Remembering Central World

I received this text message yesterday:

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May reunion daw ang mga shoppers.  Heehee!

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Then I suddenly remembered the tragic burning of Central World.  You see, when we moved here two years ago, it took me the longest to adjust to our new life in Bangkok.  Richard had his work, Aly had school...with no friends and only the internet to keep me company for most part of the day, I'd spend my lonely hours in the mall and Central World was one of them.  Ahhh, Central World...she welcomed me into her loving arms like a surrogate mom and gave me confort and cheered me up like a real friend.  And like any great BFF, she showed me all the good things in life -- those fabulous shoes, nice clothes, must-have houseware items...and when I hesitated, she would have those ker-razy sales -- Nine West, Aldo and Stella Luna shoes at 50-70% off!!  She understood my needs and she took really good care of me that's why I love her.

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Central World was also our go-to mall on Sundays after mass.  Richard, Aly and I shared many adventures in our beloved mall.

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Balloon Festival, April 2008. 

Look at how bulinggit Aly was in this photo.

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When we became addicted to hotpot, MK Gold at Central World was our favorite branch.

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They even gave me a discount card.

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There was also a time when we'd have our Sunday lunches at Pepper lunch almost every week.  This was our first time. 

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We also had many Bangkok firsts in Central World...

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...Aly's first foreign contest where she won third place...

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 ...our first movie theater experience where we saw Kung Fu Panda...

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...and our first Christmas in Bangkok.

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We loved Central World so much that we brought all our visitors there as well.

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Mom and dad's first visit in May 2008. 

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Nyoras in Bangkok, August 2008.

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Glad we took this photo outside Zen!

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Mom and dad's 2nd visit in November 2008.  Here, dad and Aly are patiently waiting while my mom, my titas and I were out shopping.

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My siblings and cousins' visit in August 2009.  Here's my cousin Koy outside Central World.  Angel and I are somewhere in the background.

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Angel and Koy, August 2009.  Behind them is the part of Central World that was badly damaged by the fire.  In fact, there's just a big hole now where that wall used to be.

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To Central World: thank you for the memories.  Thank you for the crazy sales.  Thank you for the fantastic food.  It really was a sad day when you burned down.  We will miss you.

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P.S We know you'll be back with a vengeance and we can't wait to see you again :)

From My Mom and Dad

Our short getaway was a blast!  I just love being with my family and friends back home. I also love the new stuff that my mom and dad bought me.  Heehee!

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From my mom: Ipanema flip flops by Gisele Bundchen.

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Now I can walk like a supermodel.  Haha!

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I've never really given much attention to Ipanema before because my eyes were always set on Havaianas.  And I thought they were just the same but I saw that Ipanema has a wider range of styles and designs.  I super like!  I'm so happy my mom bought me a pair.  Heehee!

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Also, last Sunday while in Church, my dad asked me if I already had a pair of Sanuks.  When I said no, he said he'll buy me.  Ang saya!

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From daddy: my white Sanuk.  I wore them the other day when I went to Aly's Sports Day.

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Ang sarap talaga pag libre ang shopping!  Heehee!  But seriously, I'm super kilig because it's been a long time since mom and dad took me out shopping.   I will treasure these sandals forever!  

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Ahhh...I felt like a daughter again.  Ofcourse I will always be their daughter but now that I have a family of my own and since we're living far away from them, I have always been a mom to Aly and a wife to Richard.  But when I came home, I was an ate to my siblings and a daughter.  You know what I mean?  I kinda missed that feeling.

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Oh, and ofcourse, lola Aple and lolo Bernie got something for their unica apo as well.

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Sanuk also from lolo Bernie and Grendha sandals from lola Aple.

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Now, Richard, Aly and I all have Sanuks and they're all gifts from my dad.  Aly and I were super excited about our new stuff, we wore our Sanuks during our trip back to Bangkok.

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To my mom and dad: thank you so much for the sandals!  I love you both!

Parmesan Chicken with Honey Mustard Dip

This is my last installment for my Meal Makeover kwento because I was only able to make three meals out of the four that I had originally planned.  I am currently on a diet (will tell you all about it if it works on me) so the Chicken Kebab will have to wait for a couple more days.

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What I love most about this dish is you don't need to deep fry it.  I don't like to deep fry at home and I try to avoid it as much as I can.  It's unhealthy and it makes the entire apartment smell like well, prito and I think it's also a waste of cooking oil for me since I don't reuse my cooking oil.  I also don't use a lot of oil even for sauteeing that's why a one-liter bottle of canola oil goes a long way in my kitchen.

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Anyway, here's the recipe:

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Ingredients:

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5 chicken breast fillets, skinned

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. prepared mustard

1 tsp. chopped tarragon leaves

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (I used Panko or Japanese breadcrumbs and it was ok)

6 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper for seasoning

2 eggs, beaten

3 Tbsp. butter, melted

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For the Honey Mustard Dip:

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2 Tbsp. prepared mustard

2 tsp. honey

1/4 cup mayonnaise

salt and pepper to taste

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Marinate chicken in olive oil, mustard and tarragon for 30 minutes.

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Then, preheat oven to 350F and prepare the Honey Mustard dip: mix the mustard, honey, mayo, salt and pepper in a small bowl.  You may adjust the ingredients according to your taste.  Set aside.

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In a shallow dish, mix the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper together.  Dip the chicken breast in the beaten eggs then cover with breadcrumbs.

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Arrange the chicken breast on a baking dish, drizzle melted butter over them and bake for 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.

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Serve with the Honey Mustard dip.

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Enjoy!

His and Hers

There was at a time when Richard and I went out in terno outfits.  Not naman in exactly the same shirts (too cheesy!), but just in the same colors to complement each other.

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During our honeymoon at Plantation Bay in 2007.  Notice the matching Havaianas? 

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Aly's Kidcore graduation in 2008.

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Christmas dinner with my inlaws, 2008.

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Now, we kinda outgrew that phase.  We don't plan our outfits anymore.   So if ever we're wearing the same color, it's purely coincidental.  Besides, I don't think it's uso anymore.  So we have moved on to other his and hers stuff instead.

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It all started with our Havaianas (see first photo above).  I don't remember the occasion why we bought them though.  Then, we bought his and hers Technomarine watches for our first wedding anniversary.

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We also have his and hers Ferragamo perfumes...

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...ipods...

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Just recently, Richard's office gave him a new phone.  And guess what?

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Terno pa rin kami :)  How cool is that?

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My brothers have the same phone, by the way.  Ange, I think there's a white Nokia e63 out there with your name on it.  Heehee!

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I wonder what other his and hers stuff we're going to get next? 

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Apple Crumble

This is another great find from allrecipes.  It's so easy to make and I promise you, it's a winner.

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Sorry, but this was the only photo that I took.  Richard and I were too excited to eat it, I didn't have time for arte presentations.

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Ingredients:

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2   Granny Smith apples, cored and diced* 

2   Tbsp, Brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

2   Tbsp. Cold butter, cut into cubes**

1/2 cup Quick-cooking oats

1/2 cup Flour

1/8 cup Sugar

1/4 cup Brown sugar

5   Tbsp. Cold butter, cut into cubes

*For this recipe, I used one big Fuji apple and it turned out ok.

**I use 1/2 cup of butter, cut into 3 parts: 1/3 = 2 Tbsp., 2/3 = 5 Tbsp.

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Preheat oven to 350F/175C

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In a bowl, toss together apple, brown sugar and cinnamon until well coated.  Grease an ovenproof dish with butter and transfer the apples.  Dot with 2 Tbsp. butter.  Set aside.

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In another bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients.  Cut the butter into the mixture using a pastry cutter (or two knives) until well blended and the dough starts to form big chunks.  Spread the chunks of the topping mixture over the apples and bake for 35-40 minutes until the apples are done and the crust turns a nice shade of brown.

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Enjoy!

Steak and Salad

And so our Meal Makeover kwento continues...

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During our Mother's Day lunch at Neil's Tavern, Aly had a new love for steak and she's been craving for that eversince.  So the other day, we had:

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Steak with carrots and potatoes...

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...salad with garlic french dressing...

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...and Richard's favorite apple crumble for dessert.

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I have to say that garlic french dressing is my new favorite salad dressing!   I like the light one, not the creamy kind.  One day, I will try to make that from scratch.  If you have a great french dressing recipe, please do share!

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The salad consists of the ff: oakleaf lettuce, smoked ham (which I baked for like ten minutes to make it a little crispy), herbed croutons and garlic french dressing.  I made the croutons from scratch.  First, I mixed extra virgin olive oil, garlic powder (fresh minced garlic works best, but I was in a hurry), tarragon and thyme.  Then, I brushed the mixture on both sides of white bread, cut them into small squares, and baked them in the oven until brown and crispy.  You have to wait for the croutons to cool a bit, though before adding to the salad because the lettuce might wilt.

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That's all for now.  I promise to share my apple crumble recipe in another post because I have a shuttle to catch in 30 minutes.  Happy cooking!
 

Meal Makeover

I'm ashamed to admit that our family meals have been less inspired lately.  Week after week, it has always been pork sinigang, pork adobo, beef salpicao, fried chicken, grilled tanigue, spaghetti, baked macaroni...There are also days when I'm too lazy to cook so we either order pizza or buy from our suking Thai restaurant around the corner.  But even the stuff that we order doesn't change!  If you look at my order history from Pizza Company, you'd see that we only get medium hawaiian pizza with cheese crust.  It has also come to a point where the waiter at the Thai restaurant can already predict Richard's order, which is usually grilled beef, fried rice with pork and thai somtam.  Pathetic.  I'm just glad that my two alagas are not complaining.

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Last Monday, I took out all my cookbooks and Yummy magazines and spent the entire afternoon browsing through them.  This is the menu that I came up with:

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I also drew up a grocery list and bought all the ingredients. Last Tuesday, I made this:

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Hoisin and Honey Pork 

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with Chicken Sopas.

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The recipe actually calls for porkchops, but my suking grocery did not have any that time so I used pork belly instead.  It was good!  

Coming up with a weekly menu is not easy and can also be very stressful.  So I'm sharing my recipes with you. 

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Hoisin Honey Pork

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4 pcs. pork belly

3 Tbsp. Hoisin sauce (I used Lee Kum Kee)

2 Tbsp. honey

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First, I mixed the hoisin sauce and honey in a small bowl.  Then I brushed the hoisin and honey mixture on all sides of the pork belly.  I placed it inside the ref for several hours.  Then, I cooked the pork in the oven, on broiler setting.   The meat is cooked when the edges start to caramelize. 

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The smell is wonderful, I tell you!  You should try this at home.  It's easy.

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For my chicken sopas, I like to keep it simple. 

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1 chicken breast
2 cups macaroni
2 Tbsp. (approx) butter
1 Tbsp. (approx) cooking oil
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
Patis and pepper, according to taste
1 small carrot, diced
2 cups (approx) water
1 chicken cube
1 small can evaporated milk
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Here's how I do it: First, I boil the chicken breast until cooked through.  I don't throw away the stock because I also use it for the soup.  Then, I cook the macaroni noodles (something that my lola Aning taught me because this keeps the pasta from absorbing all the soup later on).  By this time, the chicken breast should be cool enough to handle, so I shred it into big chunks using my hands.

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Next, I saute garlic and onion in butter with a little oil.  Then, I add the shredded chicken breast, season with patis and pepper.  I let it cook for around one minute, then I add chopped carrots.  Cook for another two minutes, then add the chicken stock.  Add more water if you need to, and place one chicken cube.  Let this simmer until you feel that all the flavors have been blended together.  Don't worry about the carrot not being cooked well enough, because you can eat carrots raw.  

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Then you add the macaroni, wait for it to boil, and check if the seasoning is ok.  If not, add more salt.  Lastly, add evaporated milk, let it simmer for two minutes, and your chicken sopas is ready.

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I found that evaporated works best with chicken sopas.  I tried using fresh milk before, but it wasn't as malinamnam like with evap milk.  So for me, I do not use any substitutes.

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Some people put grated cheese, hotdog and chicken liver and gizzard to their sopas, but cheese makes the soup too rich for my liking so I don't put it anymore, and the last three ingredients are hard to find here so I don't even bother looking for them.

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I will share more recipes in the coming posts so stay tuned :)

Cleaning Out Our Closets

Richard and I bought a couple of these storage containers from Tesco Lotus last weekend.

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They were on sale.  Only Thb199 each (Php275)

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So I spent the last couple of days cleaning out our closets.   I downsized our wardrobes; took out the ones that we haven't worn in a long time -- small clothes, sweaters and jackets...I also cleaned out our storage closet and boy, I didn't know we had so much junk at home!  That, aside from the two luggages filled with old clothes and other stuff that we're planning to give away.  If I had my way, I would have had them shipped to Manila through our suki in Pratunam just to get rid of them, but they probably weigh around 50 kilos or more and that's going to cost a lot.  Thankfully, Richard goes on business trips quite frequently and he flies Thai airways so he  just brings home as much as his baggage allowance would allow.

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I also saw this big paper bag filled with more paper bags:

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And this does not include the other bag where I keep my gift boxes.  The funny thing is, I kept all these thinking that I might need them someday -- for what exact reason, I don't really know.  But that day never came, and they just kept piling up so they all had to go.  I gave them to the housekeeper, hoping that they will find a way to recycle the bags.

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My closet looks better too, by the way.

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 I labeled them with post-its for hassle-free searching.

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Speaking of labeling, I also fixed Aly and Richard's DVD cabinet.  I know how these two tend to look for things with their mouth, not with their eyes i.e they will ask me, where is my (insert name of object here)? Even when it's right in front of them.  Sooo, I left a note for the two.

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I should have taken a "before" photo.  Sayang!  Anyway, this is the "after".

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Here's the note up close.  See how I used a bold marker?  Ewan ko na lang pag hindi pa nila ito nakita.  Hmph!

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The next day, I was supposed to put the other DVD's in a spare container and I found this:

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Looks like I have a magical elf in the house.  Heehee!

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I don't think Aly was happy with my note so she made a new one.  Haha!

Posh

Guess where we are?

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We're not in a cafe, but there's a big table...

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...and food...

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...free food and drinks that you can get from this counter.

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Nice, comfy seats.

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And a big tv.

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We were at the waiting lounge of BNH Hospital.  Nice, no?

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Two Lessons That I Learned on Mother's Day

This does not have anything to do with mommyness or family.  This is more um, fashion-related.  In fact, this is another shoe disaster.  Heehee!

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Last Sunday, I decided to wear an old pair of flat shoes that's been sitting quietly at the bottom of my shoe boxes.  Now, this trusty old pair and I have been through a lot.  I wore these shoes when Richard and I went apartment hunting on my first trip to Bangkok.  It's quite an old pair; I bought them from Rustan's ATC two or three years ago.  But, like with any other shoe, it had to take a backseat when I eventually bought new ones.

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So last Sunday, I wore them again.  But as I was walking to our seat at the back of the church, my right foot felt a little weird.  Once we were seated, I checked the shoe but I didn't find anything unusual. Moments later, I realized that the bottom of my right shoe looked different from the bottom of my left shoe -- the sole was about to come apart!  Oh gosh!  Silently, I was panicking.  What if the shoe comes apart during communion?  That would be really embarrassing!  So I prayed that my shoe will remain intact at least until after the mass.

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I survived the mass and lunch without any shoe mishaps, but when we were in the car, my shoe finally gave up.

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She gave up, just like that :(

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Good thing I had rubber bands in my bag.  I had them there to use for Aly's chopsticks because we were planning to eat in a Japanese restaurant a couple of weeks back.  I'll tell you all about that rubber band - chopsticks thing once we've tried it on Aly.  So what I did was, I tied a rubber band around my shoe so it looked like this:

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My rubber band-ed shoe.

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Imagine I had to walk in the mall in those!  It gets worse: when we arrived at the mall, I really, really needed to pee!  My family and closest friends would know that when I say I need to pee, I really mean business because I can't hold it any longer.  As in now na!  I had to walk fast, but I couldn't because if I did, my shoe would totally be wrecked and that would be the end of me.

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After what seemed like ten years, I made it to the toilet.  We bought my FitFlops (photos were taken at the FitFlop booth, by the way, in case you're wondering why the carpet's green) so I can walk normally and went home.  The end.

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So what are the two lessons that I learned in Mother's Day?

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#1 - It's good to have a couple of rubber bands in your bag.  You will never know when they will come in handy;

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#2 - If you plan to wear an old pair of shoes, it would be very wise to check each and every inch of the shoe before you head out the door.  When in doubt, bring an extra pair or do not wear them at all.

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