Summer in January...

Summer for me came early this year.
Spent the last week of January basking in the sun at the beautiful island of Boracay.=)

 Pristine beach with its powdery white sand, clear water...........I could go on and on and on..........

Hubby had their division kick-off and I immediately followed right at the last day of the conference  -  I just couldn't wait and was giddy with excitement to be with my favorite person in the world.=)

 These gals were so much fun to be with that it felt like we have known each other for ages.   We came as acquaintances ( my hubby's friends' wives - got it? )  and left as friends.=)

 It's my 2nd time to be in Bora, my husband's 15th time..............huwhaaaaattt???!!!

The 1st time we did the usual - island hopping, snorkeling, banana boat ride........
This time,   we chose to just BUM around and ENJOY whatever there is to do along the long strip of white beach.

And ENJOY we did!!!

The beach, I think, is the perfect venue to do this.

Group Jumpshot perfection.

The guys did their thing.....

...and we did ours.

We kept our tummies happy too!

Of course, the baker in me didn't pass up the chance to try Bora's famous CALAMANSI MUFFIN!
Mmmmm......heavenly even sans the frosting.      It's slightly toasted on the outside,  soft and crumbly inside,   with just the right amount of tang.

Didn't get to meet Nadine, who came up with the recipe, but we were greeted by her mom Lee instead.     Muffin cost Php 45 each.    Bought myself 2 boxes of 6's to bring home to my family and hubby's.    At the airport on the way back, we realized we forgot to buy for ourselves.=(

As of this writing,   I am seriously craving for one! Sheesh!

I have got to make me one of those muffins.=)  Searched the net and stumbled upon a recipe at Pepper.ph

Go on and recreate it,   recipe can be found below or here.

CALAMANSI MUFFIN
from Pepper.ph

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup calamansi

Mix together dry ingredients in a bowl : all purpose flour, baking powder, salt.  Set aside.
Mix together milk and calamansi in a bowl.  Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes.
Add eggs one at a time and mix well.
Add in milk mixture and flour mixture.
Mix until well blended.  Don't overmix.
Scoop in non-stick muffin pans.
Bake in preheated 350 degrees fahrenheit oven for 18-23 minutes.

These muffins can be paired with milk I guess but I found it best paired with........

Avocado Mango!!!!!

Still a lot of things to try and do and so little time. ( stayed for 3 days/2 nights )
But despite that short a stay.............I had FUN, FUN, FUN!!!!!

Till next time, Boracay!

Enjoy!

Pink and Gold Dessert Table

Hey.
I'm back in the blogosphere.  Have been on hiatus since forever, I guess.
But I'm turning over a new leaf.=)

1st blog post for the 1st month of a new year.
It seems very fitting to post the 1st dessert buffet table I made.

A few days right before Christmas, I was commissioned to do a baptismal theme in pink and gold motif.  My brain was packed with lots of ideas since I was given a freehand on the design.

I have started making cake pops and marshmallow pops then.
This was the perfect avenue to showcase my creations.

Enjoy the pictures!

 

I threw in strawberry gummy candies and Hershey kisses with "thank you" sticker printables made by my cousin Vanessa, which I paintstakingly sticked at the bottom of each chocolate kiss.

These were last minute inclusion to the menu.  There were still a lot of cake scraps ( the domed top sliced off the cake ), I figured "Why not make an ice cream cone cupcake?"

It was tiring having to prepare a lot of things for the party.  But when all the goodies were gone, I was beaming with joy.=)

I deserve a pat on the back..........or a massage would be better. **wink**

Have your Carrots...and eat it too!

I can't believe I have never tried carrot cake before! ( I'm filling you in on my little secret.........)
I've never been a fan.
Don't even know how it turned up on my list of recipes to try.
Maybe my subconscious was telling me to.
So if you've never tried one, you should.

It's satisfying to know that it is both nutritious and delicious.
Fine, the only healthy thing in this cake is its name.=)
Need I say anything about the frosting this cake calls for?
Soft? Smooth? A little cloud of heaven here on earth.
You could try and eat it sans the icing but I must say cream cheese and carrot cake is the way to go!

 
So if you're going to ask about my first experience of making and eating carrot cake, it was good................g-o-o-o-o-o-o-d! ( to the tune of God played by Morgan Freeman in Bruce Almighty )
And it seemed that God was entirely pleased with the aroma coming from my oven that He has then turned my kitchen into a carrot cake factory.=)

Making the cake is surprisingly easy.
The only time consuming part and perhaps the hardest step is grating the carrots.

The addition of walnuts, raisins and crushed pineapples make this cake all the more delicious.
But if you have a family member with nut allergy then you can skip the walnuts and still end up with a delectable cake.

For the frosting, I wanted something a tad bit tart so you will see sour cream and lemon juice added.

This recipe is just enough for a single 8" cake pan.  Feel free to double the recipe should you intend to make layered cakes.

______________________________________________________________________
CARROT CAKE RECIPE

Preheat oven to 170C.  Grease bottom and sides of your pan 8" baking pan and line with parchment paper ( bottom only ).

DRY INGREDIENTS :  Sift everything together in a bowl.

1 1/2 cup cake flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
dash of salt ( optional )

WET INGREDIENTS : In another bowl, beat the following together till light yellow in color :

1 cup Vanilla sugar ( or granulated sugar will do )
2 eggs
1/2 cup Vegetable oil ( I used Wesson's )

Then mix the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients but be careful not to over mix.

Another bowl, mix the following together :

1 cup freshly grated carrots
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup crushed pineapple ( don't worry about adding the syrup, it helps keep the cake moist )
1/4 cup raisins

Once mixed, fold it into your batter.
Pour mixture to prepare baking pan and bake for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

1 8oz cream cheese ( I used Philadelphia )
1/4 cup butter ( I prefer unsalted )
2 cups sifted confectioners sugar
1 tbsp sour cream (** optional )
1 tsp lemon juice

Start by creaming together butter and confectioners sugar until smooth.  Add the lemon juice and **sour cream. Then add your cream cheese. And beat until smooth in consistency.

NOTE :  I was able to cut cake to 2 layers so frosting recipe above is enough to frost layers and cover the cake as well.  I used fondant carrots and sprinkles to add a little decoration.
_______________________________________________________________________

 And since I have been making a lot of this lately, I had the opportunity to tweak the recipe many times.

This recipe is not meant to be kept ( in the baul as they say here in the Philippines ), so I am sharing it to the world.
Now I can proudly say that this is the BEST CARROT CAKE ever...........at least by me.=)


Enjoy!

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

Who makes these from scratch when it is more convenient to buy from the supermarket?

I do!=)
And I made it twice already.

Peanut butter cups ala Reese's has been on my "everything homemade" list to make but have never gotten around to do till now.
Recipe was so easy and taste just as good if not better than the store bought kind.
And the ingredients are so easy to find....in fact you might have some in your pantry right now.

Just 3 ingredients and you're good to go.

Chocolate ( I used Callebaut soft bake chips )
Peanut butter - I used our local favorite Lily's but go ahead if you want to try Jif's
Confectioners sugar

I know, I know....baking success depends on precise measurement.
But for this one, I did'nt follow any recipe and just went with my instincts.=)

I just melted the chocolate chips, combined peanut butter with the sugar and tada...peanut butter cups!

That's homemade for you - fresh, fast and versatile.

Either devour it as it is or top it over ice cream like I did. ***talk about overload!***

This is so yummy my husband and I could finish this in one sitting and still crave for more.

***Uhmm...since a trip to the grocery to get another tub is just not on my "to-do" list now, maybe I'm gonna have to make me homemade ice cream next time.


Enjoy!

Hello Kitty cakes

Who can't resist Hello Kitty?
It has been a favorite among little girls for so many years.

I have had a lot of inquiries on Hello Kitty cakes and have made quite a few.
I must say it was one of the easiest cake to make - with or without a cutter.

Here's the first Hello Kitty cake I made.

Told you it was easy!.....I did'nt need a cutter for this one.=)
Lucky me the client wanted a non-edible topper.......and that was the hard part - finding the perfect Hello Kitty head.

Thanks to my friend Globelle and the ever reliable Clem who kept me company throughout my search, we finally found one.

I won't tell where Partner and you can guess why.=)

 And it was perfect!

Then a lot of other cakes followed after that......

All these were hand molded.  As of this writing I have never purchased a cutter for myself.

Who's going to Japan? Please buy me one.=) Just kidding.
I know just where to find it, in fact I'm heading there now.......

Enjoy!

Our dear Sofia...

Yes, she's our dear Sofia - everyone's favorite Ate.=)
And she turns 11 today.

Not many are aware, I am a stepmother to a bubbly 11 year old.

Happy Birthday Sofia!

Her family is now based in Prince Albert, Canada.

She came last month to stay for the summer and have left already. **sniff** **sniff**
But we were fortunate to be able to spend more than a month doing a lot of things together.
A lot of firsts in it actually.......for me.

First dine out with both our families together

 And a lot of.....

I promised Ian that I would limit cake orders for this month to give time for her.
But this one cake order from my high school friend Fria was an exception.

Toy Story cake theme

I remember her comment very well. " Tita, it's a cowboy in Woody's costume"..........haha
Thank you Sofia for going with me when I delivered the cake.=)

Of course, vacation would'nt be complete without the Chickenjoy she so craves for.

 Whew!  Looking back, you have made this summer very memorable.

The family left for Canada last May 13 - our wedding anniversary.
It was sad to have to say goodbye to our dear Sofia at the airport....

BUT the way I see it, we were blessed to have spent our Anniversary day with her.=)

Not only that, I was able to make her a cake for her birthday/send off party with family and relatives.

So there.  It was all fun, fun, fun.=)

Happy Birthday to a beautiful, bright, funny, smart, kind, cool, wonderful and amazing girl.
You could do anything you ever wanted to do in your life.  Just stay focused and grow in prayer.

Your life will be as sweet for you as you have made it for us.
Dada and I will miss you Sofia.
I love you and care so much about you.

 2014 is not that long..........hopefully we will see each other sooner than that. **wink**

Oh, I almost forgot.  Her mom makes VERY GOOD cheesecake.

See????!!!!

Maybe I could borrow her recipe and blog about it on my next post.
Hmmm........