House Macaroni Gratin

Last weekend, I found this box of Macaroni Gratin from Japanese brand House. I had forgotten about this, which I bought at a Japanese store along Katipunan in the St. Ignatius/White Plains area. It's an easy to prepare (instant) pasta dish that you can prepare in a few minutes. You can add potatoes and even meat if you want to though cooking those ingredients properly will add to the time for this to be ready to eat.

The box contained sealed packets of macaroni and the gratin mix.

I used cheddar and quick melt cheese as topping before I placed the clay pot in the oven toaster. This is the result after I took it out of the toaster.

The cheeses served as a crust to hold the macaroni gratin. This is what it looks like after scooping some for dinner.

The gratin was a success. Our daughter loved it. It was a good foil for the savory viands we had for dinner.  The price tag is still on the box. I thought this was good value for the 189 pesos I paid for when I bought it last year. I will probably get another box or two the next time I get to go to that Japanese store. 

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More brownies and chocolates by our daughter

Our daughter's still hooked on baking. She baked some brownies last weekend and we (mainly I) immediately consumed the brownies she allocated for us. One of the trays was already reserved to one of our close friends, her Ninang, who 'ordered' some.

Mixing the ingredients

One tray in the oven

She used walnuts for this batch as we ran out of cashew nuts

She also made a batch of Dubai chocolate loaded with pistachio and kadayiff. She uses local chocolates that she mixes to get the right consistency and texture. Her lola (my mother) and uncle (my brother) loves the chocolates.

Her mom decided to print these stickers for our giveaways. Currently, its limited to close relatives and friends who also encourage her to bake.

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Brownies from Sarah's Bakehouse

My sister served some egg pie for dessert after we had lunch at their home also in Antipolo a few Sundays ago. It was really good egg pie and I learned they bought it from Sarah's Bakehouse. I think they got this at the branch at SM Megamall but they said there's also one at Ayala Feliz. One afternoon I passed the Blue Ridge area, I chanced upon a branch there. And so I decided to check their products via the Grab app to see what goodies they have aside from egg pie. The brownies caught my attention and I decided, on a whim, to order a box.

Delivery of a box of brownies inside a paper bag

The box contained 8 brownie squares

Close-up before the first bite

My daughter bakes brownies and she chided me for buying some as she could have made some for me. In my defense, I mentioned to her about my curiosity and shared some so she can compare. The brownies were really good. I thought they were also the right fudgy or moist and some crunch to it. Not too soft. Not too tough or chewy. I said also because I have tasted others like it such as the ones I bought before from Mrs. Fields. My daughter enjoyed them, too, and said she will try to match them in her future bakes.  

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