The Pinoy Food Photo Blog combines my family's love for eating and amateur photography.
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Remember the Selecta Gold Label ice cream flavors that were released this summer? For those of you who haven’t heard of it, the Selecta Gold Series is created by Selecta and Manila’s finest chefs to satisfy discriminating palates without breaking one’s budget. I love bingeing on those from time to time, particularly the Hazelnut Brownie one. But the fourth Gold Label flavor is fast becoming another favorite. That’s right – there’s a luxurious addition that came out just this month. Vanilla Almond is the masterpiece of Chef Ariel Manuel of Lolo Dad’s Cafe, one of the country’s most awarded culinary experts.
When it comes to vanilla ice cream, I only think of them as toppings for warm apple pie or for making Coke floats with. However, Vanilla Almond is good enough to eat on its own. This mouthwatering vanilla ice cream is loaded with roasted whole almonds from California’s Great Valley and ribbons of golden caramel fudge. The crunchiness of the almonds provide exciting texture to the creamy, velvety ice cream base, and the caramel swirls a delightful touch. What I like best about this flavor is that it doesn’t feel as sinful as the Chocolate Truffle and Hazelnut Brownie ones; it’s light enough to top off a moderately heavy meal, but rich enough to satisfy cravings for ice cream.
Vanilla Almond is now available at all supermarkets and convenience stores nationwide.
I love macaroons as much as the next person who enjoys sweets and coconut-flavored things. But you know what’s even better than macaroons? Custaroons! Specifically, Gigi’s custaroons. You will probably see a lot of Gigi’s Custaroons in food blogs. Gigi Gaerlan herself, surfed for food blogs offering food bloggers a chance to taste her Custaroons. Gigi claims to have invented the recipe and coined word Custaroons but you might ask….
What are custaroons? They’re essentially macaroons – tiny cupcakes made out of dessicated coconut – but instead of a milk, egg, and butter base, they’re made out of a soft and creamy custard and topped with a chewy buttery crust. Because the custard is rich and thick, one custaroon is enough for a satisfying dessert – or breakfast, if you like eating sweets first thing in the morning. Custaroons come in two flavors: original and cheese.
I don’t really think Custaroons is an invention. More of an innovation of the macaroons with a softer texture and less sweet taste. I must applaud Gigi for going out of her way to make her Custaroons be known to foodies.
Desserts are always pretty and yummy to start with. The child in me is always in awe whenever I see plates and plates of dessert. If I had my way, I’d take a pick of all the sweetness in this dessert buffet that Diamond Hotel is offering. I have known all the time that Diamond Hotel is one of Manila’s dessert Mecca where sweet excess and wild abandon are forgiven. One of my favorite all-time desserts are their mouth-watering ensaymada.
If Bebeth Lorenzo’s face looks familiar to you, that’s because she used to be in many print ads and TV commercials before her experiences in Europe turned her into the stellar dessert baker she is today. Miss Desserts is famous for her exquisite cakes, among which is the cheesecake that was considered one of Manila’s best, according to a consumer survey. What I like about the Miss Desserts cheesecake is that it’s rich and flavorful, but it doesn’t feel heavy in your tummy the way most decadent desserts do. Not a cheesecake fan? The Fantasia is a mouthwatering pie with a chocolate crust that’s covered in caramel and topped with Belgian chocolate mousse. I love how it fixes the chocolate fix without giving you that sick, overloaded feeling afterwards. Another rich but light dessert you can find here is the Chocolate Souffle – but it’s only available when Bebeth is in town because she insists on making it herself.
Maybe it’s not the healthiest breakfast in the world, but I love the idea of having chocolate fondue first thing in the morning. I just discovered the chocolate fondue at Max Brenner’s in Greenbelt and I think I like it better than the one in the Mandarin Hotel because it comes with not just one, but two kinds of chocolate – milk chocolate and white chocolate.
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