gelaskitchenadventures

[gelaskitchenadventures]

im suddenly craving for a pastrami sandwich, hopefully like the one we had from Greenberg’s Deli in New York New York in Las Vegas…just thinking about it is making me drool :))

Pastrami on rye with a stick of pickle and coleslaw on the side. YUM. 

[gelaskitchenadventures]

Food with a story. This is how this blogger caught my attention. This is also how I think food should be remembered by - with a story. I’m as excited to try the things she has in this blog as I am in creating a nostalgic food blog of my own. :) 

[gelaskitchenadventures]

okay, so...i've cooked for someone slightly special before and it was fun. i love to cook and what better way to show off and make him fall harder than to whip up something which i'm sure he'll love. it was liberating to know that we can have fun in the kitchen...and later on enjoy a scrumptious meal together. it's definitely a plus that he loves to cook as well. i found this article during one of those jamie oliver hyped-up days. It has just the right amount of humor i enjoy so much. and, well, a few tips here and there couldn't hurt anyone, right? :)

[gelaskitchenadventures]

i've found my hero. <3 and fell in love. <3

[gelaskitchenadventures]

Best Carrot Cake Ever

Recipe courtesy of allrecipes.com

Ingredients 

6 cups grated carrots 

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup raisins

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 cup chopped walnuts

Cream Cheese Frosting

8oz cream cheese

1 stick butter

1/8 tsp salt

3 3/4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine grated carrots and brown sugar. Set aside for 60 minutes, then stir in raisins.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 10 inch cake pans.

In a large bowl, beat eggs until light. Gradually beat in the white sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir in the pineapple. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, stir into the wet mixture until absorbed. Finally stir in the carrot mixture and the walnuts. Pour evenly into the prepared pans.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes in the preheated oven, until cake tests done with a toothpick. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan. When completely cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting.

[gelaskitchenadventures]

Baking supply store galore!

Quick, give me a brown paper bag! I'm hyperventilating!

~ Carries metallic dragees and lotsa other stuff! :D 

baking and packaging supplies shop inside BF Homes Paranaque.  @ 8079178 

http://love2bakeco.blogspot.com/

~ Offers cooking/baking classes

~ Carries the americolor gel type food color

We are a Distributor, Wholesaler, and Retailer of Bakery, Confectionary, Snacks and Meat Processing Ingredients. We sell different kinds of flour, lard or shortening, margarine, sugar, premixes, bakery ingredients, milk powders, bakeware, meat processing additives, packaging supplies like plastic bags and boxes and other bakery needs.. Located at Unit A,B & C; No. 8415 Dr. A. Santos Ave., Sucat, Paranaque City. Tel. No.: 8255123  Telefax.: 8296949  Cellphone: 0922-8214195

http://bakemasters.multiply.com/photos/album/2/Products#photo=16

~ It's time to be self-taught! :)

http://www.wilton.com/ 

~ Supplies for when im in the US :)

http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_PP0453-PNW&c2p=hp 

~ Sells Wilton stuff in the philippines :)

http://thecocoapantry.multiply.com/photos/album/21/Decorating_Tips_and_Accessories

~ Carries lots of tools for fondant making

http://bakingbuddies.multiply.com/photos?&=&album=&page_start=0

[gelaskitchenadventures]

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes

Never thought you could gather so much goodness in one goodie :)

[gelaskitchenadventures]

i just finished my five-month contract and now, im left with nothing to do. So i decided to fill my days with kitchen goodness. Also, it's because we got a brand spankin new oven anyway. Who's up for a test drive? :) 

[gelaskitchenadventures]

BAKE IT! :: Sprinkles Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting 

I bought two cylinders of the pre-made Sprinkles cupcake mix from their store in LA for $14 each. One was the Chocolate Peppermint (it is now apparent that i have loved peppermint ever since) and the other was the Red Velvet. I baked the Chocolate Peppermint for New Year our celebration in California. It was a hit among children and adults alike! The box came with peppermint candies which went on top of the frosting. Others, i made with Sprinkles' signature dot topping, which upon being seen by the kids, prompted recognition of the cupcake that is now part of pop culture. No matter how un-Sprinkles-like i frosted the cupcakes, it doesn't seem to matter to them...as long as the signature Sprinkles dot is on one of their cupcakes. haha. :)

I brought the Red Velvet back to the Philippines. I saw it lying in the shelf and decided it was time i finally made these. (well, aside from the fact that they were near expiration - on march). They were obviously red...but i didn't realize how red they were! Some parts of my hands are still tinted with red a few hours after i finished making them. And my then-white shirt is now speckled with ruby redness. 

They baked for 20 minutes in 350*F (180*C). They came out perfect! They sprung back when lightly touched. The tops were uniformly ever so slightly shiny. They were beautiful! :) I frosted them with cream cheese frosting. While making the frosting, i accidentally used the mixer that i used with the batter so the frosting had a pinkish tint. I remembered i still had left over cocoa from the chocolate truffles i made so i split the frosting into two, left one half in its pink tint, and to the other half, i mixed in cocoa until i reached the shade of brown i wanted. THEY WERE SO PRETTY! :)

Remember to cool the cupcakes first before frosting so that it won't melt and run over the sides of the cupcake! :) Once i bit into the ruby red goodness, it was almost as if i were sitting outside one of the tables outside the Sprinkles store in LA. Talk about nostalgia! :)

Happy baking!

[gelaskitchenadventures]

DRINK IT UP! :: Iced Apple-Green Tea

 well i was sort of having a hard time giving a name to this drink i accidentally came up with for dinner today. i was raiding the pantry earlier, checking for stuff that i don't normally notice that's in there. i saw a box of Twinnings "Green Tea & Apple". I wasn't really in the mood for hot tea since the weather is already warm (despite being december). i remember an instruction i came across the net one day when i was reading about teas and how to brew them properly. You're supposed to steep two tea bags in a cup of boiling water. I left it to brew longer than the usual 3-4 minutes since i figured that it will be diluted later on. So, this is what i did:

1.) I let the tea bags steep for about 10 minutes.

2.) Filled my favorite Bubba Gump glass flask with ice.

3.) Added 2 tbsp of sugar (i know it's a lot. -_- haha).

4.) we ran out of kalamansi (same family as limes and lemons) so i used half an orange instead. it's not as sour as i would have liked but it's the best i can think of. hence it became pulpy :)

5.) taste test! yummy!

6.)   i opened the pantry and saw the bottle of Creme de Menthe looking back at me saying, what the hell are you waiting for?! :)) so i added a teaspoon as an act of surrender. lol. :))

7.)   taste test! yummy!

8.) then i saw a pack of fresh basil that's nearly wilted. naturally, i took pity and tore a couple of leaves and tossed it in as well.

9.) gave it a good stir.

10.) i drank. i was amazed. and i gave myself a pat on the back for being adventurous with the basil. :D basically, i loved it! :D i even forgot to take a picture LOL :))

do you have a better name for this drink? :)

[gelaskitchenadventures]

BITE INTO IT:: Mediterranean Basil Chicken

Yesterday, i went out with friends and headed out to Bonifacio High Street. I got there in time for late lunch. Since we wanted something light, we opted to go to Oliver's Super Sandwiches.

I got the Mediterranean Basil Chicken (because i love basil AND chicken that much, hah!) :D it had a generous amount of the chicken filling and just the right amount of lettuce and tomatoes on wheat bread. i must say i enjoyed this particular sandwich because the chicken pieces where cut in chunks as opposed to being shredded. in my opinion, if the chicken is shredded and then mixed with mayo, it sometimes gets lost in it and the mayo often tends to dominate the sandwich, in which case you might as well have used the bottled chicken spread -_- (eek.)

another reason why i liked this is because of the minced basil in just the right amount that it gives off the distinct earthiness you'd expect in dishes with basil. it wasn't bitter or too overpowering at all which  i definitely was happy about.

however, there are some flavors which i think were missing...given the fact that the sandwich claims to have a Mediterranean twist to it..i was half expecting to find feta cheese or yogurt or olives at least. but there was none so i was left puzzled as to how this is considered Mediterranean at all.

so anyway, this inspired to make my own version of this sandwich filling. tomorrow's a saturday - not really a great day to dash to the supermarket because the lines at the check out counter will take forever. but who knows.. i just might. :)

[gelaskitchenadventures]

Of Realizations & Hyphenations

just now, i was looking back at what i have posted since i started this food blog and i realized that there was a heavy influx of meat loaded (i mean really loaded) pastrami sandwiches during the past week. LOL.. i guess i just got so excited with the thought of pastrami and the rush of memories which were brought back by my pictures of our Greenberg Deli escapade in Vegas that i wasn't able to keep myself from posting these creations of carnivore-love (you must admit they look yummy, though). :D

for the record, i am not a carnivorous, huge-chunks-of-meat-eating, pastrami-addicted kind of girl. i am, however, a lover of good food. (and by good food i mean the "you-cant-help-but-close-your-eyes-at-first-bite" and the "i-dont-care-if-there's-sauce-dripping-down-the-side-of-my-mouth" kind of good food).

in the mean time, the pastrami hunt continues. :-)

[gelaskitchenadventures]

MELT IT

(in your mouth, that is) :: CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

been craving for these treats for a long time now since i got back from the US so i searched the net for recipes on how to make these bitter-sweet, melt-in-your-mouth treats that will surely tickle your taste buds.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups premium dark chocolate

1/2 cup butter

1 2/3 cup heavy cream

1 tbsp vanilla extract

nuts

cocoa

PROCEDURE:

Chop the chocolate into little pieces to make it easier to melt.

(You can use either a double boiler or the microwave oven to melt the chocolate)

In a microwave safe bowl, place chocolate pieces. place the butter on top. pop it in the microwave for 15 second on a medium high setting. stir it around to keep the bottom from burning once every 15 seconds. repeat this until you've melted the chocolate. 

mix in the cream and the vanilla extract and let it chill in the fridge for about 2 hours or until you think the chocolate is ready to be shaped into balls. 

once the chocolate is ready, get a melon baller and scoop out a ball of chocolate. place a nut in the center of the chocolate (i used cashew nuts) then dust it with cocoa powder. remove the excess cocoa powder tossing it a few times between your hands or toss it around in a sifter. 

place in containers. separate layers with parchment paper. You can keep it in the fridge for the mean time that you haven't wiped out these babies yet.

[gelaskitchenadventures]

pastrami~pickle~Lay's combo ftw! :D

[gelaskitchenadventures]

oh dear!

[gelaskitchenadventures]

I'd like to have one of this.

i meant the slicer. 

well, okay, a man who's good with the slicer works too. ^_~