We had our dinner at our friend’s (Johnell) house to celebrate their daughter’s 2nd birthday. We brought Andre with us. It was just a simple celebration with Johnell’s family and close friends. His nephews and nieces were also there. Abeth and I can not eat at the same time because one has to look after Andre. So I let him eat first.

Andre played with the kids. Being the youngest among the kids, and still learning to walk completely, I followed him everywhere he goes. That was the first time we saw him play with other kids. We were so amazed with his behavior. It seems that he’s the type of kid naPASAWAY”….. pushing his playmates and pulling their clothes just to get on his way, without thinking that he might hurt them… He seems to like to be the center of attention. We tried to stop him because we’re afraid that he might fell or be pushed by his playmates. But, he resisted. One of the kids tried to push him, I screamed! really napasigaw talaga ako! I didn’t know how to stop the kid because I know they were just kids. Buti na lang Andre wasn’t hurt.

My husband says, “My, sobrang likot ni Andre! I might lose my patience! ” I just smiled. I know he can’t lose his patience with a cute innocent boy like Andre, neither I. The saying, “Patience is a virtue”, is very applicable to moms like me, with a PASAWAY kid like Andre. Hehe…But, for us, he is not really “pasaway”. He’s a lovable and sweet little boy.

We hope that he would not turn out as a real PASAWAY kid as he grows. We know that he is on the stage of learning to get along with other kids and socialize with them. I don’t want him to grow having his “own world”. I know this is healthy, healthy to a child who’s trying explore the natural world. This a new experience for him and for us, too. There will be more to learn and experience as we see him grow. We will do it together.

As promised, here is the recipe for the chocolate cake that I baked for my mother-in-law’s birthday.

You will need:

How to do it:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour the pan. I used a 10-in round pan and a heart-shaped pan.
2. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat 1 minute on medium speed of mixer. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add alternately with water to butter mixture, beating until well blended. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely.
4. Frost with the buttercream icing.

For the buttercream, you will need 1/2 cup of butter, 1/2 cup of shortening, 4 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar, 2 TBSP milk, and 1 tsp vanilla. First, you cream the butter and shortening together using an electric mixer. Add the the vanilla. Then gradually add the sugar one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Then add the milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

To color the buttercream icing, I used Wilton’s yellow, green, and red food colors, which my sister sent me from US. But you can also use the local ones. You will also need different decorating bags and decorating tips.

Here’s what the cakes looked-like without the icing on it….

…..with the plain icing as base
….and the final product….

What a success! This is my first time to design a cake using several colors. This is something different from my usual baking sessions, because I usually bake brownies, muffins, and chocolate cakes with chocolate frosting. I have also tried decorating cupcakes for my son’s 1st birthday and it was also a success. But, I think I still have to master the art of cake decorating. Maybe someday I’ll attend a cake decorating class, if the “budget” permits. hehehe (Medyo mahal kasi eh) Besides, I just finished attending a 3-day basic culinary class last June to enhance my cooking skills….hehe…

My 1-yr old son also participated in this baking session. Look how he enjoyed it….

Again, that’s it for now. Andre wants to play with me. See you on my next baking session. Ciao!

Yesterday was my mother-in-law’s 51st birthday. My husband and I, together with Andre, went to their house to greet her . This is her first birthday without Tatay, who passed away last October 2006. We asked her how would she want to celebrate her birthday. She told us, “wag na, ngayon pa kung kelan wala na”. I can still feel her pain of losing her behalf. Of course it’s really painful to lose a family member, not expecting it to happen too soon. I know they miss Tatay so much, I miss him too. She told us that she will just cook spaghetti and chicken for dinner.

Nanay is a family cook. Being a plain housewife, she cooks for her sisters who happens to live nearby. She lives with Mara, Abeth’s sister, who is still single but in a relationship right now. She’s a great lola to Andre. She takes care of Andre very well. Since we don’t want Andre to be left alone with her yaya, we bring Andre to her Lola’s house to take care of him whenever I have to go to the office, which is every Tuesday and Friday. She also cooks for our dinner every time I am not around. She used to wash and iron our clothes when I was pregnant kasi wala pa kami helper before. What a great help to us.

She is a great wife to Tatay, which I think is happy from where he is right now; a wonderful mother to Mara and Abeth; a nice mother-in-law (take note: magkasundo kami!); a great lola to Andre; a good sister to her siblings; a good daughter; and a person with a big heart.

To Nanay Beth, I want to thank you for raising up a good son, which happens to be my husband. For without you, I won’t be able to marry a wonderful husband and a loving father. Thank you for raising up a good man, which I owe that to you. May you have a longer and healthier life to see all your grandchildren grow. Happy birthday Nanay Beth! We love you! Mwah!

I baked the cake for her…I’ll post the recipe later….Ciao!

What is a Gestational Diabetes? It is a type of diabetes that starts during pregnancy. It usually begins between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy. Most often, gestational diabetes goes away after giving birth.

With a strong family history of diabetes, because my father has it, makes me feel afraid of having it too, especial during pregnancy. There is a big possibility of having it. Actually, one of my sisters is currently suffering from it. She had it during her first baby, and now on her second.

Having a gestational diabetes is not easy. It can be unhealthy for you and your baby. Your baby may have a low blood sugar level or jaundice, or your baby may weigh much more than is normal. The mother may have a more difficult delivery or may need a C-section. The mother needs to have a special diet, limited carbohydrates and sugar intake. Rice, bread, pasta, cakes, and pastries are a NO NO.

My sister has to prick her fingers three times a day to get blood samples for her daily blood sugar monitoring. The doctor even advised her to take insulin to control her sugar level. Kawawa naman si sister. I’m glad I did not suffer from it on my first pregnancy. I hope I won’t suffer from it on my second.

One of the most common risks for developing gestational diabetes is obesity with BMI greater than 29. Gaining so much weight during my first pregnancy, made me decide to start losing weight for my next. I should start as early as now to prevent having this type of diabetes. It is really harmful to the baby. It can only be treated by changing your meal plan, exercise, and insulin.

I just hope no mother will suffer from it too. So let’s start having a healthy living to prevent the chances of having this type of illness that both the mother and the baby might suffer.

For the patola soup, I prepared the bola-bola by mixing ground porkloin, shrimp (shelled and minced), minced onion, kinchay, egg, grated carrots, and salt and pepper. I divided the mixture into two, one for the bola and the other for siomai. Firstly, I sauteed garlic and onion, then added chicken or pork stock. I let it boil then dropped the bola-bola. When the bola-bola is cooked (for about 5 min), I added the patola, misua, and put some spring onions and diced carrots to give the soup some color.

For the second half of the mixture, which I used for siomai, I wrapped it in a molo wrapper. Inspired by “Pao-Tsin” (my hubby’s favorite), I fried the siomai. Served the siomai with fried garlic, fried chili, and toyo-mansi.

For last week’s dessert, I baked the magic bar and nutty choco fudge. It both tasted good and were easy to do! Though the magic bar wasn’t that perfect because the bottom part crumbled, it still tasted good, sticky and not too sweet. For the nutty choco fudge, hubby loved it because of its moistness that melts in your mouth…mmmmm….i can’t wait to have another bite….mmmm

The onion rings and calamares were also a success. It’s my first time to cook onion rings, and boy, it was perfect! The mayo garlic dip I made also tasted good. You’ll need 1/2 c mayonnaise, 2 tsp vinegar or lemon, water, lots of minced garlic, and salt and pepper. Just mix all of it and add enough water until you get the desired consistency.

Haaay, i think that’s it for now.

I’ve been busy doing my work these days…that’s why I don’t have much time to update my blog. Still, I have to allot time for cooking…hehehe…So, I’ll share what I cooked last Monday for dinner.

Since I do not have enough time to prepare, complicated menu is a NO-NO…I’m glad Amy (our helper) is there to help me. So I just asked her to prepare the ingredients while Andre is asleep. I started marinating the chicken after having our lunch so by 6pm it’s ready for baking. For me, baking is easier compared to grilling because it won’t take so much of your time checking the done-ness of the chicken by turning it side by side. In baking, you just have to leave the chicken in the oven, and voila! chicken is ready.

For the baked chicken, I marinated the chicken wings in Mama Sita’s barbeque sauce, minced garlic, a little bit of sugar, cumin powder, salt and pepper. I put it in the fridge for about 4 hours. I simmered the chicken together with the marinade for 3 to 5 minutes. I removed the chicken and baked it in the oven for about 30 minutes at 200degC. For the barbeque sauce, I thickened the marinade by adding a teaspoon of cornstarch dissolved in 2 tbsp of water and let it boil for another 3 minutes.

While waiting for the chicken to be cooked, I cooked the green rice. First, I sauteed onion, minced parsley, minced spring onions, and minced green pepper in a pan. Then, I added 2 cups of uncooked rice, 3 cups of meat stock, and salt and pepper to taste. Put it in the rice cooker. You must stir the rice when it starts to boil to evenly incorporate all the ingredients in the rice. This will take about 20 minutes to cook.

In just an hour, dinner is ready. Tamang tama sa pagdating ni hubby.