Category Archives: Recipes For Frugal Nights

Channeling ze inner goddess

November 28 12:20 pm ,
Nurtured

Nurtured

Hubby went away. Will be away for 20 days. He is the resident cook. Heck, not just the resident cook. He is cordon bleu, a cooking superstar, with legendary chef-like prowess.

Many have passed through our door, the invited – and those who invited themselves – testing him, and finding themselves impressed. Always.

So I was naturally apprehensive. With him away, we might grow hungry.

In panic, I sat down to list all the places in Vancouver we could eat at. Then I stopped. Frowned. Led to a different path by my thoughts.

I started to list down all the food I loved to eat as a child, food my mom would cook, food that I missed. Food from a time long ago, comforting, heart-satisfying. From memories that have not been a part of my recent life.

The life starred in by the hubby-chef.

As I listed down my favourite food from my childhood, I was seized by an idea. Why not cook them while hubby is away? With no one to critique my cooking, I should be okay.

Right?

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Posted in: Food, Life Stories, Recipes for Frugal Nights , Tagged: , ,

A Frugal Night and One Sinful Chocolate Cake

October 13 10:52 pm ,

Moments

I could not fit into my pants.  And I know the culprit.

It is called “The Most Sinful Chocolate Cake”.  And when Connie of HomeCookingRocks.com wrote about it, I knew I had to try to make it for one of my “frugal nights”.

A little backtrack.  I started having “frugal nights” because I was getting frustrated with the restaurant scene where I was paying so much for food.  Especially dessert.

It’s crazy.

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How I Survived Two Weeks of Not Eating Out

August 22 10:05 pm ,

Perchance to Eat

I ingest recipes and then imagine cooking them in my head.  And then I forget about them.

Because I eat out – we eat out – a lot.  And those recipes lose their allure to gastronomic treats in restaurants with ambiance that is well worth the money.  And I do not have to clean up (look, ma, no dirty hands!).

It is because of experiential eating.  And when I say experiential eating, I mean Sonya’s Garden, which entered my reality more than ten years ago.   Because of that one fine afternoon when we got lost looking for what would be our wedding reception venue, I found out that eating should not just be about good food.  It should also be about having a great experience – a meal amidst a lush garden, fine bone china, rose petals in the salad, sheer white gauze in the windows, dew on the flowers, a singing dog (believe me) and a goddess in a flowing chiffon gown…  And since then, we have been on the search for “the dining experience”.  And the Manila restaurant scene did not disappoint – there is Antonio’s (Tagaytay), Ugu Bigyan (Quezon Province), Bale Dutung (Pampanga), Abe’s Farm (Pampanga) and the other places that have been getting acclaim – the so-called best-kept secrets.

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Posted in: Recipes for Frugal Nights, The Philippines , Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,