Local delights for merienda

After lunch at the resort last weekend, I had the idea to go out and see if there were stores that sold food other than the usual junk food found at sari-sari stores. I also wanted to see if there was a 'tinapayan' or bakery to get some of my favorite breads. There were only the small sari-sari stores selling the usual stuff and no bakeries. Fortunately, there was a roadside store selling turon, kamote cue, biko and other local, more traditional snacks.

Turon or banana rolls (friend banana with the wrapper coated in brown sugar)

Kamote cue (fried sweet potato coated in sugar)

Their version of biko, which is sticky rice cooked with coconut milk and brown sugar.

We bought turon and biko from the store to take back to the resort for our merienda. They turned out really good and we got to enjoy these local delights as an alternative to the food at the resort. 

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Snacks: Meiji Kinoko no Yama

I spotted these snacks on sale at one of the Japanese themed stores inspired by 100 yen and similar shops in Japan. These are chocolate-tipped, mushroom shaped biscuits.

These were on buy one, take one sale so I got a couple of packs. Unfortunately, removing the tape ripped off some of the box.

Inside the box is not just a pack of biscuits. The foil is actually nicely printed. This preserved the biscuits.

What the biscuits look like with the chocolates forming the top of the mushroom.

While these may be regarded as children's snacks, they are actually delightful to eat. I wouldn't mind snacking on these from time to time. The biscuits are crunchy so you enjoy chewing on them. 

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A quick snack at Dunkin

For some reason, I had a craving for some donuts. If I had the time and money, I would probably get the old-fashioned donuts from Wild Flour. Unfortunately, this was a sudden craving and some less expensive options would suffice. Dunkin Donuts or Dunkin, as they prefer to be called now, is quite accessible and I like their butternut donuts (the regular and chocolate variants). And so I got me a couple of donuts and some iced coffee.

Butternut donut and iced coffee 

 

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Buc-ee's Pecan Log

This is another late post of a snack we enjoyed last year. The wife took home a lot of pasalubong from our friends in the US the last time she was there (in Texas to be exact). Buc-ee's Pecan Log is one of the new items we tasted and enjoyed eating last year.

The packaging for this bar is quite simple and you can see what's inside - a bar loaded with pecans.

We thought this was a satisfying snack. Perhaps it is most suitable as a power bar. I thought that you can have one on hiking or walking trips. When you feel tired or need a time out, you can take a bite or two to energize yourself.

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Fresh Piaya from Breakfast at Antonio's, Opus Mall

We were at Opus Mall last weekend. It was our first time to go there despite often passing through the area. We decided to have lunch there and as we ate, I noticed the people at the nearby table splitting a pack of piaya among them for dessert. I suddenly remembered getting these wonderful piaya from Balay Dako in Tagaytay. They also make them at Opus.

Freshly made piaya being placed on the basket at the cashier's counter - they are still hot so they don't tie up the package at this time. The price per 6-piece pack is shown in the photo.

The newly made piaya are place on a tray before they are packed into plastic bags.

The piaya are really good especially when they're still freshly made and hot. You can actually heat them before you eat them later and they will still taste fresh. Just make sure you heat them on a pan or oven toaster, not the microwave, which will make them soft rather than crisp. 

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Snacks: Consilia Wafers Al Cacao

I was gifted with these wafers by a faculty member who traveled to Italy to attend a conference. While they seem like regular wafers, they turned out to be one of the best if not the best I've had.

Wafers with chocolate layers

Details on the chocolate are at the back of the pack.

Ingredients, nutrition information and info on the manufacturer

These are not items I would usually pick in a supermarket, grocery or store here or abroad. But if I do enjoy eating these from time to time. I thought the wafers themselves were on the crunchy and/or crispy side (malutong) so the packaging helped keep them in the best condition. The chocolate cream between the wafers were also of good quality and not too sweet. This could be a good snack or side to any drink, whether hot or cold.

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Home-made brownies

Our daughter has been very interested in cooking and baking lately. They've been learning to cook at school and at home, she helps her mother when the latter is baking. We always have the ingredients for cookies or cupcakes at home so they can actually bake whenever they want to.

A few weeks ago, our daughter made some brownies from the mix we had. Half had cashew nuts in addition to the chocolate while the other half only had chocolate sprinkled on top.

Brownies half and half by our daughter

To be honest, he fudge brownies were good. I even brought some for my snack at the office.

 

It's not yet at par with the brownies I've enjoyed eating but I think we'll eventually get there. I use the term 'yet' because it is a work in progress. I prefer my brownies with nuts especially cashew (instead of almonds, macadamia, pecan or peanuts) but they're still good without the nuts.

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Snacks: Alfort Mini Chocolate

I received this pack as a souvenir (pasalubong) from a colleague who recently traveled to Japan. Though it is now available locally, it is still a thoughtful gift and one that brings back memories of Japan. I used to buy these at the coop store or the convenience stores at railway stations for a quick snack at school or at home.

Alfort mini chocolate provides a quick and satisfying snack.

Details on the chocolate topped biscuits are at the back but this came from Japan so there is no English translation on a sticker like what you'll find from similar products sold in the supermarket.

Inside the box is a tray of biscuits wrapped in foil.

Opening the foil wrapper, the biscuits are revealed.

The chocolate is basically on top. Here's what the flipside looks like.

These biscuits provided me a quick satisfying snack for when you want a 'sugar high' during the day.

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Roberto's "Jumbo" Siopao, Iloilo City

During our meeting at city hall, we were treated to a nice snack by our hosts. The siopao (steamed pork bun) from Roberto's was a welcome snack after a very early breakfast at NAIA Terminal 3 prior to our morning flight to Iloilo. Theirs is supposed to be the best siopao in the city and it certainly did not disappoint.

Roberto's is supposed to be the best siopao in the city

The siopao is revealed

Inside is a savory meat with egg

The siopao was definitely good and did not disappoint. I am not so sure it is the best siopao I've tasted but perhaps it is the best in Iloilo so it should be added to the must eats in the city recognized for its gastronomical delights.

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Potato snack - Potpots

There's a new kiosk at the mall near us where we could get some good potato fries. These would either be the typical french fries or what the store calls potpots - what looks like Shakey's Mojos. I got some of the potpots and had some small talk with the vendors who said the potatoes are sourced from the company's farm and not imported. They proceeded to show me their supply of large potatoes as one of them got some to cook.

Fries or potpots?

I got barbecue and cheese flavored potpots to take home. They were an instant hit with the kids, especially the barbecue flavored potatoes.

While we also enjoy fries from Potato Corner,  we thought that Potpot provides a nice alternative for cravings for fries or mojos.

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Rolls cookies and crinkles

There's a stall inside the Bonifacio High Street Mall that sells really good cookies, crinkles and brownies. The price for each is justified by the quantity and quality of their products. We have seen their stall several times but just have not had the nudge to purchase and try their items. One weekend last month, as I was waiting for the wife and daughter as they checked out one of the shops, I decided to get a few cookies, crinkles and brownies.

Chocolate butternut crinkles, pecan-choco chip cookies, and fudge brownies

A box of Rolls goodies

There are so many cookies, crinkles and brownies out there especially as many people seem to have taken to baking and selling during the pandemic. I thought Rolls' were one of the real deal and truly worthy of a next purchase and serving. Just be careful not to overindulge as too much of these is bad for your health.

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A quick snack at Pound, Robinson's Place Manila

We arrived early last Monday for a wedding at one of the hotels in the Mabini area. As we were very early, we didn't want to hang out at the hotel while final arrangements were being made at the venue where both ceremony and reception will take place. Since we were near Robinson's Place Manila, we decided to drop by and have a snack. We had a couple of hours to spare so we had time to go around and see where we can have our merienda. We didn't want to eat a lot because of the dinner that would follow the wedding ceremony. I haven't been to this mall and the wife was there only twice before but for meet-ups with friends over lunch. And so we were both surprised to see a lot of options, a lot of places to eat at that we haven't seen in other malls that we went to before even prior to the pandemic.

One of those was Pound, which had a simple enough menu (for us). And so we ordered some sliders (basically mini burgers) and truffle fries. And we had their house brewed iced tea to wash it down. There were only a few customers when we ate there but eventually more came just as we checked out and decided to start walking back to the lobby for a ride to the hotel.

Sliders and truffle fries

The sliders were good and satisfying. The truffle fries were okay. We probably will eat there again but there's just many other restaurants to try out especially if we'll be back at Robinson's Manila. We'll see...

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Fruits for the week

I am the one who goes to the wet market from our home. I actually like to go to the market on weekends - either Saturday or Sunday. That's where we get our supply of seafood and fruits. While we also buy vegetables there, nowadays we get these from the Sunday talipapa (informal market) in our village. The talipapa though doesn't usually have a lot of fruit varieties so its the wet market or the supermarket for our fruits. A constant would be bananas and I prefer the latundan variety over the lakatan/lacatan. We also usually buy saba, which can be fried or boiled. Fried saba bananas or in the form of turon or maruya are favorites at home. At times, I take fried saba as baon for lunch. It's filling and doesn't make me sleepy during the 'unholy' hours from 1:00 - 3:00 PM.

Our kasambahays like to arrange our fruits on the counter for everyone to see what's available to eat. This way, there's no excuse for not eating healthy.

We make it a point to have fruits at home. We encourage our daughter to have these instead of junk food or sweets especially in between meals (i.e., snacks). Of course, fruits are great as dessert and sometimes with the meals (fried or boiled bananas as part of breakfast). My favorites like atis and kaimito are seasonal and so were mangoes. I usually buy these at the market, too, where I have suki (favorite) vendors for our fruit supplies.

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Simple inflight snacks

Inflight, there wasn't really much difference pre-Covid-19 and now (not yet post-Covid-19) except perhaps that the flight attendants were wearing PPEs and masks. We were on full flights both outbound and inbound of Manila and the airport terminals were also already crowded. We flew on Philippine Airlines so there was no food and drinks for sale on the flight. But they did distribute some snacks and drinks to passengers.

Butter cookies and water were our inflight snacks for the MNL-TAG flight. For drinks you actually can opt for coffee or tea.

The cookies were by Figaro and not from some obscure manufacturer.

We had green peas and water on the TAG-MNL flight.

Nutrition information at the back of the pack.

The guisantes pack was manufactured in Cebu and is certified Halal.

I assume that longer flights on board full service airlines like Singapore Airlines or Japan Airlines would have modified their inflight meals service in light of Covid-19. We are hopeful that we can soon travel again overseas to again enjoy the attractions in other countries.

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Healthy snacks?

The wife bought some snacks that we generally regard as healthy compared to the usual junk food that we buy. These were packs of dried tropical fruits.

Sunkist tropical fruits blend

This was produced in Thailand. That came as no surprise as the country is well-known for the high quality of dried fruits they produce. We usually bought dried fruits as pasalubong from Thailand. This was very enjoyable but definitely on the sweet side. You can end up eating a lot if you didn't pour some on a small bowl or plate instead of just opening a pack and eating directly from it.

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Guilty pleasures - pinasugbu

I found this at the supermarket and did not hesitate getting a pack. I loved pinasugbu since I first had one when I was a toddler vacationing in my father's hometown in Iloilo more than 4 decades ago. Pinasugbu is basically fried saba banana slices dipped in caramelized brown sugar. Often it is sprinkled with sesame seeds to enhance the taste and texture.

Wewin's special and delicious Pinasugbu

Back in the day, I recall we usually bought pinasugbu from Lucy's, which had a shop near the old Iloilo Airport in Mandurriao. I think they closed shop many years ago but we bought from Wewin's upon recommendation of an aunt who said their pinasugbu was just right - not too soft, not too hard on the teeth, and not too sweet (but that's a relative thing, of course). Later, I got our pinasugbu from Biscocho Haus, which had one stop shops around the city and along the way to the new airport.

I checked again the next time I was doing our groceries and there were no more Wewin's pinasugbu there. Perhaps they will restock again soon? I will probably get a couple or more packs the next time.

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Crocodile sausages at Hero sausages

The wife and I had to go out to get a couple of documents we needed for a case that's been lingering since 2015. It was close to impossible to park our vehicle near the government offices where we had to get the docs so we decided to park at the big hardware store nearby and take a trike to the offices. Actually, I dropped off the wife at one of the offices and parked and took the trike. 

After securing the documents, we took one trike each to the hardware store and went in to get a few items for our home. After getting our stuff, we saw this sausage stand at the ground floor and decided to get a couple of sandwiches to take home. As their specialty was crocodile meat sausages, we got a couple of their Croc Dundees instead of Hungarians as we originally planned.

Nice tagline for Hero sausages. They seem to serve not only sausages but burgers and silog meals as well.

The stand at the ground floor of Wilcon Depot along the Circumferential Road in Antipolo City follows the health protocols set for the pandemic.

They have a pretty good menu for a sausage stand

I was not able to take photos of the Croc Dundee sandwiches. The wife ate here as we drove home (I was driving) while I quickly wolfed mine when we got home. I thought they were a bit on the spicy side and our daughter agreed as she took a bit into my sandwich and passed on the experience of eating a crocodile meat sausage. She is not a fan of spicy food like I am. :) I assume that the spiciness was sort of an attempt to cloak the real taste of the meat? Or perhaps to make it taste like the usual sausages people eat (Hungarians, kielbasas, bockwurst, etc.). I'll probably try one again the next time I'm at this branch of Wilcon.

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Chocolate review: The return of the dark Snickers bar

I was pleasantly surprised to find the dark chocolate variant of Snickers in the supermarket shelf. I had not seen this in a very long while. I first saw these on the shelves of convenience stores and supermarkets in Japan, and later in the duty free shops in Clark and Subic.

Snickers cacao strong (that's Japanese katakana for cacao)

The Japanese roughly to 230% more cacao than the usual Snickers bar.

Like other imported products at the supermarket, there is a sticker providing a translation of ingredients, nutrition information and manufacturer's info.

Was a little surprised to see that the importer, Mars Philippines, Inc., which is the local subsidiary of Mars Foods is located in our city. However, I was not surprised but somewhat suspicious about the bars being produced in China.

I used to buy these by the box whenever I saw them on Clark Freeport's Puregold Duty Free shop shelves. Those were from the US rather than from Japan. It has a distinctive taste from the regular Snickers as well as other variants now available. As far as I can remember (taste-wise), its the same dark Snickers bar we enjoyed before and so I've included these in our stock of chocolates.

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Snacks - junk food in Bangkok

I took advantage of my travel to Bangkok to finish some reports. Scanning the nearby supermarket for something to eat and drink while working, I chanced upon some junkfood that we used to enjoy while living in Singapore.

Cheezels and Chachos were available at a supermarket chain of a major retailer in the Metro Manila. I don't find them in their shelves anymore so I assume these aren't generally available locally.

I also like chocolate milk and there are many choices in the supermarket so I have my fill of milk while working late. What I couldn't find was Yakult. There's a local version/brand of the probiotic drink but I opted not to purchase a pack.

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Peanuts

They say its better to eat peanuts instead of junk food. And there are a lot of articles including very scientific ones that validate the health benefits of peanuts. While there are many peanut vendors around, including at the market, I usually get our supply of peanuts from a suki vendor at a nearby mall.

Selection of peanuts (roasted with skin, without skin, garlic, adobo, spicy, etc.)

There are other nuts, beans and corn snacks being sold. The cashew nuts we get from the vendors at the pasalubong shops along Sumulong Highway.

Our daughter loves nuts and its good that she is not allergic to them. She likes the roasted, adobo flavored peanuts but without the skin. She likes the garlicky taste and munches on the crunchy garlic that's usually mixed with the peanuts.

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