The ber season has just started and apart from summer time, it is the most awaited and celebrated time of the year. This is usually the peak season for great things of all sorts - food, clothing, fashion and of course travel. After visiting Guangzhou last August, I am set to visit it again this month. As these travels are both work related, I am very much looking forward to the family vacation this coming holiday. I'm beginning to make early preparations and plans. Hence, I've started hopping from one travel site to the next to find great travel deals. Foremost among them are discount airfares and cheap air flights.

This will be the kids' first time to travel out of the country. And to say that traveling with tots involves so much preparations is still quite an understatement. However, this will not in anyway prevent me from enjoying every single task related to it. We (especially the kids) deserve this much needed "family- time". I'll share with you a sequel of this post on travel stuffs worth exploring. Stay tuned!

Think of any tourist destination near your home and the likelihood of you not having visited it or did rarely visit the place is high. I would bet for this claim. It's surprising but it's true, sometimes we tend to miss an opportunity for too much familiarity. This holds true to my not having visited Villa Escudero despite being a native of San Pablo City, Laguna. My parent's home is roughly 15 minutes away from the place but I didn't have a single chance of visiting it while I'm still living there. To add more irony to it, my high school classmate belongs to the prominent family who owns the Hacienda. Many times I was invited by her for a day tour to which I will usually respond a procrastinating next time. Gladly, we finally found the luck to pop in.

General ambiance inside the Villa is relaxing, homey and serene. It's a typical laid back atmosphere to enjoy. If there's one thing that the Villa is highly commendable for, it's having maintained its distinctive "Filipino" offering. It could be one of the remaining few heritage sites to explore in the Philippines. This is one place to visit for Foreign and Balikbayan visitors. Among the must try are the carabao ride, lunch at the Labasin Falls and view of the cultural show.

Apart from the hits, of course we've likewise identified some misses. First, is the poor maintenance of the lake. The water is not clear and a lot of dried leaves and wastes made the overall look of the lake unsightly. The repertoire of the lunch buffet is less appetizing too. The meal selection is ok but the quality is far from what I have expected. It failed to meet the value of the day tour ( P1250). Overall, I feel that there's something missing in the experience. At any rate, it still is a must visit place. But it's not something you would miss every once in a while.

If you've been a regular here, you probably have noticed that much of my food posts and recipes talked about the world of Culinary and Savory. Blame it to a decade of work in this field, my taste buds were oriented in the meaty- savory notes to a great deal. Now that I'm beginning to explore the other half of the sensory pie which is Sweet, I'm missing the customary taste of salt and umami. Hence, I found myself one morning stirring a bowl of noodles for a comforting treat. Much to my (and the kids) delight, we even consumed it with the exciting flavour notes of baked goods (shown above). I can only care less whether the dining table carried a perfect breakfast match or not. Ultimately, it's my (and the kids') liking that's chief.

On to my exploration of my new interest, I roamed around the city to have a glimpse of the bakery landscape in the Philippines. In general, it's a growing and stirring industry locally. There are so much trends going on. From the typical, traditional pandesal, Pinoys' bread had evolved to abundant forms and novel ways of consumption.

For the Boutique Bakery concept, BREAD TALK leads the way. I particularly like the fusion of "glo-cal" concepts here.

Fortune Bakeshop obviously taps the mainstream market. I know of some previous colleagues who are loyal patrons of this store's "Pianono" (chiffon roll).

For the hotel category, I would rank Shangri-la and Manila Pen as market leaders. These two, have bread stations that showcase various great selections of breads and pastries. I was particularly enticed by Shangri-la's positioning of "Baked Fresh" goodies. The hours of baking for a selected variety of bread is shown at the counter's area. It's a you have it when you expect it kind of thing.

For the chocolates, pastries and desserts, Dusit Thani's glass case is a haven of rich assortments. Don't you think so?!

And for the packaged goods, obviously Gardenia owns the leadership. Their product range is even exclusively shown at the express bread station of SM Makati.

As a whole from what I've noted, bread market today is dictated by eating habits, meal occasions, taste, health and nutrition and balanced price. The consuming public is on a quest to any of these opportunities. Having the right item to put in the shelves is key to marketability.

Last year, together with millions of Filipinos across the globe, we joined in the celebration of Lucky Me!'s advocacy on FaMEALy occasion at home. It was that time of the year where all members of the family were encouraged to go home early to sit at the dining table. The TV campaign shows us clearly how valuable family meal occasions are. In fact, the recent ad is another eye opener - a "cut through" information specially for parents. Like how I mentioned in my previous post, I believe in the value of families eating together. The studies are quite alarming. Suffice it to say, conclusive enough that we must all live this advocacy. Read my previous post here.

Hence, this coming September 28, 2009 (monday), let's all join once again to celebrate FaMEALy Day at home!

Mama & Papa, Mom & Dad, Nanay & Tatay, Itay & Inay, don't forget to dine with the kids on monday night! Because the family that eats together, stays happy forever!

One of the many things that put a certain trademark in a place or a country is food. When we seek for descriptors of a place we've been to, normally we associate it with the foods it is known for. And when we talk about the country - Singapore, what else will top the list of the most popular dish here other than CHILI CRAB?! When this scrumptious dish landed unto my palate the first time I visited Singapore, I am more than convinced that it is one kind of dish to crave for! So back at home, I exerted all efforts finding the right recipe of Chili Crab that would suit my sensorial tastants. After much trial and error from one pot to another, I've finally stirred one that's just right for my taste buds. As every liking and palate are unique in everyone, I would recommend to those who would try the recipe to modify it in any which way you might like. Just go ahead and experiment!


Ingredients: 2 large crabs (cleaned and cut into halves), 1 tbsp chopped garlic, 2 tbsp chopped onion, 1 tbsp ginger (finely chopped), salt and pepper to taste, 3 tbsp olive oil, tomato sauce, (to your own liking), oyster sauce (to your own liking), tomato catsup (to your own liking), 1 tbsp chili-garlic sauce, 1 egg (beaten), 1 tbsp cornstarch dissolve in 1 tbsp water, 1 tbsp brown sugar

Cooking Method: Lightly fry crabs in 2 tbsp olive oil until it turns red, set aside. Saute onion, garlic and ginger in remaining oil until fragrant. Add tomato sauce, oyster sauce, catsup, chili-garlic sauce and sugar. Allow to boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add cornstarch solution and mix well. Allow the sauce to slightly thicken. Add back the fried crabs and cook until the meat of the crab is almost done. Stir in the beaten egg.

I just got back from a week long visit to Guangzhou, China, my first international travel for the year. Likewise, it was my first time in the southern part. Amazed, intrigued and surprised, that's probably how I will describe my experience exploring what's believed to be the southern economic hub. I was surprised that Guangzhou is fast becoming another of China's cosmopolitan area. From what I heard, it's considered the 3rd largest city next to Beijing and Shanghai. Building constructions are everywhere and style and architecture wise, it doesn't pale in comparison with those in the nearby Asian countries like Singapore. However, the outskirts of the city still has that remnants of conservative Chinese civilization. In Panyu District where I stayed most of the time, it has that particular ambiance. But more and more China is really well set to make its significant presence in the world.

I'd like to give the kids a break from the typical Fried Chicken and Adobo by serving them Pan Seared Salmon with Bechamel Sauce. Having tots who's taste buds are more inclined towards meat, it may sound too ambitious for me. But following the mantra in my kitchen, we're always on for a challenge of something new. So this Salmon recipe landed onto our weekend plate. What makes this dish kid friendly is the sauce that is milk based, a taste note which is familiar to them. One strategy I have learned to develop to encourage my kids to eat something unfamiliar is to complement it with the things they like or prefer. That way, they will give it a try. Kids' appetite is very conservative and their taste buds - very basic. Thus, creating a balance of taste in their meal is a must to consider. The rule of thumb therefore is to keep it simple and familiar.

1. Season Salmon with salt and pepper. Cook in 2 tbsps olive oil in high heat for 3 - 4 minutes. Set aside.

2. Saute spinach leaves in onion & garlic with 1 table spoon olive oil. Season with salt & pepper. Set aside.

3. Cook the bechamel sauce. (Any classic bechamel recipe will do here)

4. Pour over a spoonful of sauce onto the salmon and serve together with cooked rice and sauted spinach on the side.

Amidst hectic days and more taxing roles, the long hiatus in this blog got to be cut to celebrate. Well, it should be and I must have done it long before. Thanks to the blog's 2nd anniversary. It pushed me back to blogging.

Hi everyone!, it's so great to be back online! Another month of May has come, another year has passed for Our Taste of Life. I know this year was in a bit of silence for this blog relative to the previous year. But there's no excuse not to celebrate its anniversary. Instead of getting into a nostalgia from how Our Taste of Life have evolved online, I would rather look forward. I'd like to plan for new things to happen here. So, please stay tuned. We will have more great tastes of life! I hope to have more Presto Pasta Nights (I missed Ruth Daniel's weekly event and I know my family too), more Taste Throwdown and more foodie-travel finds. Thank you to all the readers who patiently waited for my response to their queries and for always finding time to drop by. I owe it all to you! Cheers for more excitement and experiences! I'll forever be delighted to share Our Taste of Life!

Coming up next, the anniversary Contest... :-)

note: Thanks to Allan Sinco of PPI for the wonderful photo above.

For quite a long time now, the post on Canyon Cove Residential Beach Resort proved to be one of the most popular posts in this blog. I constantly receive inquiries about the resort, and I apologize for not finding time to address those. So I'd like to do it now. We visited the resort last week to update ourselves on anything new. Apparently, only the rates were changed. The same facilities can be found except for some new added activities like the pedal boat. The day tour costs P500 per pax with P200 consumable for food and drinks. The buffet lunch is priced at P600 and the set meals range from P220 - P350. The set meals still feature the grilled foods like fish (tilapia and bangus), pork chop, barbecue, squid etc. For the buffet lunch, a chicken dish, pork, vegetables, seafood, soup, salad and other cold appetizers, pasta and desserts complete the meal repertoire. Honestly, it didn't impress much. It gave you that feeling of heaviness but incompletely satisfied. After the lunch, I'm craving for more delicious bites, it didn't delight me at all.

The same slow service is noted from the reception desk. I hope they will be able to find a faster, better system to manage all those paper works on issuing receipts and pass. All the more in the set meal area where hungry mouths are impatiently waiting from the queue. All the delays in the issuance of food definitely stirred a lot of complaints. I just couldn't over emphasize the importance of a better preparation and faster service for times like this. A valuable point made by one of the guests made me nod, the resort's management should have at least complemented the "no food allowed" policy by providing foods anytime, on the time it's needed.

If you intend to stay overnight, the minimum rate is P4700 per room per night with free breakfast for two. I still hold the same reservation for staying overnight though, unless you're staying with a lot of friends or barkadas. If there's one thing I'd like to commend the resort with, it's being able to maintain its cleanliness. Most of the facilities were still well kept. Will I go back again next year? Perhaps, yes! At any rate, it still is a nice place to spend summer at.

How to get there: From SLEX, take Sta. Rosa Exit then turn right from Coke tollgate and straight ahead all the way through Tagaytay - Sta. Rosa Highway. Upon passing through Tagaytay, turn right going to Nasugbu (after the archway, Lemery - Nasugbu intersection). Straight ahead, turn right at Balayan - Nasugbu intersection then turn right again at Lian/Calatagan - Nasugbu intersection (Shell Gasoline Station). Continue on until you pass by Jollibee and Nasugbu town proper. Canyon Cove is just a few minutes away from there. Found on the left side of the road after the small bridge.

For further queries:

Far East Road, Piloto, Wawa, Nasugbu, Batangas

Tel. No.: (632) 5206400, 09178836417, 09285060989

It's been a while since we last explored the north of Luzon. Now, that the kids can take relatively longer road trips, we brought them to Subic one weekend. Summer time is finally here. And during this season we talk about fun, sun, travel and more! So, it's but high time to finally experience Subic. It was great to say the least, adventurous and exciting. A close tiger encounter was the most thrilling feel we've ever had. It's a must activity inside Zoobic Safari. We had a day to spend so we settled for Zoobic Safari and Ocean Adventure. I would suggest a morning visit to the Safari and an afternoon to the Ocean Adventure. Here are some of the things to expect from these Subic hot spots:

A tour of animals

Personal feeding of some animals (baby goats - 2 wks old)

Animal Show (very entertaining)

When we have very limited time to spend in the kitchen, we often times wish for some magic to happen. That is to make everything easy and instant in as far as our cooking is concerned. This is but a universal want for time strapped individuals like me. We all want to offer something good on the dining table for our family to savor but likewise we don’t want to spend a big chunk of our time preparing for it. So it’s such a respite to find great cooking aids in the market. One of the newbies in the market shelves is CRISPEE Perfect Match. If you have little tots to feed at the dining table, whose favorite among many is fried chicken, it is a treat to have a cooking companion such as CRISPEE. Yummy, meaty notes are guaranteed in just a whip! Just a simple pour, measure, mix and voila! An instant crunchy, crispy chicken is up for a good bite. The breading mix is very aromatic in spices and herbs but the meaty character is what's left dominating when the food is fried. Overall, the product is acceptable. It's also important to follow the cooking instructions to achieve what the Perfect Match promises its consumers - "Cruncharap na, Sarsarap pa".
I particularly liked the idea of the instant gravy. At last, something that does not need heating or boiling to make one. All you have to do is add hot water. I just wish for a thicker consistency though, taste wise it's also acceptable. Sold for only Php28 per pack good for 1 kg of meat, this is a value for money grocery pick.

We welcomed the year 2009 with so many changes in our lives. Husband and I decided to change gears in as far as our careers are concerned. We both embarked on new beginnings in the food industry. But foremost to the many changes is a new home to enjoy. With the help of books and home magazines, we were able to transform a two storey house into a humble and relaxing abode.

Similar to the previous home, we settled on an Asian inspired decor / interior. Most of the furnitures came from the old house. New accents were added to make a major facelift. Since we wanted it to be Asian in theme, the dominant hues are earth and wood inspired. The kids have history of asthma and allergies, that's why we settled for wooden sofa. This is a lot easier to clean and maintain relative to the cushion type.

Most of the things on display were souvenirs from the neighboring Asian countries (Japan, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan and China). I was privileged enough to explore these countries which probably explains for my liking of an Asian themed house. Locally, I prefer stores such as Landmark, Furniture Shops in Tagaytay, SM Homeworld / Our Home and Ace Hardware for a great selection of competitive home goods.





These are actually door curtains from Japan. I tried to transform them into window curtains instead. I love the effect they have on the stairs. They provided a good picture (sort of ambiance) on the way up to the second floor of the house.

This table runner was originally a Thai silk skirt I bought from Phuket, Thailand. Since it has long been resting in the closet, it's time to find a new use to it.