Veega Meat-free Burger Patty (Review)

I am a living proof that quarantine weight gain is real. For the past six months of quarantine, I gained a total of 15 lbs. My average weight used to be 125 lbs and currently, I'm at 140 lbs.

I admit, I lost control over my diet and it doesn't help that the gym I'm going to closed down because of the pandemic. The weight gain has affected my health and has brought about insecurities. Given my depressing state, I decided to rectify the problem and start correcting my unhealthy eating habits.

To jumpstart my weight loss journey, I decided to stock up on healthy food. At the grocery store nearby, I saw my plant-based friend's recommendation — VEEGA products. Veega is the plant-based (vegetarian) food line of San Miguel Foods. First on my list of Veega products to try is their meat-free burger patty.

Wagyu cubes are overhyped.

There, I said it. 

I had high expectations from wagyu cubes because I always see my friends post about their wagyu dishes on my Facebook news feed. It's also expensive, so I really thought it is something promising.

For my boyfriend's birthday, I order one kilogram of premium wagyu cubes from my high school friend and I paid PhP 1,500 for it. For that steep price, I expected it to be mind blowing and delicious. I was so excited to cook this dish for our mini celebration and thought it would be best to pair it with marble potatoes and buttered vegetables.

So I defrosted the frozen wagyu cubes first and cooked it the way I would cook steak — with butter and garlic basting.

By the time we tasted the dish, we were really disappointed to find out that wagyu cubes are not premium beef cubes at all. Rather, they are processed beef cubes. The "meat" did not even absorb the butter-garlic basting. It was just like diced unsalted luncheon meat. We did not enjoy the dish. I felt kind of sad that my boyfriend even requested to open a can of Spanish sardines because he wasn't a fan of the wagyu cubes.

Is it just me? Or is there somebody else who shares the same sentiments? Let me know! 

   

TOUGH TIMES NEVER LAST

TOUGH PEOPLE DO

★ HAPPIDEZZ

Quick Quiapo & Binondo Food Trip

Chinese food has got to be one of my favorite cuisines. So when I had the chance to go to Manila, I took the opportunity to have a quick food trip in Binondo. But for our first order of business, Ronnie and I prioritized going to Quiapo Church to say our prayers and thank the Lord for all the blessing He has showered upon us. Quiapo Church is home to the Black Nazarene, so it really is worthy of a visit. But apart from the religious aspect, Quiapo is also visited for different reasons: camera shopping, beads & crafting materials shopping, cellphone accessories shopping, ukay-ukay shopping, etc. So after mass, we received the priest's final blessing and then Ronnie and I began our walkathon. 

First Stop: Mr. Ube

We first dropped by Mr. Ube, an Eng Bee Tin food boutique, to buy my favorite custard hopia. But to my surprise, the boutique also offers dimsum and rice meals so I immediately ordered xiao long bao because I've been craving for it since forever! One order of xiao long bao is worth P120 and each serving has 5 pieces of tasty dumplings. It was so satisfying! I would have gotten another order but we didn't want to be filled at the first stop.

Unlimited Korean Bbq at Samgyupsalamat Don Antonio

According to their website, Samgyupsalamat, which is a portmanteau from the words Samgyupsal (pork belly) and Salamat (thank you), literally means "Thank you for eating Samgyupsal."

Located at 54 Holy Spirit Drive, Brgy. Holy Spirit, Quezon City, Philppines, Samgyupsalamat Don Antonio is fairly easy to find, especially if you have a car and Waze. But if you're commuting from Philcoa, just take a bus/fx/jeepney ride going to Fairview, alight at Ever Gotesco Mall Commonwealth, and take the overpass to cross over to the other side where there's a tricycle terminal. Tell manong driver to take you to Samgyupsalamat, just before Puregold Supermarket.

The restaurant is at the second floor so you might miss it, but here's a photo of its building for your reference.

What to expect?

At first, I was hesitant to try out the Don Antonio branch because most Facebook reviews say that the place is filthy, smoky, and oily; and that the staff were not very friendly. But once we were there, I can say that the owners took the criticisms on Facebook constructively and made ways to improve their services. The place was clean (no signs of slippery and oily floors and windows), spacious, but still smoky because it is a korean bbq resto after all. What's good though is that they installed industrial fans to improve circulation. Lastly, the staff was friendly, attentive, and efficient.

Creamy Tuna Pesto Pasta

I'm taking baby steps as far as honing my cooking skills is concerned. For now, I think it's safer to start with pasta dishes as they are the easier ones to cook. So for dinner, I made Creamy Tuna Pesto Pasta. It's really easy to cook. All I had to do was mix all the ingredients in the pan.

As you can see in the photo, I used the following ingredients:

1. Clara Ole Cheesy Pesto Pasta Sauce
2. Nestle All Purpose Cream
3. A can of sliced mushrooms
4. Century tuna in vegetable oil
5. Grated cheese
6. Penne pasta - 450 grams (not in photo)
7. Chopped onions and garlic (not in photo)

So here's how I made my version of the Creamy Tuna Pesto Pasta.

1. Cook pasta in boiling water. Remember to add a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of oil into the water before boiling it. Refer to the pasta's packaging for the cooking time.

2. Drain water and set pasta aside.

3. Put two tablespoons of oil in a pan, then saute the chopped onions and garlic. Don't let the garlic turn brown and crispy.

4. Add the tuna and mushroom. Cook for about a minute or two.

5. Pour the all purpose cream, followed by the cheesy pesto sauce. Bring to boil.

6. Add the grated cheese; season with Maggi Magic Sarap. Wait until cheese has melted.

7. Mix pasta with the sauce.

8. Serve while hot :)

There you go. I had two servings of this Creamy Tuna Pesto Pasta for dinner. My mama seemed to enjoy it as well. Yehey!

TOUGH TIMES NEVER LAST.
TOUGH PEOPLE DO.
★ HAPPIDEZZ

Chocolate Kiss Cafe Favorites

If you're studying in UP or living within the vicinity, you should have tried the Chocolate Kiss Cafe. It's a place I go to after class, when I need some alone time. The following comprise my usual order at the cafe.

Bottomless iced tea [P70]: I get to control the sweetness of my tea. 
Calamansi + syrup + tea = AYOStea ♥ 

Hickory Smoked Spareribs: Grilled pork spareribs with hickory sauce and 
buttered corn kernels. May be served with rice [P195]  or 
with garlic mashed potatoes [P215]. I chose to have potatoes for this,
 just to satisfy my potato cravings.

The pork was tender and its sauce, just delish. 
I was so full after this course. The mashed potato was filling! 
But since it was pouring outside, I decided to stay a while longer 
in the resto and have some dessert.

Classic Chocolate Cake [P98]. I'm a Devil's Food Cake loyalist, 
but after this, I guess I have a new favorite. 
Ah, DARK CHOCOLATE! My taste buds went wild ♥

I brought home a 4-inch Devil's Food Cake [P145] for my family. I can't bear the thought of experiencing food coma without them. They just have to taste a bite of heaven as well =)

Hoping, waiting, believing.

★ Happidezz

How to Cook Wicked Oreos

Turns out, this blog entry is one of the most popular posts in my blog. 
I hope this helps satisfy your Wicked Oreos craving! Feel free to leave a comment :)

If you're Filipino or Chinese, this is the perfect dessert for your New Year's celebration because it is round. But even if it's not NYE, you can still enjoy Wicked Oreos any time.

Here's how I made it:

1. For the batter, I used ready-mixed pancake. (Choose your favorite brand, or try out Pillsbury.) I made sure the batter is thick enough to coat the Oreos. I lessened the water proportion so as not to make the batter overly runny.

2. I dipped the chilled Oreos in the batter.

3. I fried them until they're golden brown. I prefer my pancake coating a bit crispy :)

4. I served them with vanilla ice cream.

WICKED! ;p

Hoping, waiting, believing. 

★ Happidezz