• At home,  Great Eats

    Homey Mediterranean Fare at Socrates’ Secret + snaps from my Halloween weekend

    See that charming little place above? Well before I get to that I wanted to talk a little about how I spent my Halloween weekend this year. My life lately has pretty much consisted of work from Mondays to Saturdays. Admittedly it kind of sucks the life out of me, but that’s how it is right? You have to work to earn your keep. The good thing about working six times a week all-year long is that whenever I get any break from that routine, I find myself appreciating those “stolen moments” tenfold. This feeling did not come naturally to me before. When you’re young you’re very idealistic. It’s not wrong to have big…

  • At home,  Baking Recipes,  Cookies,  From the books,  Frozen treats,  I scream for ice cream (I do),  Ice Cream Sandwiches,  J'adore macarons,  Jeni's Genius Ice Creams,  Lemon Obsession,  My favourite things,  Timeless Treats

    A sweet and sour surprise to show some sisterly love

    I suppose I’ll have to apologise for my extended absence after my birthday post, but this is going to be a long one to make up for that. It’s actually two different recipes rolled into one post, but recipes that complement each other in ways that the first bite will immediately make you understand. Let me put it into a simple equation: macarons + ice cream = ultimate indulgence. I’d have this over cake any day, any time. Now a little backstory for how this recipe actually came to be made: It was actually Jason’s request for our birthday. I told him I’d make him whatever he wanted as a…

  • All Things Pinoy,  Asian Flavors,  At home,  Baking Recipes,  Foodie Life,  My Comfort Food,  My favourite things,  Spoon desserts & puddings,  The Breakfast Bin

    {Filipino Food-Love} Introducing one of my ultimate comfort foods

    I’ve talked about comfort food before, but lately I’ve realised that nearly nothing else can comfort me in the same manner as this simple little porridge can. We call this Filipino breakfast staple the champorado, and it’s basically a chocolate rice porridge, served with milk. Tell me which part of that doesn’t sound comforting– not to mention delicious? There’s just something so homey about eating mushy warm food from a bowl. I know it sounds a little icky when I put it that way, but these kinds of food oddly make my soul feel at ease. That’s why most of what I consider my comfort foods share this particular characteristic…

  • At home,  Baking Recipes,  Layer cakes

    A tall cake for the tall birthday boy

    I have three younger brothers: the first one is a year younger than I (more on him later) the middle one has the same birthday as I do, only six years later (I think this is why we can get along the best when things are on the up and up– because we share the same kind of interests and for the most part have similar qualities. On the flipside, we also have the worst kind of fights.) the youngest one is my sweetie pie, because he is the sweetest little boy I know I’d be lying if I said we all got along perfectly fine, but I’d also be…

  • At home,  Baking Recipes,  Brownies & Bars,  From the books,  Lemon Obsession,  Must-Makes from Martha

    I really like how lemon bars make me feel

    I wonder when this seed was planted. The more I think about it, the more I realize just how unhappy I have been feeling with my life. And I don’t mean it in the aspect of comfort and luxury. I’m grateful for those, sure. I can’t discredit my parents for giving those things to me. But the more time passes, the more I grow anxious: What is going to happen with my life? What about where I’m going? No one has ever attempted to talk to me about this topic. Maybe that’s why I feel a little lost. I’ve been baking because it removes me from all the fears and…

  • At home,  Baking Recipes,  Choux pastry,  Experiments & experiences

    Dear Daddy Eclairs with divine Mocha Pastry Cream

    I made these éclairs, and much like everything else that I make, with the intention of sharing it with my family so that they may enjoy it. Even though I make things for them all the time, there was a special occasion to be celebrated for one of the most important people in my life. In the end I decided it called for a slightly more special treat. Unfortunately, these didn’t turn out the way that I would have wanted. Bluntly put, I burnt my éclairs to a tragic crisp. But thank goodness the mocha pastry cream was there to salvage it. (Boy, that pastry cream is the bomb!) Because…