August 2012 - Certified Foodies

KFC Streetwise Cheese Top Burger : Love or Hate?

KFC Streetwise Cheese Top Burger is maybe the most hated among the products that KFC Philippines has ever put out. And if you are among the haters, to tell you the truth, save your energy. Hear us out. 😉

First Impressions

When KFC announced that they have a new product, Ken and I, like most of you, chuckled at the sight of their ad. KFC Cheese Top Burger – a burger with cheese on top of the bun instead of in the middle. Sure, that looks weird and sounds funny right?

Still, Ken and I were curious about it. I read people on my network saying it’s a plain ol’ burger, nothing fancy. I mean, c’mon. For Php 50.00 WITH drinks, what do you expect? 😉

I had EXACTLY that thought in my head when KFC told us they’ll be delivering Cheese Top Burgers for me and Ken to try. This happened over a month ago, a few days after they released it, and memes about it were everywhere (I know, this is an overdue post). Before this, we were already planning on ordering it for takeout when we go grocery-shopping over the weekend. Good thing they did bring us samples ’cause the KFC branch here in Malabon no longer delivers to our area. The burgers were handed over to us still nice and warm.

First impressions were okay, it’s not messy at all to handle. The cheese is baked on top of the bun, so it’s not like it was just placed on top of it or spread like Cheez Whiz.

Now, the taste. Ken wasn’t impressed. But, when I asked if he liked it, he said it’s okay, nothing surprising. I guess he still had that thought in his head about how ridiculous this idea was. He finished it off while I took my time to inspect it.

Continue reading KFC Streetwise Cheese Top Burger : Love or Hate?

Binulo Restaurant : A Foodie Haven in Pampanga

Pampanga is dubbed as the Culinary Capital of the Philippines. No doubt about it, they truly deserve the title for every time I hear “Pampanga,” two of their most popular fare always come to mind – pork sisig and, my ultimate favorite, pork tocino. But stopping over at Binulo Restaurant in Clark, Pampanga for dinner after our short stay in Baguio proved that Capampangan cuisine has more delectable food to offer.

Binulo Restaurant is a single-storey establishment, but yet it’s quite roomy, and the tables are adequately spaced, providing guests more room for movement. The name of the restaurant is actually taken after a cooking method of the native Aeta, which uses bamboo or “bulo” as the cooking vessel for their food.

The first thing that landed on our table was a basket of Pititian with Atchara (Php 185). It’s the Kapampangan (or Capampangan) version of chicharon or fried pork rinds (if you love Cebu’s chicharon from Carcar, you will definitely love this too!), and it is served with vinegar and green papaya relish or atsara.

Usually at home, chicharon and vinegar would be more than enough for me, but coupling it with papaya relish added an interestingly sweet and tangy note that made it harder for me to resist stuffing myself full, leaving almost no space for the rest of our meal. 😀

Continue reading Binulo Restaurant : A Foodie Haven in Pampanga

Happy 100th Birthday, Julia Child!

Today, August 15, 2012, marks the 100th birthday of Julia Child, the iconic American chef who changed the world of gastronomy through her amazing talent and passion for cooking – oh, and not to mention her personality! How Americans eat and cook at home was never the same because of her as she brought the intimidating art of French cooking to the USA. She may have passed away years ago, but her legacy will continue to nourish future food lovers.

For us here in the Philippines, some may say that she hardly had any influence on how we Filipinos eat or cook. We have our own ways of cooking that can be traced back hundreds of years. We have always loved cooking and eating at home, and most of the influences in our culinary world are from the Spaniards (Europeans) and our neighbors here in Asia. However, with our ever-growing curiosity in tasting what the world has to offer, we, in many ways, have been touched by Julia Child.

I’m sure many of the chefs and culinary experts here in the country are very familiar with Julia Child. Her techniques, her recipes and her cooking tips will continue on for generations to come, I’m certain of that. When you slather on mayonnaise on your favorite bread or dish, or when you prepare and eat an omelette (or omelet), in a way, Julia has been a part of making all those possible to do in our very own homes.

How Julia Child Influenced Us

We may be thousands of miles away from France and America where Julia Child has been a household name, but through the internet and all the technology we enjoy now, she has touched our lives too.

Continue reading Happy 100th Birthday, Julia Child!

YOUR Guilty Pleasures : Thank You for Sharing!

You told us about YOUR guilty pleasures, now let us share with you our favorites and the TWO (2) WINNERS who we unanimously voted as the ones with the BEST ANSWERS. To read the entries of the other participants, go here.

Most of you told us about your love for chocolates, pastries and anything sweet.Â But, there were some who sharedÂ their unique (read: weird) guilty pleasures…

Continue reading YOUR Guilty Pleasures : Thank You for Sharing!

Foodgasm : A Competition for Food Entrepreneurs

Â Updated: See ticket prices below the post.

We’ve posted about this before – we support up and coming food entrepreneurs, young and old, because we believe that there are many more creative foodie minds out there that need exposure. And in what we believe could be the yummiest event this year, we invite aspiring food business owners to join Foodgasm, a food entrepreneur competition brought to us by UP Economics Society happening on August 25, 2012 at Mercato Centrale.

The deadline says August 4th and on their Facebook page it says August 11th, but they’re still accepting registrations, so contact them.

If you own a food business, we encourage you to join Foodgasm 2012. It’s a wonderful opportunity to gain more exposure for your products and a way to show people what we can expect from you. Here are the mechanics:

MECHANICS:

Foodgasm is open to all young and aspiring, up and coming food business owners â€“ student entrepreneurs, food business existing for no more than 4 years, and those who just previously launched a new product.

Each participant should serve free samples of their best seller during the event, which will serve as their official entry to the competition.

Participants are also allowed to sell additional products in the event, provided that their allotted space will be able to accommodate the additional products. The allotted space will have dimensions of 2.2 x 2.2 meters. This may change depending on the number of participants.

Each entry will be carefully judged by all 1,000 foodies which includes bloggers and judges from Knorr and San Miguel Foods.

Certified Foodies will be one of the 13 food blogs that’ll be gracing the event as part of the panel of blogger judges. The winners will get a chance to be featured here. And, if your products also stood out during the event, we’ll write about you here too. 🙂

This is a competition, so as a food entrepreneur, give us your best shot for a chance to win prizes, awards/trophy and a feature on Appetite Magazine! Here’s a teaser video about UP Economics Society’s Foodgasm event:

For more information on how to register as a participating food business, visit Foodgasm’s Facebook page.

To our fellow food lovers who want to come, tickets will be on sale very soon, so stay tuned! And see you at UP EcoSoc’s Foodgasm in Mercato Centrale! 🙂

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

UPDATE:

If you’d like to be there, tickets will be available during the event:

Pre-selling and door price until 8pm: Php 200
Door price after 8pm: Php 220

Program strictly starts at 7pm, so be there early so you can sample the products that are available for food tasting.

For tickets and inquries,Â contact 0917-885-0738 or email upecosoc.finance@gmail.com. You can pre-order your tickets now.

See you! 🙂

McDo Twister Fries are Back : Limited Time, Limited Serving (Extended!)

Yes, McDonald’s Twister Fries are back! But, for a VERY limited time only, that’s why they’re urging us to “Prioritize the Twister Fries”. It’ll be available until ~~August 25th only~~ September 16, 2012Â (EXTENDED!).

I LOVE McDo’s Twister Fries, so when I found out that they’re bringing them back, I couldn’t wait any longer. Last night, we had some delivered, along with their Big ‘N Tasty burger (which is now my favorite among McDonald’s burgers – will blog about this next).

The Twister Fries are priced at Php 59 when you order Ã la carte, Php 78 with regular Coke McFloat or Php 88 with a Monster Coke McFloat.

Before I ordered, I already saw the ads and people on my list sharing photos of their Twister Fries orders. I thought that for Php 59, I will get a large order or serving since it was the only option for Ã la carte. Well, I ordered 3 ’cause I thought our parents can just share – I don’t want them eating a heavy meal before bed. Here’s what we got:

Continue reading McDo Twister Fries are Back : Limited Time, Limited Serving (Extended!)

Indulge in Vermont Classic Frozen Custard by FIC

The weather might be gloomy and it might not be the best time to enjoy anything cold, but you can’t deny the fact that when you’re stuck at home with family or friends, nothing beats a movie or TV series marathon with your favorite comfort food. And Fruits in Ice Cream has something new and delightful for all of us: Vermont Classic Frozen Custard, their latest dessert creation.

Frozen Custard?

FIC is the first to introduce this frozen custard treat to the Philippines. You might be wondering how it’s different from ice cream. Frozen custard is actually the same as ice cream except it has a higher concentration of egg yolks and is churned more slowly, making this dessert richer and more indulgent. When you see French ice cream on a menu, that’s another name for frozen custard. (Oh, and Ken has a recipe that doesn’t require an ice cream maker) 🙂

When FIC sent over a cup each of their Vermont Classic Frozen Custard base flavors, we were pleasantly surprised to see everything else that came with the package. Aside from the 3 varieties – French Vanilla, Brownie Batter and Cheesecake – we got an assortment of toppings and a recipe card.

Ken and I tasted each of the flavors first before we combined the toppings based on the recipes, and we literally had a hard time figuring out which one’s our favorite ’cause they’re all darn yummy! Usually, I’d go for anything chocolicious, but the tanginess of the cheesecake flavor and the creamy goodness of the French vanilla was too irresistible. The Brownie Batter still ended up as my top favorite because it has this slight bitterness to it that I love about dark chocolate. 🙂

Continue reading Indulge in Vermont Classic Frozen Custard by FIC