Ampalaya omelette

Slice ampalaya into thin strips

Submerge strips into hot water for at least 5-10 minutes with pinch of salt then drain

Saute tomatoes, garlic and onions in oil. Add a bit of sea salt and magic sarap. Upon caramelized, add the drain ampalaya. Add magic sarap. Mix for a while. Add a bit of butter.

Add two eggs with magic sarap. Mix carefully with the ampalaya. Season with pepper. Let it cook for a while for about 2-3 mins or until brownish of some parts of the omelette . Add small size butter on sides of the omelette. Flip the omelette by portion. Add butter so it won't stick to the pan. Add pepper. Cook for a while until browned. 

Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw sa Hipon

Oil, 2-3 tablespoons

4-5 cloves garlic, chopped

2 medium red onions, chopped lengthwise

Tanglad

6 pieces medium size shrimps with salt, heads with salt, removed and set aside

Squash, cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick

Sitaw, cut into 1.5 inch length

Green chili pepper

Coco Mama 200 mL

Magic Sarap

Pepper

In a 800w setting, heat the oil in the pan and add the heads of the shrimp. Let the umami of the shrimp heads seep through the oil and crush if necessary.

Add the garlic  and then the onions until translucent. Add the tanglad.

Add the squash and saute for 2 minutes. Add a sprinkle of magic Sarap. Mix well. 

Add the shrimps. Mix until orange.

Add Coco Mama. Add pepper. Add the Sitaw. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes until squash is soft and can be easily poked with a fork.

Add chili. Simmer for another 2 minutes. Enjoy!

Mini fan

Mini fan

My aunt gifted me with this very useful item. I like that it has strong wind.

But one day, I thought that I misplaced the cord for charging so I ordered another piece along with the cord in the orange app for a total of 127 pesos. The fan costs around 69 pesos and the cord was priced at 29 pesos. Unfortunately, there was only extra 1 cord in the package when I ordered 2. The fan is strong but its power also exhausts really fast so if you plan to bring this with you, better bring a powerbank too.

Dipping sauce for Tofu

Soy sauce to Vinegar 2:1

Lots of onions

1 small garlic

1/3 inch ginger grated

Chili

Sanegeal Farmhear's Easy Stir-fry Kangkong Recipe

Good for 2 persons

Ingredients:

• sesame oil
• red onion sliced
• kangkong, 1 bunch
• 1 small Sachet of Mama Sita's oyster sauce

1. Submerge the kangkong in water with 1 caplet of vinegar and salt. Leave for at least 15 minutes. Rinse then drain well.

2. In a pan, in a 400 setting in the induction put 2 tbsp sesame oil and saute onion until translucent. Add the Kangkong and saute until bright green. Coat the Kangkong with half sachet of mama sitas oyster sauce. Season with black pepper. Enjoy!

Bad Bowl at Robinson's Magnolia

My sister treated me to a Mongolian BBQ buffet and we came to Bad Bowl. I thought she had already eaten at a place like this and it turns out that this is also her first time. For an unlimited Mongolian BBQ buffet it is 600 pesos inclusive of the service charge and VAT. If you want to have some hotpot, it will cost a little higher at 800 pesos.

If you are like me who is dining at Bad Bowl for the first time, upon entering you tell the front desk how many people with you are dining. You can sit anywhere you like as long as it's unoccupied. Upon sitting, they would be serving kropecks (like the ones they serve in Chowking) with a garlic mayo dip along with a glass of ice tea per person and the a pitcher with water. The server instructed us that we can already start.

In the section where the spreads are, you get a bowl and then get the ingredients that you want for your Mongolian bowl. It's like bibimbap, the only difference is that it will be cooked like a BBQ stirfry. There are a lot of variety of vegetables, mushrooms, pasta, rice and meat that you can find. When you're finished taking what you want for your meal, give the bowl to the cooking section and they will ask how do you want it to taste. I choose it to be savory and then they gave me a number. They will call out and will serve the cooked platter to you.

Proof that I really enjoyed my meal. An empty plate.

In my experience I really enjoyed the meal though I had consumed a bowl only though that isn't the case for my sister. I also sampled her bowl for a bit and she opted for a sweet and spicy flavor which for me was a meh.

Kaisa Villa Hair dryer

The last time my hair was subjected to a frequent hot blower was when I was in elementary when my mother used to do our hair do. Growing up, hair blowers are really not popular in the Philippines for everyday use. Not unless you go to a hair salon. We can typically see commuters with wet hair inside the jeepney. I admit that sometimes I'm one of them.

Anyway, I purchased a hair dryer in the orange app - Kaisa Villa Hair Dryer for 344 pesos inclusive of the shipping fee (339 pesos for the item). I was eyeing for more popular brands like Imarflex, Phillips or Panasonic but I decided that as long as it does the work then I'm okay with it. Maybe I'll invest in Dyson later on if budget permits. I also think that brands doesn't 100% guarantee that there won't be issues. I remembered that the Kaisa Villa food processor/hand blender that I had is a bang for a buck and so I choose this brand instead. 

To be honest I'm not really expecting much but these are my observations:

• The hair blower is not foldable.
• The cord is thick. (Plus point)
• Tried the max settings to dry off my hair. Hair dryer after is not hot in any part of the appliance.
• The setting are not heavily embossed so it might be a little difficult to see the settings

Can you see the embossed numbers and symbol?

You might want to refer to the box instead

Silicon ice molders

I was looking for an ice molder that is big enough because I noticed that bigger cubes doesn't melt easily but if you want to have an easier way to make your drinks cold, stir a lot of small ones instead. I thought that this would be the one that I'm looking for but it was not. However, what amazed me about purchasing a silicon ice molder is that taking off the ice cubes is a breeze comparing to a non-silicon. You wet the outside bottom part of the molder and then pop it out using your thumb.

Earth, Wind & Fire

I like their September. I can't believe I'm missing a lot on not recognizing their other songs much earlier. The songs are familiar and I did not know they were the artist of these bop songs.

 Earth, Wind & Fire - Let's Groove

Earth, Wind & Fire - Boogie Wonderland

St Dalfour Fruit Spreads Gift Set

My cousin who came from Canada gifted us this adorable spread of fruit jams from St. Dalfour! 

I liked the Blueberry one as I find raspberry and the strawberry a bit sour. One cute size would yield around 4-5 spreads. What I also love about this spread is that it is not brimming with sweetness. Though you may know that sugar is the one preserving the fruit in the jams.

How do you start your stew?

When it comes to cooking, I always find cooking stew simple to do. You would just put in the aromatics such as the onion and the tomatoes first. Next is dropping the meat into the pot (we usually utilize fish)  after boiling. And after another boil the vegetables would go in. Finally, after a quick boil then you can salt according to your preference. And there you already have a dish!

How do you start your stews? Mine would be halving the onion and the tomatoes and let it simmer until it becomes soft. I disentangle the onions and squish and mash the tomatoes just so the nutrients would seep into the soup. Did you know that you can only extract lycopene in tomatoes when you boil it? Eating it raw won't.

UK Salary Calculator

If you're looking for a site that provides the breakdown of your taxes, national insurance and take home pay based on your annual income, you can check this website. The Salary Calculator

It computes annually, monthly, weekly and daily.

Fob watches

Fob watches are a necessity when you're in healthcare practicing in a European country. I heard its because they do not allow to have things which are in the hands up until the elbow. I ordered 3 pieces and this costs around 243 pesos excluding the shipping fee.

When I found out about this type of watch, I was a bit surprised as I was always wore a watch on my wrist. A watch for me is always essential. When I was able to see the watches, it was cute and the colored holder is made of silicone.

Li-lets Peanut Butter

If you're keen on eating peanut butter, I would definitely recommend Li-lets Peanut Butter. The popular brands seen in the supermarket costs around 360 pesos for a kilogram and this one that I ordered is only 173 pesos for 1.1 kilogram.

When you open it, it is sealed and I like that it is already well blended. No oil on the top.

It has a lighter nutty flavor and the taste is well balanced which is perfect for a peanut butter spread. However, if you intend to use it for a kare-kare dish I would recommend to go for the supermarket brands or make your own.

One serving amounts to 2 tablespoons. But take note that it packs a ton of calories though its high in protein.

Like every peanut butter, it has a short shelf life of 6 months.

McDonald's Crispy Chicken Sandwich too salty?

McDonald's Crispy Chicken Sandwich too salty? Tips

My sister ordered a McCrispy Chicken Sandwich. Mom thinks that it's too salty and so do I. How to fix this so that it is more palatable to our buds?

I suddenly had the idea to add lettuce or tomatoes but it was not available in our fridge. What I opted to instead was a quarter slice of red bell pepper that was julienned in big size (or is there a more appropriate term for this? Let me know in the comments) and a big red onion sliced into onion rings which are 1/3 inch thick. Coat with oil and let it cook in the airfryer at 160 Degrees until it becomes a bit soft.

I also included the sandwich so I could reheat the meat and the two buns.

Enjoy!

Amis Restaurant in Quiapo

Amis Restaurant in Quiapo

Disclaimer: This is my personal opinion.

I want to try eating in Amis restaurant before I fly to another country and I happen to see this restaurant in Tiktok as one of the recommendations.

I could say that the service was fast and the staff were attentive.

Unfortunately, the ones we ordered were not up to par with what we wanted and ended up disappointed as I was excited to try out their menu. Their Chicken Mami (180) was bland, and mom was not happy at all. We originally wanted to order the wanton Mami but it was unavailable. Their palabok with tokwat baboy (130) has an acceptable taste but if I were to compare, Jolli Dada is more cheaper and gives more value if you're in Quiapo. Siopao Bola Bola (65) is okay, but those in chowking is better. Their Sago and gulaman is the winner in my mom's palate at 130. Mom thinks the sweetness in the sagot gulaman is not arnibal.

For the price, menu ranges an average of 150-300 pesos. Will we go back? I think not.

Trying out the Tyeso Insulated Tumbler

I've been eyeing insulated tumblers since last year and finally had the decision to get one. I was choosing between Aquaflask and the Tyeso brand. While I would say the former have more quality than the other, I don't like the heavy weight and its narrow opening apart from it being pricier so I settled with the Tyeso tumbler. It is a 900 mL tumbler which costs 350 pesos in total in the orange app since the shipping fee was waived and I also got a 10 pesos off from the shop.

I got the blue color and I absolutely like how it looks. I tried if it would spill, but it did not.

Let's see if there are any issues later on.

Update: I used the tumbler when we went to Starbucks. I tried to tilt it after inspecting the edges for leaks and it splashed. I don't know if it's because of the hotness in the temperature but I'll try again later on

Updated my prescription glasses today!

Hehe. I think I had a fruitful day today with my mom. She accompanied me to the family's recommended opthalmologist (Dr. Gilbert Santos) to have my prescription glasses updated. His professional fee is 1200 pesos which I think is just and I like it that he's cool. He reminded that eye check ups should be done every two years (Sorry Doc!). After getting the reading, I found out that my right eye is now -7.50 which the left is around -6.25. The right eye has risen by a hundred whereas the other stayed the same.

Afterwards, we ate at Popeye's for lunch and then proceeded to Carriedo for the eyeglasses. I went to my go to optical shop which is Eye Republic and their multi coated lens with ultra thin of 1.67 costs around 3800. The frame was originally at 800 pesos but we were able to haggle and settled at 700. The total cost was 4500 pesos which was not bad considering I have a high grade of myopia.

we'll be okay, for today

 we'll be okay, for today

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Along the way I realized that all along, you hold the validation that you always needed and yearned for. - Sanegeal Farmhear

Happy New Year! Praying for an abundant and prosperous 2024!

Happy New Year! 

 New Year lunch

Happy New Year to you and your family! The past couple of years brought the good and the bad (hopefully the worst) for me, but it was overall a gift for these things provided me the clarity and the audacity to step up and step out of my comfort zone.

I think that I may have either been burnt out or depressed for at least a month in the early quarter of last year. I may have been internalizing these problems that I realized that those dreams were actually there to warn me.

Any way, I know that I can do this. Prayers work wonders. I thank God for providing me the courage and bravery to finally go out of my shell.

I am an over worrier. I tend to stress out on things easily. Maybe I unconsciously learned it from my mother who stress over small things. Also part of it is being indecisive. I realized that not making a decision is also a decision so why not take risk on the option that is what you really want? It's okay not to feel guilty when you are only advocating for yourself. You are the only person who can do it for you.

Setting up on expectations on people will only result to disappointment and I've learned not to rely on other people but myself.

I'll be voyaging on a new chapter and a new territory this 2024. I am finally learning that its okay to dream for yourself and to remind that you are not responsible for anyone but you.

Praying for you and for me an abundant, prosperous and exhilarating, exciting 2024!