#42:The Good the Bad and the Ugly

The Good:
Any special breakfast that I spend with my husband is bound to be good. I received a Flapjacks coupon for a chocolate pancake because I stuffed myself with 2 breakfasts' worth of pancakes the 3 days before. Since I love special serene breakfasts, I invited my husband to share it with me with bottomless coffee, coffee, coffee... aaah!


So flapjacks had this Halloween promo wherein they served chocolate pancakes. I thought it will be blah, after all it's free. But you see the syrupy chocolate on top of my pancakes? That was really good! It's rich and creamy and it has none of those cheap, oily-tasting chocolate syrup that you get from sundaes from fast-foods. This one that they got is the real, dark, melted chocolate ganache type. And the pancakes were fine as well, not too sweet and it blended with the creaminess of the whipped butter (after all, butter goes well with ANYTHING!). 


Their bottomless coffee was a bit bland though. Good thing my husband was there to make me forget that the coffee was not remarkable. The conversation was good enough, indeed.


Now for what happened 3 days earlier...

#40: Loving Cheesecakes

Whenever I feel down or if ever I am hit by a sudden desire to indulge, the first three things that comes to my mind is a good massage, coffee and a big, luscious slice of cheesecake. My friends can tell that when I am craving for dessert, "cheesecake" is the first thing to come out my mouth. Just writing these things make me close my eyes and draw a deep sigh straight from my food-loving heart.

Being able to say these things mean I only want cheesecake for my family when there is a special occasion, given my budget allows me to. We were able to sample with the family two cheesecakes this last quarter. One is from Banapple and one is from Cheesecake Etc. Let me relate to you our experience from both. This will probably help you decide what you might like to have in the future.

Before I start, I will describe to you the kind of cheesecake that I like. I know different individuals have different tastes. With this you will know where I am coming from. I like my cheesecake a bit heavy, not too sweet, in fact, I like it with a bit of tang. Now that I have said that, let us begin with

Banapple's Strawberry Crumble Cheesecake

P860.00

Taste: 5/10

My birthday this year landed on the day that our car is prohibited on the road during rush hour. We can only use our car by 7pm so it was a rush rom our house to my parents' where we would have my birthday dinner. To save time, I asked my brother if he could pick up my cake for me. He was happy to bring home the cheesecake but a bit fatigued (in a happy way) because the box containing the cake was so heavy! The whole cake weighed more than a kilo. Not bad for something that is worth P860, right? In my mind, it bode well because it meant that that I'll be eating some heavy-loaded cheesecake.

Dessert time! We took our cake knife and excitedly sliced our finale for the night. You bet it was heavy! It was so dense that it was like slicing cheese! There was a "crumble" part in the name so I was expecting some toffee or perhaps solidified wedges of sugar but apparently, it was just crust crumbs sprinkled on top of the strawberry sauce which was sort of a slight letdown for me. Each of us had only an inch-thick slice but it was more dessert than we can handle on an already full stomach. You see this slice on the left? Three of us shared this. The cheesecake had a very thick texture that is perfect for a calorie loaded snack but a bit too heavy for dessert after dinner. 

I have high regard for Banapple, especially after they took my heart with just one bite of their Banoffee Pie. However, I felt that this item lacked the tang I'm looking for in a cheesecake. Even if it is very heavy, I did not experience the sweet-salty-tangy balance that I usually like in a cheesecake. It was sweeter than I expected and lacking a roundness in the flavor. Or perhaps it was also a case of the texture overwhelming the taste. It's good thing that the crust was very tasty that it cut the jaw-straining texture of the cake. Our family's response is: It is good and it was well worth the amount you'll pay for it. But we won't order it again anytime soon and be part of our classic choices. We'll probably try something else when we look at Banapple's menu again.

Cheesecake Etc.'s Mango Passion Cheesecake

P895.00

Taste: 7/10

It was Mother's Day and it is the perfect excuse to treat for our mom (and ourselves!) with another cheesecake. My brother got a coupon from Cheesecake Etc. and bought my mom a whole Mango Passion Cheesecake. It looked pretty nice with the greeting written on it and all the ribbon and curls. As opposed to the cheesecake that we had during the previous occasion, this is a light mango-flavored cheesecake with a nice mango jelly topping. I was expecting it to be sweet but it turned to be pretty balanced. The creaminess married well with the fruity mango flavor in the cake while the topping gave your palate a tangy exclamation point. It was actually a nice dessert experience, not too overpowering but and just right to cap off a dinner. 

One thing though, it seems to be more of a mango mousse dessert than a cheesecake because it was very light (contrary to Banapple's utterly heavy cake, this was too light in fact) and was actually melting at room temperature. My brother said that it sold for P150 per slice. For me, this may be asking too much if you are going to get something that tasted more like mousse cake instead of cheesecake. It seems that you are getting more cream than cream cheese. If they called it mango mousse cake, then this is probably the best mango mousse cake that I have tasted so far. If not for my brother's coupon, one will usually pay P 895.00 for a whole cake. Not bad, not bad at all; I had two slices that night. 


How about you, what was your best cheesecake slice do far?

#36: Macing's Year-Round Puto Pumbong

This is the "bumbong" used to cook this
rice cake. Nice picture from Female Network!

Puto Bumbong is a classic Filipino rice cake snack that is most popular during Christmas time. Over the years, it has become a traditional snack for those who are attending the early morning Christmas mass that starts from December 16 to 25. This rice cake is made from a special kind of purple sticky rice called Pirurutong. The rice is soaked in salted water, dried and ground then placed in a narrow bamboo called bumbong then steamed. It is then placed on a banana leaf and served slathered with butter, shaved coconut, ground raw sugar also known as muscovado and sometimes, grated cheese. This is officially my favorite rice cake variety. Nothing beats the warm, soft texture of the cake, this made more lavish by the creamy butter, the milky coconut and the sharp, melt-in-your-mouth sweetness of the muscovado. Oh yeah. Then the cheese... This must be the gate of rice cake heaven.

If I had my choice, I will want to eat this regularly all year round. But as I mentioned earlier, these only litter the streets during Christmas. And lately, the really good puto bumbongs have gotten far and few in between. Most of the puto bumbongs sold during Christmas has mostly become imitation versions. They don't use pirurutong anymore. They just use the regular sticky rice and color it purple. Baaaah! I had no choice but to endure the longing until the next Christmas season. That was my plight until my husband introduced me to Macing's.

#24: Knowing the Balicutia

I love coffee. I adoooooore coffee. Coffee is my companion when I blog, when I watch Jaime Oliver, when I eat  cookies, when I'm hanging out with my friends. It's a good thing my husband doesn't get jealous of it, hahaha! Any kind of coffee will do, whether it's instant or brewed. But if I can have my way, I prefer espresso drinks. But this is not about coffee, this is about what I happened to add to my coffee a month ago. 

#22: Vietnam, France, and Palawan in One Sitting

During one of JuanFoundSound's project with Compassion International, we were brought to Palawanto document how a family's life improved after being under Compassion's care. Our handler, E, has been raving about this noodle house that serves Chao Long. So after a long day of shooting, he took us to this rather dingy, flourescent lamp-lit karinderya-looking place named Bona's. Not that I mind. I believe that you will really experience the real deal in a culture's cooking by visiting places that are often visited by the mass. But I digress.

So there was a big board on one side of the wall that lists the menu. If I remember it right, the menu goes like this: 

#20: Combi and the Frugal Me

I am consistent. I am usually frugal. As much as I want to be embarassed in saying this but it takes a bit of emotional anesthesia or emotional panic for me to want to spend 250pesos ($ 5.80) for a single meal just for myself. Not even for both my husband and myself combined, hahaha! I dunno... I think I got it from my mom and my maternal lola who's really practical and frugal, even if they can afford it. As for me, striving artist, remember? Ask my closest friends; they can attest to my consistency.

While waiting for our meal

Anyway, one day my husband and I went around Metro Manila the whole morning for errands and meetings and lunchtime found us cruising through the Maginhawa cool cuisine belt. As always, I cracked up when we passed by this Persian resto. The name which starts with a certain letter A just gets me. Find out for yourself, wink wink! Well, we didn't eat there. Our chosen budget for that particular lunch was for either a carinderia or a fast food tipid meal that I was surprised that my husband even offered to go see if we can find a place to eat there in Maginhawa. So our instinct is to go to this pares place where the students are crowding.  We parked our car and checked. 65 pesos. Not bad but it's hot and cramped.


"Let's see what else is on the other side." 

#18: A Banoffee Pie and 10 Books

A very good friend took me out a month ago because my system was aching for non-Anne cooked food.. or to be more specific, pastry. Or anything with cream and caramel! Help!


So the sky took pity on me and caused a friend to take me to Banapple in Il Terrazo in Tomas Morato. It is such a cozy place with light, flowing curtains, soft lighting, homy decor and warm , happy colors. 

Thanks to banapple for their picture!

Their tables are very nice, too! It is made of marbles stuck in clay or cement then let dry, as seen on this picture on the left. It feels ticklish in my palms. It makes the plates wobbly though but I really did not mind it much. :-D