MARKY COOKS: Baked Potatoes

Okay, It's been a long time since my last post. Naging busy lang sa work, gym and other things kaya di masyado nakakapost pero tuloy pa rin ang buhay! Gaya nito July pa ng ginawa ko ito ngunit ngayon lang sumapi sa akin na hindi ko pa napopost itooo:))

 Ito ay nung minsan na wala akong magawa at wala kaming makain sa gabi... kaya naman nagfifeeling ako na makukuntento ang sikmura ko sa patatas,,, hahaha

Air Heads

One morning, I was surprised to see this box because it's been a long time since I last saw one.

Memories of my childhood automatically flashed back and painted a smile on my face. I used to but these during breaks in our school canteen

Now it's more classy and comes with this SOSYAL packaging! I enjoyed eating them. I was halfway eating my third when I realized they are not mine. Good thing nagpapagood shot kapatid ko, di nagalit! hahahaha

Peanut Butter Co. and Pureza with Brijette

One day, nagkatext na naman kami ni Brijette and as usual sa mga ganitong pagkakataon we end up with a rush gimik,, hehe,, we met each other in MOA. The meeting time was supposed to be 6:30 but it became 8:00pm due to several reasons.

I was feeling depressed that night kaya niyaya ko si Brijette na patulan ang movie ni Melai,, haha. We went to  purchase our tickets and then we spent our remaining hour to eat since we were both hungry.

We chose to try eating at Peanut Butter and Co. The menu was almost filled with sandwiches, but they do have pastas, rice meals and others. But one thing is noticeable among the food offerings, they all have peanut butter on them.

You can also buy jars of your favorite peanut butter in different varieties. From plain to the most unusual combination, they have it here.

Here are the things we ordered that night...

I chose to have one sandwich which caught my interest, Elvis, The King Sandwich which is said to be the favorite of the late Elvis Presley. It has banana slices, bacon and of course peanut butter. I can't find the proper words to describe how good this one is. It's worth a try...

Look at how YAMI(yummy ala coco martin) it is...

Brijette ordered a rice meal of Chicken with touches of peanut butter...

I also added Classic Spaghetti which is made special by the house's specialty, peanut butter. It's creamy and very delicious. The peanut butter made the pasta's consistency better and the taste is to die for!

I ordered grape soda for my beverage. I like how it went well with my dinner. No umay factor since it neutralizes the after taste of peanut butter.

We then wen to the cinemas to watch this movie. You may become bored with some parts but I definitely enjoy some scenes because of my new crush. hehehe Laughtrip lang talaga, minsan dahil sa sobrang corny na. but it was not that bad since it cheered me up and made me less depress that evening.

MARKY COOKS: Choco Banana Sorpresa

Umariba na naman ang pagfifeeling chef ko. I decided to go to the supermarket one time during my Lunch Break. I searched for some ingredients to make a dessert for the following day. I ended up picking my old friends, Crushed Grahams and Banana.

In deciding what to do, I have to consider lots of things like not having a real kitchen which limits the type of preparation to be done for the dessert.

Here is the list of the Ingredients I used to make my Choco Banana Sorpresa

• 4 Pieces banana
• 2 Packs of Crushed Graham
• 1/2 block butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 small can of condensed milk
• 1 cup quick melt chocolates buttons
• Champola or Stick-O
• Whipped cream

1. In a sauce pan, melt sugar, chocolate buttons and butter separately in a water bath.
2. In a large bowl, mix crushed grahams with the melted sugar and butter. Continue until the mixture becomes quite sticky and forms small crumbles.
3. Press the mixture into the bottom of an aluminum pan about 1/2 inch thick( I chose to have 4 small rounded pans) and chill into the fridge.
4. In another bowl, pour the condensed milk into the banana slices. Mix for some time and set aside.
5. Get the pans in the fridge and spread a thin layer of  melted chocolate buttons. Put it back in the fridge for 2-3 minutes then spread the banana mixture or top and chill again. Do the same thing in adding another layer of melted chocolate and Graham mixture.
6. Put the pans in the freezer for 3 hours.
7. Set the oven toaster in a 8 minute timer. Place the pans after three minutes and wait until the top layer turns darker in color
8. In a plate, turn the pan upside-down and release the choco banana layers from the pan.
9. Top it with whipped cream, stick-o and chocolate buttons.

• Serve with ice cream to add more fun...

Don't let the lack of resources hinder your passion. 

Be creative and have fun!

MARKY COOKS: All-Meat Carbonara

Monday is my favorite day because I get the chance to go home and cook for my family, friends and workmates. Last week, I told mom that I will cook. She asked me what am I going to prepare, but I told her I don't know yet.

I checked our cupboards and looked for things that I like in my pasta. I ended having Vienna Sausage, Ham, Cheese, Nestle Cream, Campbell's Cream of Mushroom and Chorizo.

I chose these ingredients since me and my siblings are all meat lovers. If my parents want veggies for lunch or dinner, we will have another dish automatically.

If you want to try this yourself, here's how:

• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/4 block of butter (big)
• 1 small can Nestle Cream
• 1 can Cream of Mushroom
• 1/2 kilo Ham
• 1 large can of Vienna Sausage
• 1 can Chorizo
• cheese
• 1 tbsp. garlic powder
• salt and pepper
• 1 kilo spaghetti pasta
• Pork Chop (sliced) **optional**
• water

1. Cook pasta in boiling water, add salt and set aside when done.
2. In a pan, add olive oil and garlic under medium heat. Cook until golden brown.
3. Add chorizo and Vienna sausage until they turned medium brown in color. Add butter followed by the ham sliced into smaller parts. If you are a garlic-lover like me, you can add some garlic powder for extra flavor.
4. Pour Nestle cream and cream of mushroom. Add water in small partitions until desired viscosity is attained (depending whether you like it to be more creamy). Add salt and pepper. Let it boil for some time under low heat.
5. In a bowl, mix pasta and a little of the cooked sauce. Top the pasta with the All-meat sauce.
6. Place slices of the fried pork chop on top and sprinkle desired amount of cheese.

That night, I went back to Manila and brought some for my sister. I also brought some at work for them to taste one of my impromptu recipe. I encourage everyone to try cooking for your loved ones. You don't have to go to a culinary school to be good. You just need some readings and a little practice. In cooking, you develop a skill and you make your valued family and friends extra special :) 

Suman from Cabalantian,Pampanga

It's my rest day when our helper woke me up at round 9am. I listened to the radio before I went downstairs to eat breakfast. Then, Daddy came bringing me some suman which he got from Cabalantian, a small town in Bacolor which is known for having many delicious "kakanins" or Filipino delicacies made of different types of rice.

I thought there's nothing special with this one , but when I tastes it, grabeeeee iba nga ang lasa! It's delicious and it will make you want moreee... I ate all of the suman daddy brought home. I gave my sister one piece! hahaha selfish ba? 

I will ask daddy to buy us more when I go home on Wednesday:)) But for now I will just satisfy myself with the pictures:)) lol

My Ultimate Remedy for the Cold Nights

Because of unexpected problems, I was able to leave the store 1 hour after my expected time out. I was so depressed that night and I fell asleep while heading to Pampanga. When I got there, my family just had their dinner at the Classic Saviry Chicken and they are about to close. I rushed to National Bookstore to buy something. Mom and my sister fetched me and we went to Starbucks to buy cake slices and coffee before we head home.

The night was perfect for a cup of coffee since it was rainy. I had Caramel Macchiato, a freshly steamed milk with vanilla-flavored syrup, marked with espresso and finished with caramel sauce as described in their site.

I also had a slice of their featured cake, Red Velvet. It's composed of three layers of red sponge cake then filled and frosted with creamy cheese icing. I love this one since it's better than the one I had in a well known bakeshop.

My sister did not think twice of what to have. Her all time favorite is this Oreo Cheesecake. A creamy and luscious layer of cheesecake topped with oreo crumbs and tastes absolutely perfect.

I am not a super fan of Starbucks but they are known to have affordable and delicious coffee and desserts. Some of my other favorites are the banoffee pie and cinnamon swirl:) Don't forget to try these amazing products on your next visit!!!

Mc Donald's Coca Cola Glasses

They are back!!! The Coca cola glasses from Mc Donald are here again, but this time in a different form. Can-like glasses are this season's offering which can be purchased for only 25php when you buy any of their Value Meals. 

 The glasses are available in different colors of Blue, Charcoal, Purple, Lime, Green and Pink. I started collecting these last Friday and completed the 6 designs by Sunday. Unfortunately, I left the pink one at our house in Pampanga.

Mom was the one who is very addicted with the previous designs of these glasses. This time, I was determined to collect them since I really like the shape of this year's glasses. This promo started last July 2 and will end on the 15th, so what are you waiting for? Go to the nearest Mcdo branch near you and grab them now!

Enjoying Art's Cream Gallery and Monte Carlo Movie Night

After our superb dinner at Holy Cow, I accompanied Deah to but coffee at Starbucks in midtown. We went out and I went to buy ice cream at Haagen Dazs , but unfortunately, it's already close. We where walking when we noticed that the shop in front of Holy Cow where we had dinner is actually a shop offering gelato and coffee named ART'S CREAM GALLERY.

Looking at the different flavored gelato, I was tempted to try them and I decided to have the large cup with three flavors of your choice.

Gelato is a frozen Italian dessert similar to ice cream. Its ingredients include milk and sugar and is often combined with flavorings and fruit, chocolate, liquor, spices or nuts. Unlike ice cream, it does not contain cream, and traditionally has much lower fat content. (www.wisegeek.com)

Here is a photo of the available flavors of their gelato. The different colors are very appealing to the senses and made a weak individual like me to crave.

Here are my choices for that evening... Their best seller chocolate flavored one, Kahlua with Cookies and blueberry cheesecake. Next time I will not forget to take the exact names of the flavors that I will try.

Good thing that all the flavors that I chose went well together. Next time I will try their tower of gelato with 12 scoops of different flavors.

We stayed at their open area with such artistic and lovely tables and chairs for a little while. After that, we already went to the cinemas for our movie side trip.

We watched Monte Carlo. I can compare it to an indie film here in our country. Good thing that its casts are composed of today's brightest young stars like Selena Gomez of Wizards of Waverly Place and Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester and Katie Cassidy. Over-all the film was entertaining and it reminded me of those high school romantic stories I used to watch.

Oh I just love spending time with my friends. We share stories, eat, entertain ourselves, eat, walk, eat and eat!  Yes we love eating! haha,,, Till next time!

Heavenly Dinner @ Holy Cow, Midtown

Last Tuesday, I texted Deah and told her that we should go out and bond if she has a free time. I told her to set a date, then she told me "mamaya cge" I was not prepared actually to go out that night but knowing how med life runs, I took it to be with my dear friend:) naks... So we met each other at Espana after my work and we are having second thoughts on where to go. But since Robinsons Manila is nearer than Trinoma, we chose to go there, not bad for an unplanned dinner.

We were both starving that time, but we went to check some boutiques first and to buy tickets for the movie that we want to watch. Then we walked and walked looking for a place to eat. We chose this American Steak House and Grill that we saw since it's been there for some time but we haven't tried it yet.

Holy Cow as I said is an American Steakhouse and Grill that has several branches in the metro. From its name you will obviously know their specialties.  Here is a picture of me while waiting for our order at Holy Cow Robinsons Place Manila.

Here is one of my closest and coolest friend, future doctor of medicine, Andrea in yellow:)) haha

Here is a photo taken showing the interior of the Resto. The lamp, horse shoe and the others contribute in giving that ranch atmosphere. I love the lights, not to bright and gives a warm feeling and coziness.

Andrea chose to a rice meal for that evening. She ordered Lonestar Grilled Pork Chop which is priced reasonably considering the size of the pork and the quality of the dish. It is served with a colored rice (not actually java) and mixed vegetables.

At first, I wanted to have rice, but after seeing their menu, I was curious with both the Pasta and the Burgers that they have so I chose to try those instead. For my pasta, I ordered Superb Creamy Carbonara (well if you will notice, carbonara is my favorite). I love it! Not too creamy nor salty. The pasta is cooked perfectly. It's served with a garlic bread.

I also ordered Juicy Melty Beef Burger(if I remember it right) which is served with potato fries and dip. I love this one because of the beef patty. It's thick and oozing with the flavors I am loooking for in a burger. The fries are good, hot and crispy. The dip also contributed to it's yumminess! Pak na Pak!

Here is  a picture showing what's in the burger... Oh it makes me hungry again///

Over-all, our dining experience was great. They have good customer service, the crew is attentive and fast, not to mention that there is no service charge. The food is delicious and affordable. I would love to go back there and try more of their offerings.

You can also go to their other branches in SM Megamall and SM Mall of Asia. Buh bye for now!