Pizza for Brunch

There is a certain group of people who firmly believe that certain things aren't meant to be eaten until past a certain time of day, like no alcohol before noon, no ice cream for breakfast, or no cereal during dinner. Fortunately (in my opinion) for me, I grew up in a household that did not fall prey to these stereotypes, and I grew up comfortable eating fried egg and tinapa for dinner, cereal very late at night, and pizza and ice cream for breakfast.

I love pizza, and for me nothing comes close to Gourmet Garden or the Garden Special from Yellowcab. But lately there have been fewer and fewer toppings, and in accordance to my new year's resolution to eat better, I have shied away from most pizzas because they are far too oily.

Which brings me to today, and I would like to share what I do to get my healthy pizza fix. It is so much easier to buy pizza crust from the store, but if anyone is interested in making their own pizza dough, Chef Todd English has a great recipe for pizza dough here. The rest of the ingredients are:

1. Zuchinni - cut into thin rounds or roughly half a centimeter (because they taste best when they are cooked all the way through)
2. Eggplant - cut into slightly thicker one centimeter
3. Blanched Tomatoes - You drop tomatoes (not fast! you don't want to get splattered!) into hot boiling water for no more than maybe a minute, followed by a quick dunk in ice water. After this you peel off the skin, it is much easier to peel off the skin if you score the tops of the tomatoes (you cut an X on top so you have something to pull when you peel off the skin). I know this is technically not blanching as blanching usually takes only 15 seconds, but you want the tomato to get to a slightly mushy but still intact phase, because this is going to take the place of your tomato sauce. It will get messy. Do it in a bowl.
   
4. Green Bell Pepper - cut these into crunchy rounds, and don't be afraid to include the seeds!
5. Feta - one of the staples in our household, we use Lemnos feta most of the time because they have some great goat feta. You're gonna have to crush this with a fork so that it is easier to spread.
6. Mozarella (Fresh Bocconcini) - Almost all commercial pizzas use long life mozarella blocks, which may be a better melting cheese but is not very good for you. Fresh mozarella, like Bocconcini has a shelf life of only a few weeks, and are balls of cheese in water. We get this from S&R in small clear plastic tubs (Mamma Lucia). You're gonna have to cut this up in pieces, doesn't matter what size.
7. Olive oil - for general drizzling
8. Basil - the perfect garnish
   

So first off, you want to waterproof the crust, as you can be sure that all the vegetables and the bocconcini is going to release a lot of water upon baking. So you drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil on the crusts and bake them until they begin to form a hard crust on the top. You take them out and begin to spread a thin layer of crushed feta first. Then you alternate the eggplant and zuchinni, and top it off with tomatoes and green bell pepper. Last will be the pieces of mozarella. Drizzle again with olive oil. Place in the oven at 350C until the cheese melts and the zuchinni and eggplant are cooked.

That sounds like pretty great breakfast to me.

Tokyo: Cafe-Creperie Le Bretagne at Omotesando

Taking a break from shopping around Harajuku (which by the way has the best children's store, Kiddyland) my godmother decided to bring me to a creperie located in the area. Seeing my confusion as to why we were going to a dessert shop for lunch, she excitedly explained to me that she discovered this specific creperie shortly after a trip through Europe where she was able to try a type of savory crepe called a gallete.

Crepes and Galletes are generally made with flour, eggs, milk and butter. But the difference between the two lie mainly in the flour and the filling. Crepes are made using a slightly sweeter dough and filled with fruit and/or topped with ice cream or a syrup of some sort. Meanwhile Galletes are made with buckwheat flour (the same flour used to make Japanese soba noodles, which contributes to their darker colour) and can be filled with meats, vegetables, and cheese.

While the possible origins of crepe is fairly varied, as many cultures have their own variation of this dish (the pancake being one of them), the region of Brittany (Bretagne) prides itself on being the masters of crepe, and when a Bretagne native came to Japan and decided to open Cafe-Creperie Le Bretagne, he insisted on bringing three French crepier to work at his restaurant.


With the exception of one or two foreign men sitting outside, most of the lunch time crowd consisted of young Japanese women (mental note to self: this place is perfect for a girl's day out). A waiter soon came with our menus and we each both ordered a gallete and a crepe. For drinks we opted to try their apple cider (which is the drink taken with crepe, as apples grow abundantly in northwestern France).

We first began with a light and brightly coloured garden salad, followed by our galletes. I had the Tomato and Mushroom "Complete"(Scrambled egg, ham, cheese, organic tomato, and mushrooms) while my godmother ordered the Chorizo "Complete"(Sunny side up egg, Iberico chorizo, cheese). Mine had a more mellow flavor,a crisp and thin buckwheat layer that cracked under my knife to reveal vegetables and ham on a bed of cheese and egg. The gallete with the Iberico chorizo was more flavorful and was clearly the house favorite, from the many orders of the Iberico chorizo gallete coming out of the kitchen. After our galletes our crepes were brought out. We had the Concarnoise (Chestnut puree, vanilla ice cream) and the Vannetaise (Salted butter caramel with vanilla ice cream).While the usual dessert crepe is chock full of fruits and slathered with sauce and whipped cream, the crepes that were brought out were very unassuming, which I enjoyed immensely. The chestnuts were in season, and the salty caramel complemented the vanilla ice cream and the crepe.

Overall it was a very light and refreshing lunch, after which we went back to sightseeing.

http://www.le-bretagne.com/

Food Finds | Japanese Musk Melon

This for all intents and purposes is not a mere melon, nor a fruit for that matter. This for all intents and purposes is a gift. Or it starts being one when a humble fruit like the melon is swaddled in a padded blanket and gently placed in a easily carriable box complete with a pillow inside to help it avoid gentle to moderate jiggles.

But the story of this humble melon begins in a greenhouse, where it's mother plant is pruned to produce only three fruit, then of the three, only our melon will be left when the farmer cuts off the two less attractice candidates. In simple terms, all the nutrients from of the plant go to nourish the remaining melon. After it has reached a optimum size and perfect round shape, and checked to make sure that it's characteristic mesh pattern is as even as possible, it is given a certificate to prove its authenticity, placed in it's vessel of transport, and delivered the next day to a supermarket near you, at a price anywhere from $40-$200 based on the quality of the melon. These are hardly ever bought to be eaten at home, which stems from traditional gift giving culture, where the very best is always saved to be given as a gift.

One of these gifts happens to find its way to our home every Christmas, from an old friend of my father's, and it is always eaten first before breakfast, with the melon being cut into six equal wedges (with a bowl underneath to catch all the liberated juices) with one going to each of us five, and the final one being split into three for my brothers and I. The luscious green flesh yields to your spoon like a hot knife to butter, and there is not one word uttered at the table as we all take in the first bite. Unlike most melons where the sweetness falters nearer the rind, this melon is sweet all the way through. Digging through the flesh to free the juices is has similarities to a young child digging for water near the seashore. Before you know it, its gone, and there is a collective sigh around the table. But with all great things, it is always just enough to savor a small piece than to rush through several servings.

Features | YOU Magazine

YOU magazine turns its eyes on our 5-month-old food blog in its feature "Manila Foodistas: Student foodies chronicle their campus food indulgences." Here's a photo of our feature in the magazine.

Again, thank you YOU magazine for having us. We're very humbled to be included in your issue.

Manila Foodistas represent!

Grab your copy of Sept/Oct 2008 Issue of YOU in any of your local magazine stands nationwide.

Restaurant Review | Mr. Choi Kitchen

Mr. Choi Kitchen
Robinson's Galleria, Mandaluyong City
Type of Cuisine: Chinese
Average cost per person: 200-300 (US$5-8)
Overall Rating:

Finding authentic Chinese cuisine in Manila is not necessarily a difficult task. With the fairly large population of Chinese Filipinos in the country, there are many places to go for food that is comfortably familiar. Looking for a quick bite to eat, we decided to try this updated looking Chinese restaurant. The clean lines, paneled walls, and warm yellow lighting set the ambiance. The cliched restaurant name aside, this is a good place to go to for a casual dinner, but not somewhere to go to be surprised.

Hakaw (Php 105, US$2.50)
Somehow, whether it be in a hole in the wall dimsum shop or at a high end Chinese restaurant, you can never go wrong with ordering Hakaw. This version understandably has less shrimp and more bamboo shoots, but nevertheless these slightly pink translucent dumplings are a great start to dinner.

Hot Prawn Salad (Php 260, US$6.50)
Still steaming, the battered prawns dredged in mayonnaise and fruits that comprise this dish could very well be stomach churning for some, especially if it isn't done well. What was different with this salad was the addition of vegetables, when it is usually made with fruits and shrimp. We would prefer it if they left out the fruits and just left the vegetables as fruit with mayonnaise isn't really our thing.

Seafood Fried Rice (Php 160, US$4.00)
Yang Chow Fried Rice is a staple in every Chinese restaurant, and the Seafood Fried Rice is not very much different from it. In fact, the only difference seems to be the addition of slightly more seafood, but not enough to change the dish drastically. This is one of those dishes, along with Hakaw, that seems to taste the same everywhere you go.

Beef with Broccoli (Php 195, US$5.00)
Unusually, the star of this dish was the broccoli, which came in generous servings. The beef itself was slightly rubbery, and did not lend itself well in the dish. But for the price it was more than enough to satisfy us.

Reviewed by Bong, Hannah and Mark.
Photography by Mark.
See more photos on Mark's Flickr.

50 Things You Can Make in Your Microwave: Banoffee Pie

Hannah's Dorm Room Banoffee Pie
Preparation time: 30-45 minutes, plus time for chilling



A medley of bananas and caramel, cradled by a graham cracker crust and finished with fresh whipped cream, nothing is more satisfying than coming home to your own individual serving of Banoffee Pie. Created in the seventies at The Hungry Monk restaurant, it has become increasingly popular here in Manila in the past year or two.

I personally love Banoffee Pie, regardless of the warning that comes on most Banoffee Pie recipes that read "milk cans may explode", as the toffee is traditionally made by cooking cans of condensed milk in pots of simmering water. This has pushed me to come up with any and all ways of getting the sweet and sticky caramel without fear of having to wipe down my toffee covered kitchen.

While I found less dangerous methods on the internet, one using an oven to cook the toffee and the other suggesting boiling the condensed milk in a saucepan, these methods were not as inspired as using a microwave to cook the toffee! I'm thinking people in apartments, in dorm rooms, or people who share common kitchens, who only have a fridge and a microwave, could actually make this dessert! In the hopes that I will soon be making this in the dorm room of a certain great medical school campus, I give you:

Hannah's Dorm Room Banoffee Pie

Ingredients:

• 250g graham crackers
• 125g butter
• 4 bananas
• 1 400ml canned condensed milk
• clotted cream or your favorite whipped topping

1. Crush the graham crackers. I find that the easiest way to do this is to use a large wooden mortar and pestle, but a blunt heavy object and the graham crackers in a ziplock bag does pretty well.
   
2. Place the butter in a microwaveable bowl (i would recommend the biggest bowl you have, you will thank me later) and heat it up in the microwave until it is melted, this should take from 10-15 seconds. Do not worry if there are still some lumps of unmelted butter, just give it a stir and it will eventually melt.
3. Combine the crushed graham crackers and melted butter to form a sandy biscuit base, and press it in to the container you would like to use. Put it in the refrigerator to firm up.
   
4. Using the same microwaveable bowl you used to melt the butter (no need to wash the bowl!) pour the condensed milk into the bowl and place it in the microwave. Be careful not to overfill the bowl, it should be at most only half filled.
   
5. Now this is the slightly tricky part, and you can't leave your microwave alone at this point because cooking time varies with the type of microwave you have. Have your setting on either low or medium and start the microwave. When you notice that the milk has begun to expand much like lava would turn off the microwave, take out the bowl and mix the milk until it has flattened out again. Do not allow the expanded milk to collapse by itself, because you will burn the milk. Keep repeating this until you get your preferred shade of caramel. Also be careful not to overcook the milk, you will notice that it is overcooked when the caramel refuses to smoothen out anymore (then you have caramel candy! but that's not really what we want isn't it?)
   
6. When the caramel is cooked, pour it into the refrigerated graham cracker crusts and refrigerate again. (You can go off and do whatever now)
7. When you are ready to eat, cut up the bananas how you like them, place them on top of the graham cracker-toffee base, and finish with either whipped product (the canister you shake and spray) or whipped cream. I like to use clotted cream because its already thick right out of the container.
8. Enjoy!
   

Note: I like to keep the crushed graham cracker, melted butter, and toffee in separate containers in the fridge so I can just assemble it throughout the week for when I have an especially bad day.

Restaurant Review | Sa In-Yō

Sa In-Yō
68 E. Abada St. Loyola Heights, QC
Type of Cuisine: French-Japanese Fusion
Average cost per person: Php 400 to Php 600 (US$10.00 to US$15.00)
Overall Rating:

We've been meaning to dine at In-Yō for months now, but we never really pushed through with it. But when we noted that our anniversary as being best friends was drawing near, we decided that there was no better time to have dinner at In-Yō than on our special day.

The place itself was gorgeous. Joey was especially taken by how part of the floor of the entrance was see-through. The service was also brilliant, with our waiter very attentive and accommodating. We had difficulty choosing what to eat, since everything sounded tempting.

While waiting for our meals to arrive, we were served slices of freshly baked cornbread, which Hannah adores, and dollops of butter. We were also each served a small plate of wasabi fried oyster (review below). The meals themselves were also wonderful, pretty much sealing the deal that we'd be making In-Yō our anniversary dinner destination from then on.

It's a wonderful and satisfying experience to dine at In-Yō. Give them a ring at 928-6459 and reserve yourself a table. It's the perfect place for an intimate family dinner or a romantic date -- or even the anniversary of your being best friends ;)

Wasabi Fried Oysters
This was interesting. The oyster's exterior wasn't as "slimy" as it typically is but the interior retained its rather creamy texture. It's not something you can have a whole lot of, but it was a nice surprise. It was a fun play on Japanese Kaki Fry, with a light wasabi batter replacing the traditional breaded batter.

Shitake Mushroom Udon with Light Soy&Garlic Sauce (Php 240, US$6)
Kat really liked the presentation of the shitake mushroom udon. With every bite, you get the nice crunch of vegetables and the juiciness of the mushrooms, which complemented each other well. The sauce was really good, rich in flavor but not too overpowering.

Honey Glazed Grilled Salmon (Php 440, US$10)
The salmon was cooked just right, just bordering on medium rare to well done. This made the fish a "melt in your mouth" texture. Hannah really loved how the sweet tones of the honey and the sauce complimented the fish. Strangely reminiscent of tare sauce, in how well the salmon was complimented by the honey and citrus miso sauce. The wasabi mashed potato could have been much creamier and smoother.

Mesquite Smoked Fillet of Local Halibut (Php 450, US$10.23)
This was wonderful, from the taste to the textures. The emulsion was light and with hints of sweetness, the watercress fresh and crisp, the pasta al dente and the fish perfectly cooked.

Reviewed by Hannah, Joey and Kat.
Photography by Joey.
See more photos on Joey's flickr.

Jetsetting Foodistas | Beijing: When in Beijing, Eat As The Beijingers Do

Hannah's Beijing Adventure
Jetsetting Foodistas: When in Beijing, Eat As the Beijingers Do
Part 3 of 3



Living in Manila, a place that until recently did not have many dining options, I grew up basically going to the same places all the time. Because of this, I only knew one Chinese restaurant growing up, and apart from home, I had only one view of what Chinese cuisine was supposed to taste like, because I had nothing else to compare it to.

It is not surprising to find out that Chinese food in Manila has somewhat morphed into a cuisine that pleases the tastebuds of most Filipinos. This gives us somewhat interesting variations of traditional Hokkien dishes, as many of the Chinese in the Philippines migrated there from the south of China. Because of this, I can never get sick of having too much Chinese food while in China. With this I'd like to mention some of my favorite Chinese restaurants.

The first establishment I would like to mention, some may argue that it is of Taiwanese descent, but I noted that the original founders were in fact from Shanxi province in China, which coincidentally is the home of the world's best black vinegar. The place I'm talking about is Din Tai Fung which is probably the world's most famous dumpling house, serving their famous Xiao Long Bao (Soup Dumplings) in 9 countries and 41 branches. If you're wondering how good a dumpling could possibly get, look no further. I have to admit, at the beginning I was slightly hesitant, and wondered whether this was just any ordinary dumpling shop that managed to make itself modern. I have to admit I was wrong, ordering the Steamed Crab Meat and Pork Dumplings, Steamed Mini Pork Dumplings with Soup, and Fried Rice I have to admit that I will never be able to fully enjoy Xiao Long Bao in any other restaurant.

I must note that the Xiao Long Bao came with 18 individual folds on top, which not only hints at the high skill level of the chef, but also at the standards that this place sets for their dumplings. Biting through the dumpling skin releases a generous amount of broth that may seem impossible for such a tiny little dumpling. For those who are confused at how the soup gets into the dumpling in the first place, the soup is made by boiling cartilage rich portions of either pigs or chickens. So when the broth cools down, it forms something resembling a big mound of gelatin, which in turn is mixed with the meat, and when heated, becomes the soup that characterizes this dumpling.

Unable to get a photo of the crab meat dumplings, when the Steamed Mini Pork Dumplings came along, I asked my friend if she would mind taking a picture (by this time my camera had already been stolen) and she was afraid that the management wouldn't allow it. Before she could even on the camera, the manager swooped down on us, and we were afraid he was going to give us the cordial version of "NO PICTURES ALLOWED". To our surprise he artfully arranged the dumpling basket and gave us tips on how to photograph it. Our meal was capped off by the Fried Rice, which acted as a filler. Again, how good could fried rice get right? You'd be surprised. I have to admit, this place demands a high premium for their dumplings, but for the sake of being able to say you've tried the best Xiao Long Bao in the world once or twice, it's well worth the visit.

Peking Duck is probably one of the first things that come to mind when one things of Chinese cuisine. After all, who doesn't remember passing by a Chinese restaurant without seeing one or two ducks hanging beside the window? My hosts while I was in Beijing brought me to supposedly the best Peking Duck restaurant in Beijing. Being around for more than 130 years, Quan Ju De prides itself in their perfected roasting technique that results in not only a skin that is crispy and lean, but also duck meat that is soft and flavorful.

In the Philippines, Peking Duck is served two ways, only the skin being eaten traditionally and the meat itself prepared another way. In Quan Ju De, the entire duck, or whatever they can possibly get from it, is eaten traditionally, which is wrapping it in a flour pancake with hoisin sauce. On a separate plate is the head and a very juicy portion of neck skin, about the size of your thumb, which is supposedly the best part of the duck. This piece goes to me. Not expecting much I decide to eat it without the wrapper, and chomp happily. It is flavorful, fatty, and best eaten by itself.
In the restaurant, the entire duck is used, from the gizzard to the tongue, no part of this animal is wasted here. This can make for some unusual but admittedly tasty concoctions, but those who are easily offended, you can never go wrong with the Roast Duck. Whether at QuanJuDe or not, trying Peking Duck unadulterated, in the city it was born in should be very high on your list of things to do when you visit this city.



Overlooking the Hou Hai is South Silk Road, a branch of the famous South Silk Road in Soho New Town, described the New York Times as "the Beijing Art World equivalent of the Ivy in Los Angeles". Known to be completely jampacked during nights, we decided to go for lunch, when the Hou Hai area was relatively quiet and the only other diners there with as was a local Chinese couple. The steel and green theme was very modern, We were given an appetizer of Pink Radish Salad and Pork Spare Ribs, which were served cold and were just alright. Our server took quite long to come with our water, and only after a few more calls did they finally bring us our glasses. The Barbecue Perch with Vanilla comes in five large skewers, slightly spicy and held together with pandan leaves. The sauce is a bit strange (a sour tomato concoction) so I opt not to have it, but the perch is well cooked and you get a tiny taste of Vanilla somewhere there, only sadly it is not much. The Yunnan Style Spicy Fish is very good, and reminds me very much of the Lamb barbecue (Chuar) that is sometimes sold on the streets. This is easily the best dish of the bunch. Lastly are the Apple Cookies, which are sweet apple pancakes flavored with cinnamon. This was a nice ending to a very good meal, which is maybe the next best thing besides going right to Yunnan province, where this cuisine was invented.
Apple Cookies, which are sweet apple pancakes flavored with cinnamon.

I'd like to just say that while these were my personal favorites, there is still practically an entire city of food choices that I haven't had the time to try. Among some that i did not have the time to mention is eating Jian Bing to the background of the Mutianyu Great Wall, having some of the best spinach cake in a food court at Ya Show (crazy bargaining place), and finding that Salad Flavored Pretz is only 24 pesos there. It is of course, every foodie's dream to come across that one little secret spot of heaven completely by accident. While I must admit I haven't found that yet in Beijing, I hope that these three posts so far serves as a loose guide to what to eat when you don't want to take the chance on "that shady little restaurant". But food poisoning aside, there is no harm in trying! What I've learned from all of this is to just follow the locals, they know what's good.