BRB.

...just thought you should know. :)

See you all in July.

The Maya Kitchen Presents ‘Heritage Recipes of the Reyes Girls’

On June 29, Saturday, 9am-1pm, The Maya Kitchen presents the women of the Reyes culinary clan in a cooking demo showcasing dishes with Tagalog and Pampango influences, all slow cooked and worth passing on down to the next generation.

Well known chef, author, editor and host Nancy Reyes Lumen is joined by her mother Nena Tancinco Reyes, sisters Marian, Corito and May as they prepare recipes perfected by the venerable Reyes matriarchs Lola Asiang Reyes and ‘Ina’ Maria Tansinco.

Nena Reyes is a mother of 12 who lovingly prepared Sunday lunch for her loving husband, Handy and her large brood. She will show how to cook the clan’s favorite soup, the Kinulob ng ‘Ina.’

Nancy Reyes Lumen calls herself a practical cook with her forte and culinary passion pegged on Adobo. This time, however, Nancy will prepare Mechado, the Lola Asiang way, using an unbelievable amount of shallots and over ripe tomatoes. The cut of beef is Kampto which will require hours and hours of slow cooking. The sauce (Sofrito) alone, without the beef, is already a great dish by itself.

Marian Reyes is the natural born cook with exceptional taste buds who can create recipes from scratch and duplicate the elders’ dishes perfectly. She will prepare Ina’s Adobong Manok sa Beer.

Corito Reyes is the sporty daughter who is into mountaineering, fishing and was once a tennis champion. She will do her version of Pastel de Lengua.

The youngest of the 12 siblings, May Reyes Serrano, is known for her Kesovore Spread. This time she will prepare her mother’s Pochero using her homemade cured bacon.

For more information on other courses offerings, log on to www.themayakitchen.com or e-mail contactus@themayakitchen.com or visit The Maya Kitchen Culinary Center every Tuesday to Saturday at 8F Liberty Building, 835 A. Arnaiz Avenue (Pasay Road), Makati City or call 8921185 / 892-5011 local 108 / Mobile No. +63947 835 2290

Zigla! (Robinson's Magnolia)

I have been trying to lose weight for as long as I can remember. I am still my own enemy as I always veer away from the tracks, but the thing is that, I refuse to give up completely, so even if I haven't reached my goal yet, I am always trying my best to keep up and start again whenever I stumble.


Part of managing the weight is to find ways to eat correctly. I admit, it is difficult for me to do because I have always had a hearty appetite since I was young, but I am happy that as more and more restaurants open, some of those cater to healthy eating - like the newly opened Zigla! at Robinson's Place Magnolia.

Last Saturday, together with some blogger pals, we attended the opening of Zigla! and of course, that included sampling their dishes, too!


One thing to take note of is how open their space is. Every food is prepared in front of you, and even if some ingredients are already prepared beforehand, the meats are still raw to ensure freshness.

Speaking of freshness, Zigla! only uses beef from grass-fed cows, free-range chicken, and farm-fresh organic vegetables.


The food are cooked en papillote - a method of cooking in which the food is placed and sealed in parchment paper before baking.

Zigla!'s menu are divided into three categories - rice, pasta, and classics (bread). Here are the dishes we tried:

E.C. Rice


e.c. Chicken
High-fiber gluten-free black rice + free-range chicken + barbecue sauce with EFA and fiber (300 cal)

The only time I got to taste black rice was when someone gave us some "pirurutong rice," but we don't cook and eat it as is, what we did was add a handful of this black rice into the regular white rice. I have tasted brown rice and found it to have a nutty taste, so tasting this I was already prepared to taste the same. Surprisingly, I found the black rice much better than the brown rice because it was softer - kinda like eating binatog. Anyway, the barbecue sauce was a tad sweeter for my taste, but my companions loved this so much.


e.c. Salmon
High-fiber gluten-free black rice + salmon + pesto with EFA and fiber (300cal)

I was blown away by this dish. I didn't know pesto and salmon would taste great together!


e.c. Beef
High-fiber gluten-free black rice + grass-fed beef + teriyaki sauce with EFA and fiber (300 cal)

I loved the salmon, but this was the best dish! The beef was tender and flavorful and the teriyaki sauce just went well with the rice, beef and the veggies.

E.C. Pasta


e.c. Spaghetti with Salmon
gluten-free spaghetti + salmon + pesto with EFA and fiber (300cal)

It's practically the same with the e.c. Salmon except that this one had spaghetti instead of rice.


e.c. Spaghetti with Meatballs
gluten-free spaghetti + meatballs + pomodoro with EFA and fiber (300cal)

I forgot to ask what meat they used for the meatballs, but it tasted a little different for me because it didn't have any salt in it. Not my favorite dish, but it was okay.


e.c. Spaghetti with Chicken
Gluten-free spaghetti + free-range chicken + pesto with EFA and fiber (300cal)

We all know that chicken and pesto is the usual food pair, and this tasted pretty much the same, but the raisins, chia seeds, and goji berries added some texture and taste.

E.C. Classics


e.c. High-Fiber Burger Slider
High-fiber slider bun + beef patty + homemade catsup and mayo (269cal)

The patty tasted the same like the meatballs. This is a small sandwich (of course, it's a slider), but it was surprisingly enough to satisfy the tummy.


e.c. Chicken Sandwich

We forgot to ask what bread they used for this sandwich, and because I opted not to taste it (as I had the burger), I have no comment for this sandwich.


e.c Juice Blends
Blended with fresh veggie-fruit fiber, pH-adjusted, non-acidic.

To quench the thirst, they offer freshly made juices in different combinations

• Yellow - pineapple + apple + celery + lemon (100cal)
• Orange - orange + carrots + celery + lemon (100cal)
• Green - kale + parsley + apple + lemon (100cal)
• Red - beets + turnips + carrots + ginger (100cal)

They also offer Kombucha Tea (13cal) and Kombucha Ginger (30cal), but both Kombucha tea drinks tasted too sour for my taste. To go with my food, I went for the Green Juice Blends, which at first tasted bland. These juice blends don't have added sugar, and it only relies to its natural sweetness. Well, my drink did start tasteless, but as I sip more and more of it, I got to appreciate the natural sweetness, which I think came mostly from the apples. 


Classic Chocolate Cookies
sugarless, gluten-free, high fiber cookies

One of the people behind Zigla! is Annabel Tanco, who is the owner of Bizu Patisserie. Because of that, Zigla! also offer different kinds of breads and cookies, although the ones sold at Zigla! are high-fiber, some even sugarless and gluten-free. I got to taste the dark chocolate cookies and the classic chocolate cookies, which are totally different from the usual chocolate cookies I have tasted.

Zigla! combines three essential things to promote healthy eating - high-fiber carbs + lean protein + essential fats. The people Zigla! wants us to take care of our bodies just like we take care of certain things we own (like a car, a pet) - that if we care so much to the things we own by buying only the best accessories and whatnots, we should also take care of our bodies by eating correctly. Zigla! follows a paleo-esque way of eating, because they believe that to eat correctly is to eat paleo.

By the way, the combinations for the dishes can be altered to your taste. Basically, the e.c Rice and e.c. Pasta dishes all have 300 calories, which are broken down into three - 100 calories for the carbs, 100 calories for the meat, and 100 calories for the sauce and the veggies. Now, if you want to go for beef but prefer to have pesto or barbecue sauce instead of teriyaki, you can just request it and they will prepare it for you. One thing to know, the protein used in the dishes don't have salt, so don't get surprised if it would taste bland. If you want to have your protein seasoned, please request for them to season it for you.

Zigla! is located at the food court of Robinson's Magnolia, and next month another branch will open at Zuellig in Makati.

Razon's of Guagua (SM City Fairview)

When Razon's of Guagua opened at SM Fairview, mom and sister have wanted to dine there. There was the curiosity to taste their ever famous Halo-Halo, but brother was teasing us because he was able to dine at Razon's in Pampanga... therefore he felt what he tasted was more authentic. Actually, if I was given the choice, I sure want to dine at any of their branches in Pampanga (like the way I went to Deco's in La Paz, Iloilo just to eat their La Paz Batchoy), but because a trip to Pampanga was very hazy, this will do for now.


The size of this branch may just be okay... but every time we pass by during lunch and dinner, the restaurant is always jam packed. We were quite lucky to have entered at the right time, because in just 30 minutes, the place was filled with hungry diners.

What we had:


Pancit Luglug
My choice. This is my type of pancit luglug (or palabok) - with slightly fatter noodles. This may look simple, but it was really good. There's something in the sauce was quite different from the other of its kind I have tasted, and I wouldn't mind eating this again and again.


Sisig
Pampanga is a province known for its delectable dishes, and one of the dishes that originated in Pampanga is Sisig, and that's what my sister chose. I think this is one of her favorite dishes because in the many food trips we've had, she would always choose this (if available).

This has been the simplest Sisig we've tasted. As you can see, it's all chopped pork (and calamansi) - no chicharon, no egg, no other extenders... but it was very tasty and satisfying!


Chicken - Pork Asado
Brother's choice, and he was very happy when this was served to him because it was a very hearty serving! A big chunk of pork and one big chicken leg, cooked to asado perfection. The pork, even if it was thick was tender and juicy, and very tasty, too. However, between the pork and the chicken, I preferred the chicken more.


Sizzling Bulalo
Mom's choice. Another hearty serving of a dish, which we all shared. Actually, because it was our first time to dine here, we shared all our choices. At first we were a bit apprehensive if this one would taste good, but it did! The beef was very tender and the sauce was great as well.


Halo-Halo
Us three girls had a glass of Halo-Halo for dessert. True to what people say, the ice was the one that sets this apart from other Halo-Halo. It was delicious alright, and I loved it, but I personally prefer my Halo-Halo to be packed with different ingredients. My sister loved it very much because there are a lot of the usual Halo-Halo ingredients she doesn't like, but even if I loved this Halo-Halo tasted, I would still choose the one with tapioca pearls, sweet potatoes, ube, and even pinipig.


Silvanas
Since brother didn't go for the Halo-Halo, he went for a piece of Silvanas for his dessert. Nothing exceptional as this tasted like any other Silvanas we've tasted.


San Nicolas
This we bought to take home because this is uniquely a Pampangueno cookie. It is called San Nicolas to pay homage to St. Nicolas Tolentino, the patron saint of bakers. I truly love this one. Tasted a little bit like uraro and puto seko, but quite different as well.

Razon's of Guagua still has so many dishes to offer, something we will come back for next time.