Showering the dog

We're still pretty much in the dry season and the last few weeks have been quite hot. We shouldn't forget that our pets also need some cooling. In this case, that might be in the form of a quick shower. Our Shira, a 4-year old Golden Retriever, loves her quick showers in addition to her regular long ones where she gets shampooed and massaged and groomed/combed.

More water please!

The singkit look when you think your human is about to spray your face with water.

More about our pets in future posts!

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Herencia Artisanal Tablea Chocolate

We attended a surprise birthday party for an uncle on my wife's side. He is actually also a godfather/ninong in our wedding. The dinner party was held at a restaurant in Marikina. As we exited after the party, we passed by the regular part of the restaurant/cafe where on display were cakes, cookies and bottles of this chocolate drink. 

Herencia Artisanal Tablea Chocolate is based on the original chocolate drink prepared and served at homes in the "old" times. Tablea or tableya are cacao chips or cubes that are melted and transformed to a drink that is usually thick. Note in one of Rizal's novels where the thick version - tsokolate-eh is the thick, rich version of the drink often served to VIPs or guests of honor or close relatives and friends. Tsokolate-ah is the watered down version.

Nutrition information on this chocolate drink

This was definitely on the side of tsokolate-eh. I liked the richness of taste considering this was served cold and not hot. It's on the expensive side though as a bottle cost more than 200 pesos! Good perhaps for occasional purchases and drinks but not for daily consumption. The maker is from Quezon City (based on the quick research I did using Google) and specializes in chocolate among other products. 

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Special edition ice cream: Selecta Shoyu Caramel

I was buying some ice cream the other week and was browsing the available flavors at a convenience store. I spotted this limited edition flavor from Selecta (Wall's in other countries). It's a Japanese themed flavor that practically hints at a form of salted caramel. The salt being substituted by shoyu or soy sauce, which is a common ingredient in Japanese cooking or used as a dip for food like sashimi or sushi.

Selecta's limited edition Shoyu Caramel

The featured ingredients are caramel, shoyu and cashews. The base ice cream is vanilla.

The ice cream was okay. It is basically salted caramel. There was a hint of shoyu but it was not strong. I'm not sure what the maker's objective was when they made this and decided on the name. Perhaps more on the novelty side? 

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Mangoes galore!

Our mango tree yields a good number of mangoes every year. However, we noticed that we have an especially high yield and larger fruits around every other year. Sometimes, it took 2 years before a good yield. The best yield and harvest since we moved to our upper Antipolo home was in 2020 during the pandemic. We had fairly good yields the last two years so this year we expected to be an average harvest. The fruits this year were not as big as the previous years' but there were a lot that survived since the flowering days in March. Fortunately, the fruits grew before the late March rains that usually destroyed flowers. 

Part of this year's harvest from our tree

Our dog Boots usually sits near the pile as if guarding it from the cats and other animals roaming our garden at night.

Here's Boots again beside the mangoes we were sorting to give away to family and friends.

The skin was still green but they are ripening rapidly.

More mangoes to give away

Selected mangoes for our consumption were placed near the dining area

We suddenly had mangoes dominating the fruit table. We usually have bananas and citrus on this table.

More on mangoes in the next post! 

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Kuro Ramen at Ippudo

Last weekend, we had lunch at Ippudo to satisfy our ramen craving. We usually have our ramen at Ramen Nagi and occasionally Ippudo, Hokkaido Ramen, and Ramen Kuroda, in that order as their branches are most accessible to us. Our daughter also loves ramen so its not difficult to decide to have ramen for lunch or dinner.

Ippudo's Kuro Ramen 

The ramen was really good and I wouldn't mind having this regularly for the richness of the taste including the torched chashu. I still think Ramen Nagi's tamago is better though so if Ippudo can match that then this ramen will be close to perfection for me. I thought though that the taste may not be for everyone especially those who like the lighter ramen in terms of broth and ingredients. Baka nakaka-umay for others. Perhaps it's still better to have different ramen from time to time while remembering the "go to" or favorites from each ramen shop/restaurant.

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Everlasting flowers

Today is Mother's Day. It is a very special day for all mothers whether biological, adoptive, god, or however we regard our mothers. I believe that we also need to honor those who basically function as mothers. Those who play significant roles in our lives to care for us just like our mothers do. They include health workers, care givers, and teachers among others who in one form or another.

Last Sunday, as we exited the Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage, we chanced upon one vendor selling something that brought up some childhood memories of going to church. The vendor was selling everlasting flowers. We use to buy these after going to church in St. Francis in Mandaluyong. My parents preferred these over sampaguita because, as the name implied, they lasted longer. The small garlands were placed on our home altar or hung with an image of the Sto. Nino, Jesus or Mary. 

Everlasting flowers at our altar at home

Happy Sunday to everyone! 

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Chocolate review: Cachet Dark Chocolate 70% Cacao

This is a very late post about a chocolate that we bought and ate months ago. I started writing about it a long time ago but somehow other material got in the way of my finalizing this post. Cachet is Belgian chocolate but with the cacao sourced from Africa; Tanzania to be exact.

There's an interesting slogan on the wrapper - "This bar is supporting our "Cocoa for Schools" project in South Tanzania.

Details about the chocolate at the back of the package.

Ingredients - the chocolate claims to have 70% minimum cacao

Nutrition information

I was pleasantly surprised to see the inside of the wrapper having a story to tell.

The bar retailed for 185 pesos at Healthy Options. That is not really expensive for a high quality 180g chocolate bar. I think I mentioned before that many local chocolates are overpriced considering their inferior quality. This chocolate can serve for benchmarking local (Philippine) chocolates in terms of quality as well as pricing.

I will post about the information on the inside of the wrapper in the next post.

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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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Coconut water from Thailand

A quick stop at a convenience store for some drinks led to my purchasing a bottle of coconut water. I was going to pick up one from Lipa, a local producer of bottled or tetra pak coconut water but I remembered that the taste of their coconut water was somewhat weird. Instead, I got this other bottle from Thailand.

The bottle has a simple design

Details including nutrition information

The taste is very much like the coconut water you can drink fresh from shell in Thailand. It is very familiar to me as I've been traveling frequently with Thailand and enjoyed drinking coconut water with my spicy meals. It is a nice option for refreshments on hot days like what we're currently experiencing this dry season.

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Chocolate review: Whittaker's Peanut Slab

Though I prefer dark chocolates, I also eat other chocolates from time to time. This is basically to satisfy cravings for chocolate. One milk chocolate bar I remember enjoying also because of the peanuts is this bar from Whittaker's.

Whittaker's The Original Peanut Slab claims to have 33% cocoa.

Details about the chocolate at the back of the bar include nutrition information and the 'best before' date.

The chocolate is okay and as I said, satisfied cravings for chocolate. So it served its intended purpose. I thought chocolates like this come in handy as a booster for when you're doing fieldwork or sports or other activities needing some quick source of energy.

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Chocolate review: Audrey's Confectioneries Chocolate Mango Caramel

I received a box of chocolate-covered dried mangoes last Christmas along with a desk calendar from friends connected with a Japanese consulting firm. I only opened these last Holy Week when I decided to take the box home to share with my family.

This box of goodies was made by Audrey's Confectioneries, which is based in Cebu.

Details on the chocolate-covered mangoes at the back of the box. It's good to know that there are products like this that are of high quality that can be used as gifts or souvenirs.

Nutrition information

Information on the manufacturer including their social media page

Inside were individually packaged servings

The chocolate-covered mango caramel was really good. It was perfect for dessert as it wasn't heavy or nakaka-umay. I am curious about their other products. I haven't been to Cebu for some time now and I am not sure I would go out of the way to find their store. The good thing about social media is that it provides a way to avail of their products even remotely.

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Lunch at Breakfast at Antonio's, Opus Mall

We finally ate at the Breakfast at Antonio's at Opus Mall along C5, which incidentally is still part of Quezon City but near the border with Pasig City. Its quite popular is an understatement as we always find it full. We were somewhat lucky one Saturday and had a really good late lunch there.

Smoked pork baby back ribs

Portobello truffle tagliatelle

We also got a couple of packs of freshly made piaya aside from ice cream for dessert. We are already looking forward to the next meal there. It's addressed our cravings for their food that we only enjoyed if we go to Tagaytay, which is not that often.

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Another mentor passing away - Dr. Romeo Manlapaz

Another mentor passed away recently. Dr. Romeo Manlapaz was my teacher in Math 54. While he was supposed to be a terror teacher, I remember him more to be amusing. His terror reputation was somewhat tempered by his conversations with some of us students while we waited for our room to be vacated at the 4th floor of Palma Hall. Even as we were his students, we were surprised that he engaged us and shared with us many stories. I guess the other students were not as lucky and maintained a distance that they were not able to understand or appreciate the man. While he appeared to have been fond of a few of us engineering students, he trained his strict and firm manner towards others he seem to see differently. 

https://math.upd.edu.ph/2026/04/in-memoriam-dr-romeo-l-manlapaz-1939-2026 

It was later when I joined the College of Engineering as a faculty member that I came to discover his other contributions to the university. My senior colleagues like Dr Leony Liongson and Dr Evangel Quiwa shared their stories about Dr. Manlapaz, being his colleagues at the Engineering Science and Computer Science Departments.

While many of my blockmates probably don't have fond memories of him, I have many including some amusing ones in class. Those include the time he was gulping some cough syrup straight from the bottle as he claimed he had a bad case of coughs. He even teased some of the female students who were from Math and Chemistry. One of these of course was probably a crush in college or at least what we thought was his crush. 

I don't think he remembered me the last time I encountered him in the mid 1990s. I just joined UP at the time and was shy to introduce myself as a former student. Rest is peace, Dr. Manlapaz. You will be remembered by at least one of your former student who is thankful for the learning experience.

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More sanggumay in full bloom

I took these photos of the sanggumay on our Narra and Mango trees. They flowers last only a couple of days after the full blooming. The other sanggumay we got last year are still too young. Some actually perished already but I hope most would survive to eventually bear flowers.

The orchids on our Narra tree are wildly growing.

Close-up of the orchids on the Narra Tree at the front corner of our house.

Sanggumay strands on our mango tree

Close-up of the flowers

The sanggumay on our mango tree is quite prolific 

It's the time of year when most of our flowering plants are blooming. It is actually spring in temperate countries. And so we have lots of birds and insects benefiting from the flowers and fruits. I will post soon about our mangoes!

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Roberto's siopao, Iloilo City

The wife had a quick trip to Iloilo before the Holy Week. I suggested that if they had free time she should ask about siopao from Roberto's. Roberto's is probably the most popular place for siopao in Iloilo City. The pleasant surprise was we got a couple as pasalubong that we enjoyed the following day for breakfast.

Roberto's King Siopao has ham, chinese sausage, chicken-pork adobo and egg

Here's a close-up of the fillings for the King Siopao

Another close-up that captured the steam coming off the siopao after we heated it.

You can see the ham, sausage, adobo and egg in this photo.

I missed buying some the last time I was in Iloilo. Hopefully, there's another opportunity to travel there in the near future. Maybe then I can also get some to take home and enjoy eating with family. 

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