Tuna Fettuccini Recipe

I’d always prefer a pasta with a creamy and rich white sauce over one which is tomato-based anytime, anyday. With this preference, I myself made a recipe when I was in high school for our Food Technology home cooking project. Guess what? My experiment turned out to be a taste bud prostitute which pleased almost everyone I cooked for. Yay! So I'm sharing this recipe with you guys.

Ingredients:                                                                                                     

• 2 big cans of Century Tuna Spicy
• 1 kilo uncooked fettuccini
• 1 can button mushrooms (pieces and stems)
• 8-10 pieces black olives (optional)
• 1 small bar of Quickmelt cheese, grated
• 1 pack Knorr Cream of Mushroom
• 2  tetra packs of Nestle Multipurpose Cream (330ml each)
• 1 bar anchor butter (unsalted)
• Finely chopped parsely
• 10-15 cloves of garlic
• 1 large Onion (white)
• Pepper

Procedure:

1. Cook the pasta as seen in the directions until it becomes al dente.
2. Saute the minced garlic until golden brown using 1/4  of the bar of butter. I do use garlic liberally  whenever I cook since it has already been proven by the that it can help in lowering the blood pressure and in preventing the development of hypertension.
3. Add chopped onions. Use the white onion since it becomes “sweet” when cooked.  
4. Add the 2 cans of spicy Century Tuna. To make the cream based pasta a little unconventional and healthy at the same time, I decided to put a little kick to it by using the spicy variant of Century Tuna. Do not remove the oil along with the tuna. It  contains good cholesterol and adds more flavor to it!
5. Simmer for 3 mins. to let some of the oil evaporate
6. Dilute the cream of mushroom in hot water and pour it along with the garlic, onions, and tuna. Add 2-4 cups of water and mix thoroughly.
7. Add the 2 tetra packs of all-purpose cream. Since we’re Filipinos, add a little water to the pack. Shake it a little then pour it as well in the pan. Sayang naman yung natira.
8. Add the chopped mushrooms, parsely, black olives, and grated cheese. Add the remaining ¾ of the butter and let it cook for 2 more minutes.
9. Add black ground pepper as desired.
10. Serve while hot

Dynamite/Chili Spring Rolls Recipe

Dynamite is one of the favorite street foods by students when I was still in college. It’s technically a green sili and a strip of cheese wrapped around a lumpia wrapper. One of the vendors around the campus said that it was called as such since the spiciness of the dynamite almost literally explodes into your mouth while the cheese gives it a tangy flavor which neutralizes it's taste.

By the way, I just read in some recipe books that lumpia in English is spring rolls. Sosyal diba?:)

Anyway, here's the recipe for Dynamite

Ingredients:

• Green Finger pepper (commonly known as Sili na pang sinigang)
• Quickmelt cheese strips
• Lumpia wrapper

Procedure:

1. Cut the green sili into halves, remove the seeds since it may become too spicy if not removed.

2. Position the green sili with a strip of cheese in the middle of the wrapper. One sili per wrapper. No overloading. You can also try including ground beef or bacon strips to make it more flavorful and less spicy. 

3. Wrap the cheese and the sili with the lumpia wrapper. It takes considerable skill to do this.

4. Fry in medium heat until the wrapper is golden brown or until you think it is already cooked, best served while still hot 

Perfect Loaf Cafe/Bakery, Angeles City, Pampanga

Pampanga will not be called the culinary center of the Philippines if it doesn’t boast one of the best cafés and restaurants. Perfect Loaf is one of the oldest bakery/cafés in my hometown, Angeles City. Through the years, it had already gained a considerable amount of media exposure, respect from the culinary industry, and a steady following among the residents of Angeles City. Located at Teresa Ave. corner St. Joseph Street, Nepo Mart Complex, it sits squarely in the center of Angeles city, enjoying the bursting atmosphere of city life.

Although being mainly a bakery and café, Perfect Loaf offers more than breads, cakes, and coffee with its highly expanded menu. It serves set meals, pasta, and other merienda treats which truly depict the diversity of the Filipino, more specifically, Kapampangan cuisine. At a budget of 100-200 pesos, you can already have a filling meal. My mom and I visited a day ago before I left for Manila and I had the chance of tasting their lasagna, palabok, and Decadent cake.

The palabok was really divine at a price of 55 pesos while the lasagna which looked very appetizing but tasted quite bland for me. But it’s still good, probably, there was just nothing too remarkable about it. The decadent cake was very moist and had a balanced caramel and chocolate taste. I usually don’t like eating anything with caramel since I don’t like the feeling when it sticks on your palate. I must say, this decadent cake from Perfect Loaf is a lovely exemption.

What I like about this café is that it also offers menu options for vegetarian and health buffs alike. It serves a variety fresh salads and freshly cut fruits in season. Truly this café has this all-in-one feel in it. It’s one of those restaurants where the menu is so flexible that you can stay here the whole day and they’d have something to serve for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And not to mention, merienda too!

The ambiance provides this cozy, laid back atmosphere. I like the enhanced logo of the café which had a color combination of pink and blue. The similar colors were used in their counter, walls, and chairs. Coupled with a nice incandescent lighting, it gave a classy and modern feel to the place yet retaining the edgy colorful motif of blue and pink. On the left side of the store, a view of the busy city can be seen while you eat your fill.

I’m also buying the cool uniforms of their crew. I’m sorry for the blurred photo, it was just a stolen one from a kuya who was busy bussing one of the tables.haha!

Perfect Loaf is one of the must go café/restaurants when you visit Pampanga. The menu offering will really give you a sampling of the different gastronomic delights of the province at a very affordable price and at a very relaxed ambiance. Be sure to drop by here when you're at Angeles City!

PBB Housemates Ryan Boyce, Kit Thompson, and Alex Dungo

Last night was the kick-off of the Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition 4. In the Hunger Games, it's something similar to the parade of tributes where each representative will have the chance to undergo the spotlight and have the chance to either gain or lose the audience's approval.

Anyway, my sister and I watched the kick-off since the thought of having two representatives from our province piqued our interests. The two housemates are the "Pilyong Binatilyo ng Angeles" and the "Kid Tangkad ng New Zealand". 

All along, after seeing the VTR,  my sister was already telling me that the Pilyong Binatilyo ng Angeles was Ryan Boyce, who was our schoolmate way back in O.B.Montessori. I didn't remember who he was until he came out from the giant disco ball. Ahhh! I remember him! They were the Boyce boys in our school back then. I realized then that his title wasn't a exaggeration snce I've been hearing a lot of stories about them in school

Anyway, he made a really strong impression last night and seemed to be assured with himself. I just hope his confidence works on his favor. The PBB Audience doesn't seem to buy the kontrabida types. Let's see if a metanoia would happen allowing him to mellow down inside the house and gain the sympathy of the audience.

The Kid Tangkad ng New Zealand was the other housemate from our province. We also came from the same school! I remember him as a kid in school although I was really surprised that he had grown so much through the years! I mean, I was taller than him when he was in gradeschool!

I think he'd fair well on this edition. He's got the height and the looks which the audience seems to buy as in previous editions. All he needs is to play the game nicely inside the house and a showbiz career after PBB would be very likely .

Another housemate wasn't from our province although I'm also rootng for him since we're both from UST. Go USTe! :)

He's Alex Dungo, the "Hopeless Romantic ng Laguna". He was Mr. Pharmacy 2011 and consequently won Mr.Ideal Thomasian Personality in the same year. He seemed quite reserved in the kick-off although the trending of his name even before the kick-off was a good sign that he would make it far in the competition.

Visita Iglesia at the AC

Feelings of notalgia always hit me when I visit the Carmelite Monastery in Angeles City. First, it reminds me of my first communion way back when I was in second grade. Second, the place reminds me gravely of my late Values Education teacher in O.B. Montessori, Mrs. Isabelita Lauchengco, who would always lecture us not to watch bomba-bomba in the internet and whose favorite color is purple. 

My Mom and I went for a quick visit yesterday and found a lot of people buying their prayer booklets and other religious paraphernalia from the monastery store.

The monastery also has a place where you can light up a candle. You can buy the candles in the same store. It costs 2.50 pesos/piece.

Carmelite Monastery - Angeles City, Pampanga

Heading home, we saw a company of flagellants along McArthur Highway. Nahiya naman ako sa chest nung nagpipinitensya, mas maganda pa sa chest ko.HAHA

When we arrived home, we were surprised to see that a lot of children went out from our gate. We knew it was one of my brothers making so we asked him about what this picture was all about.

R.I.P.

It was his sisiw's funeral pala. Kayyy.  

Later that night, my family and I went on to the traditional Visita Iglesia. We visited seven churches around the AC. (I forgot to take a picture of the Sacred Heart Parish)

Carmelite Monastery

Sta. Maria Church

A church in Marisol Subd.

Sto. Rosario Parish

Lourdes Sur Church

Xevera Church

The Xevera Church is located in one of Globe Asiatique's development projects, Xevera Pampanga. It offers the luxury of living traditional Filipino lifestyle in a Spanish-themed subdivision. A community in itself, it has a beautifully-planned plaza, a school, dry & wet markets, and even a resto-bar inside the subdivision.

HAVE A MEANINGFUL HOLY WEEK EVERYONE! :)

Dezaato Pan

Dezaato Pan is like a secret you would want to keep for yourself. It’s one of those places where you could enjoy a cup of coffee without the cramped up feeling you’d usually experience in other leading coffee shops. It is a sanctuary in the middle of the hectic Manila.

I posted a status about this café a week ago and a blogger friend messaged me saying that he doesn’t blog about Dezaato since publicity may bring the same cramped up feeling in other cafes. I guess we both want to keep it to ourselves, but then again, something so good mustn't be kept to ourselves, right?

Dezaato Pan is a Japanese-themed café located along Banawe cor. Sct. Alcaraz St. in Quezon City which offers a wide selection of coffee, tea, bread, gelattos, and several set meals. Having such a diverse menu offering makes this café a standout among others.   

Upon entering the cafe, you could already choose from the different breads and put it in a tray like how you would do in BreadTalk.

On my first visit last week, I ordered Mocha Oreo ice-blended coffee and a moist Blueberry muffin (P45), both of which didn’t disappoint.

On my visit today, I ordered one of their ice-blended coffee offering, Praline Hazelnut (P160 for 16oz.). Upon giving it a sip, the taste reminded me of one of my favorites, Nutella! It doesn’t have that usual coffee flavor and aftertaste so coffee drinkers out there might find this a sweet little surprise. 

I also tried their Coffee Walnut Cake which had a generous serving of roasted walnuts which gave a smoky taste and slight crunch to the moist mocha cake. Don't you just love the presentation of this slice of cake? I bet it's no piece of cake doing that. Okay, korny na :)

Being a artsy-fartsy person, I couldn't help but gawk on the artisan cakes on the display. As you can see, the prices, ranging from 570-775 pesos, are actually comparable to the mainstream cake shops. I would definitely choose a beautifully decorate cake from Dezaato over a plain boring cake. It's literally a work of art on a plate!

Aside from the food, what I’m raving about Dezaato is the spacious and clean ambiance. The café, keeping up with its Japanese theme, sports a clean minimalist interior with solid lines and neutral colors which gave it a simple yet modern touch. It occupies a two story building. Located in the first floor is the counter and three tables while the second floor provides more seats for customers.

Here, rarely do you have to be near anyone within two feet. I have my claustrophobic tendencies so enjoy having my own personal space once in a while. The café has free wifi so customers can surf while enjoying the café’s treats. 

They also have an open space outside the second floor, a provision for smokers I believe. 

Overall, the Dezzaato Pan is by far my favorite among the coffee shops I visited. I love the feeling of space that it gives. The wide array of delectable food it serves won’t surely leave you dissatisfied.

And since I'm a lifestyle blogger now, I should post a photo of me with the product. It's like a mandatory thing.

Dezaato Pan

Dezaato Pan has branches at SM Mall of Asia, Banawe Ave., and Tomas Morato in Quezon City. 

For inquiries, call 366-7384 or 367 3426. 

ADVANTAGES

• Wide selection of delectable food
• Taste of coffee is distinct from other coffee shops
• Spacious place
• Beautiful minimalist interiors
• Offers free wifi
• Does not play loud, distracting music
• Friendly staff

DISADVANTAGES

• Food is quite pricey for a student’s budget
• Food has high sugar content like most coffee shops

Cheers to Class 2012!

Graduation had come to pass so quickly. Everything was so surreal from walking down the red aisle, wearing our togas, raising our clenched fists while singing the school hymn for the last time, to the  pledging the oath for membership in the alumni association. The feeling I had was completely different from the seething apathy I felt the days before. I thought it is but another ceremony that shall come to pass and get over with but it turned out to be quite a surprise. :)

I personally would like to thank my parents, professors, classmates and most especially, my RLE group. I would also like to that the different organizations that I have worked with and had shared happy memories together - the Nursing Journal, Nursing Central Board of Students, Commission on Elections, and to the UST Coro de Ruisenores. I will miss you guys! Good luck on your upcoming projects! :) 

My classmates and I looked so happy wearing our togas. Now that graduation is done, it's time to refocus and get that 100% passing rate for the Nursing board exams and hopefully, get the top ranking as well.

The valedictorian of UST in his commencement exercise speech said something like this, "Sa dame ng titulo na nakuha ko, pinakamasarap ang titulong magging Tomasino". I couldn't agree more. Napakasarap talaga magging parte ng isang institusyon na hinubog di lamang ng panahon pati narin ng integridad at walang sawang paglilingkod sa bayan. Thank you UST for all the memories! :)

Cheers to the Class of 2012!