go now and eat my snack. :D

not just sands

im fortunate enough to explore the wonders of the middle east -- not the famous ones or the ones you see on magazines and tourism brochures. these are way better!

 

wishes do come true?!

Seriously, I was thinking of taking all the tissue from work at home so that i wont have to buy. No one will notice it anyway. Besides, there's no inventory for them. but then again,I'll leave graft and corruption to the politicians. I have money to buy my own anyway. I should put it on my grocery list.
But today, for some reason, one patient of mine gave me one pack of Kleenex. Weird isn't it? You don't get tissue as HH.
I guess everything I wished for is coming true. Sweet!
Should I wish for bigger things?

free coffee

For the past few days, I was trying to minimize my spending for I haven’t saved enough as I should have. I started by not buying coffee from the vendo machine. Which by the way cost twice as much if I just bring my own coffee to work. But the Cappuccinoe Caramel from the machine tastes waaayyy better than any 3-in-1 coffees available from the grocery. So I finally gave in. Just for today. What’s 2 bucks anyway for a really great tasting coffee? I will earn it back anyway.

So I went to the machine and did not do anything yet but, the Cappuccino Carmel has red light, saying, “Take me cause somebody already put money inside but forgot to take any coffee.”

I pushed the button and wahlah! I got my coffee for free! Yay!

Ain’t life just sweet!?

my new hobby

My patient introduced me to making key chains, mobile accessories and little trinkets. I think she has a shop where she sells these. I tried making one and she liked it. Now, she pays me for every item i sew. Sweet!

I can make more money with these hobby than my day job. :)

100 bucks richer

It really pays to be nice! :D

HH

HH or "huthot" is the term we use when patients give us gifts for the services we rendered which they liked. it can be in the form of food, items or cash. I usually get food (cause i think my patients know that I need that more to gain more weight), which I like better for it's a big NO-NO for me if it's cash... unless it's my professional fee, of course.

In this foreign land, I haven't received what I can really consider as HH.Usually patients offer me biscuits or gum that are in excess of what they are already partaking. Therefore, not counted as HH. But yesterday, my patient gave me a bracelet with crystal beads and diamonds -- not real diamonds of course. I would probably marry her if it was. However, it was really nice and I really liked it that I was already thinking of what outfits to wear with that bracelet. LOL.

I wish patients or anyone will be more appreciative of what others do for them -- just like my patient. I don't expect or wanted everyone to give me HH though. but at least people will really acknowledge or recognize the good deeds you do for them, whether with just a simple "Thank you" -- or with an HH of course. LOL.

Revamp

A few more weeks and I’ll be seeing my sweetie again. He’s been away for 2 years, minus the 10 days vacation we got to spend together last year. We’ve been grateful for skype , oovoo and our laptops/PC, at least we had the chance to make unlimited videocalls to survive this long distance relationship. However, for the past weeks we were limited to just voicecalls since videocalls via PSP is not yet available. He had to dispose the desktop PC to lessen shipping expenses before he leaves his accommodation of 2 years

I wonder how he looks like now… hmmm?!?

I thought of getting myself a makeover -- a look that will make him fall in love with me all over again. Since he hasn’t seen me in awhile, this is my chance to reinvent myself, just a little coz whatever I look like a few weeks from now will definitely “whoa!” him.

versions

if you like this (like i do)...

you might also like this...

aren't they just fun to watch?

stumbled upon it 1

so... who would want one?


available at walmart.save money. live better.

everything is so white

it looked the same as the postcards my cousins send during Christmas. So this is how it feels like having snow...

boyceavenue in manila

spent V-day alone...but not so lonely! Boyceavenue live in Manila! yippee! i missed them when they performed in hardrock, orlando. thank God I didn't miss them when they first performed in Manila!

the lonely atsara

The atsara serves as the side dish of almost all Filipino foods. From grilled porks & seafoods to lechon to breakfast meals like tocino & tapa. Everytime we order food in a Filipino restaurant, there will ALWAYS be atsara on the side.



...too bad I don't eat atsara. Can we not think of another side dish for my fave Filipino dishes? I just feel bad wasting a tasteful looking (side) dish.