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Healthier Snack Time with California Crunch Cassava Chips and GIVEAWAY

Because of the nature of my offline and online work, whenever I need a pick-me-up or something to keep me alert in the middle of the night, I have chips ready for me to snack on with a cup of hot tea. I know how unhealthy some snacks can be, especially when Iâ€™m munching on them when my body should already be resting. But, a few weeks ago, I discovered a healthier snack for me to enjoy â€“ California Crunch Cassava Chips.

My first time trying these cassava chips was when I got them as prizes in their Facebook contest. I was anticipating getting a taste of California Crunch Cassava Chips to know how they compare to potato chips. So, how was it?

Well, to sum up how much we enjoyed it, there are no photos of the actual chips here. Why? Ken and I loved it so much that we forgot to take photos. Hahaha. I promise to update this post with photos of the chips. 😀 (UPDATE: Scroll down for a closer look on the chips)

And, yes, there were 2 packs of each variant â€“ Sour Cream & Onions and Barbecue. We gobbled them up like thereâ€™s no tomorrow. 😀

What we particularly liked about these cassava chips is the crunch. The chips are thicker than your regular potato chips so youâ€™d get all that crunchy goodness matched with more flavors packed in each piece. Ken hogged the barbecue variant and I kept the sour cream all to myself and my nanay.

Cassava is known to have more fiber and potassium than potatoes. Plus, theyâ€™re 30% less fat than potato chips and itâ€™s 0% cholesterol. So, you can enjoy a pack or two of California Crunch Cassava Chips without the guilt of eating something unhealthy for you or your kids. And itâ€™s not as messy to eat, too, as the chips arenâ€™t as greasy. 🙂

(credit)

We here at Certified Foodies highly recommend you try California Crunch Cassava Chips so much that weâ€™re giving away THREE (3) packs of these healthy snack to our readers and fellow foodies.

Continue reading Healthier Snack Time with California Crunch Cassava Chips and GIVEAWAY

GSM Blueniversity and Flair Idol 2011

A few weeks ago, we were invited to attend a GSM Blueniversity Mixology Seminar exclusively for bloggers. Being social drinkers, it was truly something we were looking forward to. We enjoy mixing our own cocktails and punches at home when we host parties for friends or relatives. And GSM Blue has been a big part of why our mixes were well liked during those occasions.

GSM Blue has this very smooth flavor which makes it perfect for blending your own cocktails. You can keep it light or strong, however you and your friends prefer it. The subtle sweetness masks the alcoholic smell and taste that most light drinkers hate. Plus, based on our experience, you wonâ€™t suffer from nasty hangovers when you use it for your own alcoholic concoctions. Truly, itâ€™s â€œMasarap makihaloâ€ with GSM Blue. 🙂

GSM Blueniversity, just to give you a brief background, is a program where you can learn how to mix drinks and flair-tend in a leisurely and fun-filled environment. Youâ€™ll be trained by no less than flair-tending experts and professionals themselves. Most of your â€œclassmatesâ€ here are HRM students, future bartenders, and bartenders-at-heart. You wonâ€™t just be trained how to mix cocktails and bartend, but also theyâ€™ll help you develop the confidence youâ€™d need to be an awesome flair-tender in the future. 🙂

Going back to the Mixology Seminar, we were entertained and educated by our GSM Blueniversity Dean for the night, Jayce Perlas, and well-known flair-tenders Derick de Borja and Erwyn Unigo.

Derick explained to us that GSM Blueniversity aims â€œto educate, not intoxicateâ€, which we completely support. He continued on telling us more about the different products of Ginebra San Miguel such as their gin products, Antonov Vodka, Don Enrique Mixkila, St. George Premium Whisky, Tondena Manila Rum, and Mixx. Weâ€™ve only tried, so far, the MIxkila, Vodka and MIxx.

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Banchetto Emerald in Ortigas – Gone for Good?

Update: Banchetto is now operating in 3 different locations for 5 straight nights. Check out the list at our post here.

We were saddened by the news that Banchetto Emerald is gone. Our first visit to this foodie haven last month was truly memorable (you can read about that here) and we were looking forward to going back really soon. So, when we heard about this news, we wondered, “What happened to Banchetto Emerald?”

Well, as much as I’d want to tell you more about what happened to Banchetto Emerald, how about I just tell you the good news that they’ll be coming back soon?

Yes! A post yesterday from Banchetto’s Facebook page revealed that because of the tremendous support they received from all the foodies who frequent this night market in Ortigas, Banchetto Emerald will be coming back soon!

And, aside from that good news, they also announced that there are offers to open Banchetto venues in Araneta Center in Cubao, and in other places that are buzzing with people at night like Makati, Magallanes, Sta. Rosa, and Commonwealth among others. Oohh, I can’t wait!

I really hope the growth of Banchetto will continue on because they help small-time entrepreneurs by giving them a venue to market and sell their products. And I feel the same way for Mercato and Midnight Mercato, which we have yet to visit.

Continue reading Banchetto Emerald in Ortigas – Gone for Good?

Fedhz Homemade Polvoron

One of my ultimate food cravings is polvoron. I used to always drop by Goldilocks whenever Iâ€™m at the mall just so I could take home a pack or two of their different flavored polvoron.

I also remember my favorite godma, Ninang Perla, teaching me how to prepare homemade polvoron. It may look easy, but getting just the right amount of sweetness and flavors with every serving could make or break your success in preparing them.

The regular polvoron is made of toasted flour, powdered milk, sugar and butter. Throughout the years, foodies have come up with different varieties of it by adding flavors like chocolate, peanut butter, cookies and cream, and pinipig.

Over the past few months, Iâ€™ve been seeing fellow bloggers raving about polvoron made by another blogger and foodie, Fedhz Aquino. Iâ€™ve wanted to try her homemade polvoron so I was pretty glad that during the Teleserv Bloggers Movie Night, I met her and she was giving away samples of her products (great marketing strategy, gurl!)!

I intended to take a photo of the polvoron after I unwrapped them, but after I took the one below, a ton of print orders came in at my computer shop. I unmindfully grabbed and gobbled up each polvoron while I was designing layouts and printing away. I only realized they were all gone after I finished all the printing. Waaahh. 😀

But, trust me, they were all good. I love that the sweetness is just right, unlike Goldilocksâ€™. Also, Iâ€™m glad that the powdered mix doesnâ€™t stick in your mouth as they melt. Anyone can easily tell they were homemade because of the quality of each polvoron â€“ they were prepared with love. 🙂

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Beat the Heat with Dairy Queen Blizzards

Can you believe how hot it’s been this summer?! I can’t stay anywhere without an electric fan or the AC cooling me down. And even when we have a water dispenser that provides us cold water everytime, I always have to add ice to it. I just can’t take the heat!

That’s why a few weeks ago when Kenneth and I were at Glorietta in Makati, we both had this craving for Dairy Queen’s Blizzard. He’s a li’l addicted to to their Caramel Cashew flavor.

The Dairy Queen store at Glorietta 4 is just across the cinemas, beside Timezone.

Of course, my bro ordered the usual. He urged me to try their new flavor, Dairy Queen’s Mango Cheesecake Blizzard.

They have a ton of other Blizzard flavors including Banana Split, Double Dutch, Brownie Temptation (ooohh, too sinful!), Chocolate Truffle and Strawberry Cheesecake.

You can also add extra toppings to your Blizzard, Just add Php 29 and you can choose from caramel fudge, Butterfinger, Kitkat, etc.

Ohh, I gotta try their waffle sandwiches next time, too. Reminds me of Tivoli Funwich that I got so addicted to back when I was a kid. ^_^

There are 4 sizes of Blizzard serving cups to choose from. Since we were really craving for something sweet and cold, we thought, the heck with it, and just ordered 16-oz… EACH! 😀

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Baking Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies from The Cookie Jar Mix

Over a week ago, I mentioned about Rae of The Cookie Jar sending us 3 of their products to try â€“ their French macarons, Triple Chocolate Cookies and this â€“ their Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie mix.

We postponed baking using the mix for a pick-me-up get-together with my best friend, Tina. I know baking will cheer her up. 🙂

As soon as she saw the jar with the ingredients stacked up as pictured below, she got excited and even reminded us we should start baking already. 😀

The Cookie Jar Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie mix includes semi-sweet choco chips, oats, flour, brown and white sugar. Like what is mentioned at the back of the gift tag thatâ€™s included with the package, you only need to add butter, eggs and vanilla.

Let me share with you some photos taken during our baking session. If you havenâ€™t tried baking yet, then, these photos might help. You see, itâ€™s so easy, you wonâ€™t need any complicated kitchen tools like utility knives or heavy kitchen machines. 🙂

I had to stop myself from eating the chocolate chips when we finally opened the jar.

Then, we used 2 sticks of butter and softened them through our microwave. Yes, we were busy chattering away that we forgot that we were only supposed to use 1 1/2 stick of butter. So, using a little Mathâ€¦

1 stick of butter = 100 g

1 1/2 stick of butter = 150 g

Since Ken, as Iâ€™ve mentioned before, is into baking. So, we have this weighing scale available at home. How convenient. You should know that precise measurements are very important when baking. Otherwise, youâ€™d get undesirable results. Thatâ€™s why, if youâ€™re really planning on starting baking at home, then, you should have this weighing scale available tooâ€¦ just in case. (I forgot how much this costs, will get back to you with the price)

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Kenny Rogers Roasters Hainanese Chicken & Frozen Yoghurt – Healthy Choices for Healthy Lives

Last week, April 19th, I was invited to join Kenny Rogers Roastersâ€™ Bloggers Night at their Katipunan branch. They were launching their new products and introducing us to their brand ambassadors.

Iâ€™ve been an avid Kenny Rogers Roasters diner for years. In fact, one of our homemade recipes here on our food blog is our own version of their Cheese and Garlic Potato side dish which I love, love, love! I also super enjoy the flavors of their roasted chicken and recently, their Burger Steak, which I still have to blog about.

Since my bro and I are starting to eat healthier, it was just the right timing for us to be invited to this event. The slogan of Kenny Rogers Roasters campaign to healthier eating is so timely. I agree with them. If you want to live a healthy life, itâ€™s all about healthy CHOICES.

They also want to change the perception that if you want to be healthy, you need to sacrifice a lot when it comes to food. Kenny Rogers Roasters wants us to know that there are healthy options that are delicious, too.

In line with this campaign, we were introduced that night to their latest offering, Hainanese Chicken. Itâ€™s a very popular dish in Singapore where the chicken is poached, paired with Hainanese rice and complemented with 3 different sauces. Kenny Rogers changed it up a bit with their own twist, adding some Pinoy flavor to it by topping the rice with garlic chips, which I know a lot of us Filipinos love.

Thatâ€™s my plate of Hainanese Chicken. For Php 185.00, you get a quarter (1/4) chicken, Hainanese rice, chicken broth/soup, and the 3 sauces. I enjoyed this dish, especially with the combination of the chili and sweet soy sauces mixed with the very tender chicken.

Continue reading Kenny Rogers Roasters Hainanese Chicken & Frozen Yoghurt – Healthy Choices for Healthy Lives

Vosges Chocolates – New Chocolatey Sensations

It was back in December last year when I won a set of Vosges chocolates from Trip or Treats. I had Ken pick them up for me a few days after the announcement.

I know, I shouldâ€™ve posted about it earlier. But, donâ€™t worry. I can still remember exactly how each of them tasted. And pardon if I donâ€™t have any photos of the actual chocolate bars while we were enjoying it. I accidentally deleted the whole album on our cameraâ€™s memory when we were in Pagudpud. Silly me. 😀

I was pretty excited to try them out. Too bad though that when my bro came home, he already devoured that small box of Vosges Barcelona Bar. Lucky him â€˜cause I was in a slightly good mood that night. Otherwise, he would need ankle braces after Iâ€™m done with him after not letting me taste that chocolate bar. 😀 Of course, Iâ€™m just kidding. Hahaha.

Trip or Treats (ToT) actually included a box with instructions on how you can savor each chocolate flavor. And I followed them to a teeâ€¦ well, for my first 2 bites. 😀

See… first, there should be a glossy shine to the chocolate bar, this shows a good temper; rather, a tight bond between the cocoa butter and the cocoa mass.
Smell… rub your thumb on the chocolate to help release the aromas. Inhale the chocolate and ingredient notes deeply through your nose. Can you feel it?
Snap… quality chocolate should always be dry to the touch. Break the bar into two pieces. Hear a crisp, ringing snap, which indicates a well-tempered bar of chocolate.
Taste… place the chocolate on your tongue and press it to the roof of your mouth. Within thirty seconds, the chocolate should slowly begin to melt around your tongue. The taste should not be evanescent; it should have a long, lingering finish.
Feel… recognize the life in your body as youâ€¦ benefit from the anti-oxidants in chocolate, ride the natural high of chillies, boost your immune system with some of the natural ingredients. Each bar brings its own sensations and benefits. Notice how spicy bars donâ€™t hit you until after you have swallowed.

(quoted from ToTâ€™s blog)

There were actually 4 small boxes of Vosges chocolates, but I canâ€™t remember where I placed the Oaxaca Bar.

Anyway, let me tell you about the Oaxaca Bar. The description on the box says itâ€™s made of Oaxaca Guajillo, Pasilla Chillies, Tanzanian bittersweet chocolate at 75% cacao. Yes, there are chillies mixed in the chocolates.

Photo from Trip or Treats

The first time I took a bite, I didnâ€™t immediately taste the chili in there. But, when I let that bit linger in my mouth and the bittersweet chocolate started melting, I began feeling something weird in my mouth. It was my first time to get a taste of chocolate with chillies so I was surprisedâ€¦ delightfully so that I wanted everyone at home to get a taste of it. Definitely something memorable.

The only one that I didnâ€™t get to try from the set I won was the Barcelona Bar. As the description says, itâ€™s made of Hickory Smoked Almonds, Grey Sea Salt and deep milk chocolate, with 45% cacao. My bro said it was salty and sweet, which is a combination I wouldâ€™ve loved from a chocolate flavor thatâ€™s new to me, if only my bro didnâ€™t gobble up the whole bar all by himself. Argh! 😀

Next, my second favorite is Moâ€™s Dark Bacon Bar. It has Applewood Smoked Bacon, Alderwood Smoked Salt, and Dark Chocolate. This had me at bacon. 😀

At 62% cacao, the saltiness the bacon and the salt bring in with the bitterness of the dark chocolate is just so addicting! I also enjoyed the crispiness of the bacon bits mixed into the choco bar. Something every chocolate lover should definitely try!

Lastly, my favorite of all four (okay, technically, I only got to taste 3 soâ€¦ :D), the Matcha Bar. Why? I super loved the combination of the Japanese Matcha Green Tea and creaminess of the milk chocolate. I loved this so much that my bro was the only other person who tried it and I only gave him a very small bit to taste. Hahaha! 😀

As soon as I got the taste of these chocolate bars, I went to Vosges Chocolateâ€™s website to find out more about their products. I wanted to see what other flavors they have available. Too bad though â€˜cause I donâ€™t think we have them available here in the Philippines.

Iâ€™d like to thank Trip or Treats again for this new experience. My apologies for the late posting. But, every bite of these Vosges chocolates was truly memorable.

To you, my dear foodie friends, what unique chocolate flavors have you already enjoyed in this lifetime? Kindly share them at the comments section. 🙂

For the Love of Chocolates…

The Cookie Jar Pastries

My bro Ken and I are both pastry lovers. He particularly loves cakes and baking them. I love different kinds of pastries, most especially cookies and have been planning on learning how to bake myself. That’s why when Rae of The Cookie Jar sent us these goodies, we were both excited to try them.

By the way, my bro and I love their packaging. The box, jar and tin can can be easily recycled. Kudos for that! They also used earthy tones of colors, which makes the packing more elegant. Perfect for gifts!

You might be wondering what makes The Cookie Jar different from other cookie or pastry shops. They are aiming to make baking cookies easy for newbie bakers with their jars of ingredients mix.

We got this jar of ingredients for Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies. You can see the stack of flour, sugar, oats, and semi-sweet chocolate chips from this clear jar. No need to worry about measurements.

At the back of the gift tag that comes with each jar, you’d see baking instructions. All you need to add with the mix of ingredients are butter, vanilla and 2 eggs.

We haven’t baked the cookies yet, but will write a separate post for that. We’re saving it for a pick-me-up get-together with a friend next week. 🙂

Now, if you don’t have an oven, you’re not that confident with you baking or you simply prefer already baked cookies, you can also buy these cans of cookies.

We received a can of The Cookie Jar’s Homemade Triple Chocolate Cookies. Each can contains 10 cookies, by the way.

As soon as I took a bite of the cookie, I was delighted with the chunky bits of white and semi-sweet chocolates. The cookies were also chewy, which I love, love, love.

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Our Banchetto-Emerald Food Trip!

Update: 07/10/2011 â€“ Banchetto now operates from Tuesdays to Saturdays in 3 different locations. Please check the bottom of this post for the schedules.

After attending Magnolia’s Summer Bloggers party, we (my friend Badeth and her photo booth guys, my bro and I) headed over to Banchetto in Emerald Ave. in Ortigas.

Banchetto started out as a very popular late night food strip in Ortigas. They recently opened 2 more venues in Libis, Quezon City and at Pioneer in Mandaluyong City (more info at the bottom of the post).

Badeth and Kenneth at Banchetto

Iâ€™ve been reading a lot of raves about Banchetto and so I was pretty excited to check out all the food I can enjoy there. Oh, trust me, Banchetto is definitely any foodieâ€™s heaven. Youâ€™ve got a lot of food choices. You can enjoy a full meal or something lighter if youâ€™re on a diet. We even saw a stall selling food for vegetarians.

Okay, let the photos speak for me. Wipe off the drool after. Everythingâ€™s really mouth-watering! 😀

I wanted to try the isaw since I havenâ€™t had them for a very long time. But, I was a bit full after the buffet at the event we came from. Next time, Iâ€™ll make sure to not skip this.

My bro and I are coffee and pastry lovers. So, when we saw Good Farmâ€™s booth in Banchetto-Emerald, we were so eager to try their products. We ordered their Coffee Brownies with Vanilla ice cream, priced at Php 35.00. The lady in black was the one who baked the brownies.

The brownies were really moist and chewy, just the way I like it. We were disappointed though â€˜cause we were expecting a liâ€™l more kick of coffee flavor. I guess we shouldâ€™ve tried their Arabica Coffee brownies (Php 25).

If you work in Ortigas, Banchetto-Emerald is definitely a place youâ€™d be frequenting a lot. You can save on your meal expenses because there are many food choices at very affordable prices. There are even packed meals you can buy, as pictured below.

What I also would love to come back for are all these grilled food at Banchetto. When I saw these huge squids being grilled, I felt my tummy grumble even when I know Iâ€™m still full. These are perfect for a quick late night drink with friends. 🙂

Continue reading Our Banchetto-Emerald Food Trip!