XXXV at Conti's

Our birthday has to be the most special date in our lives, but when I turned 35, I told my sister and mother not to bother with any kind of celebration (on the day itself), because I knew we would travel to Enchanted Kingdom a few days later, and I would rather use our money there instead.

However, just the day after, us three girls went to Trinoma and while we were thinking where to eat lunch, one restaurant came to mind - Conti's.


It has always been a "dream" for sister and I to dine there, because of the many raves we have read and heard about the restaurant. They offer a wide array of dishes, thinking what to eat was quite difficult (such is the case when we dine at a restaurant for the first time), but in the end we chose these -


Chicken Mac & Cheese
Sister's food. She loves mac and cheese, and seeing this on the menu paired with chicken, she thought it was a good value for money - compared to eating "just" pasta and garlic bread. The mac and cheese was okay for me; I am not into this pasta, so I couldn't really say if it was exceptional or not, but I truly did love the chicken. It has a subtle hint of citrus, and the rosemary added more flavor to the chicken.


Roasted Beef Belly
My choice. I actually had a difficult time choosing what to eat, because I am at a point now that I am not really craving one particular food at a time - I usually just go with the flow and eat whatever is served to me. I based my decision based on its price...at first I wanted to order a chicken meal then a seafood meal then this, and this felt like the most practical to eat.

The beef belly is juicy and fork tender, and the serving was big, too. I was able to share some of the beef to my mother and sister, and still had more than enough on my plate for me to eat. I loved the almond pilaf, too, but I wasn't a big fan of the horseradish dressing. I just gently scraped off the dressing and ate my beef belly as is.


Pastel de Lengua
Mommy's choice. At first she only wanted to try their Sotanghon, because a friend once told her it was delicious. Flipping the menu more, she felt this would satisfy her more, and it did! The lengua chunks are tender, the sauce - though not as thick as we expected - was seasoned well, and it did pair well with the Paella rice.


Mango Bravo
Even if it wasn't my birthday, this would definitely be a part of our meal. I have longed to taste this cake, and it was so good, I nearly cried (no kidding). It was love at first taste, truly foodgasmic! I love the different layers that give different flavors and textures to the cake... and because it is still mango season, the mango chunks are very sweet and refreshing. On one hand, I felt bad that this was an expensive cake (160 for this slice), but on the other hand, I felt that it was a good thing for it to be expensive, because if not, for sure I am going to hope to eat it nearly every day. I think I just found my favorite cake.

Overall, we had a great dining experience. The staff are courteous and efficient, and we didn't wait very long for food to be served. If there is one thing I didn't like, it would be the location - because we still had to exit the mall to reach the restaurant. But then... for good food, the extra walk under the heat of the sun was worth it.


*** Jenn ***

Recipe | Yema Cake (using Maya Butter Cake Mix)

In my willingness to learn more about baking, I joined a Facebook group, where members share different things about baking - recipes, techniques, opinions, help. One time, a member shared her Yema Cake using steamed Maya Hotcake Mix, which sparked an idea. I sure wanted to try for myself if I can also make the cake using steamed Maya Hotcake Mix, but because we still have a box of Maya Butter Cake mix, I decided to use it instead.

If you crave for Yema Cake and cannot buy the famous brand, or you find that baking chiffon cake is tricky, you might want to try this instead.



Yema Cake

{cake}
Ingredients:

• 1 box (200g) Maya Butter Cake Mix
• 4 tablespoons softened butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350*F / 177*C.
• Grease your pan with butter or vegetable oil.
• Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well blended.
• Pour into the prepared pan, until 3/4 full.
• Bake for 30 minutes, or until done.

{yema frosting}
Ingredients:

• 3 egg yolks
• 1 can of condensed milk
• 1 small can of evaporated milk
• 1/2 tbsp of cornstach diluted in 2 tablespoons of water
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter
• zest of one lemon

{topping}

• grated cheddar cheese

Directions:

• Mix all ingredients (except butter) in a sauce pan until well combined.
• Over very low heat, cook the custard mixture, making sure you constantly stir it so it won't curdle and form into lumps.
• Once the mixture is slightly thick, add butter and cook until amber in color (still mixing it constantly).
• When the desired consistency is achieved, turn off the heat and allow the custard to cool.

To assemble, just top the cake with the desired amount of yema frosting and add grated cheese. Some things to take note of -- the yema frosting might thicken more as it cools, when it becomes too thick for your liking, thin it with more evaporated milk. As for the grated cheese, it is better to use a small grater.



For this recipe, I was able to make two cakes using a small leche flan llanera as my baking pan, and I also had a small amount of cake batter left to make three small heart shaped cakes using a cookie pan. I had more yema frosting left, so I reserved it and made another batch of Yema Cake, using the traditional chiffon cake recipe, which I will share next time.

Did I like it? Oh yes! The yema frosting obviously is on the sweet side, but I am glad at how the cheese counter the sweetness. It was good timing actually, my mom had guests and served this to them and they loved it...even asked me for the recipe!

What I liked about the Maya Butter Cake mix is that it can be baked using the oven toaster - so, it makes baking easier for everyone. Will try the steamed variety next time, just to test if I would like it.

*** Jenn ***

The #BIGatin that is - Jollibee Big Burger Steak

When we still had a land phone, lazy days would sometimes mean calling the Jollibee Hotline to order lunch or dinner. Having our land phone cut two years ago meant no more Jollibee Delivery, but when my sister discovered the joys of ordering online, a thought entered her mind to try out the Jollibee Online Delivery service.


I allowed her to use the website - jollibeedelivery.com - and she said ordering through the website was easy than she first assumed. She did provide her phone number, but the confirmation of her order was sent thru the e-mail address she provided.



We were actually very impressed with the service! It took sometime for the confirmation e-mail to arrive, but upon receiving their e-mail, the delivery guy was knocking on our gate just 15 minutes after!

If you haven't tried ordering thru Jollibee Online Delivery service, the only tip I can share is for you to provide all necessary details. There is a space for the customer to indicate any notes, so utilize it to say everything you needed to say. When we ordered, we indicated our mother's Senior Citizen's ID Number and the amount of money we will pay, so the branch that will dispatch the order can adjust the amount (if you have SC or Disability ID) to be paid, as well as provide the rider with the exact amount of change.



I love Jollibee Chickenjoy, but ever since I had my wisdom tooth extracted nearly a month ago, I find it difficult to chew hard, crunchy food. Thankfully, there is the Jollibee Burger Steak, that is also one of my favorite Jollibee food.

One piece Jollibee Burger Steak is definitely not enough to satisfy my tummy, so I usually go for the two piece Jollibee Burger Steak, but I don't know what's the thing about numbers - if I go for two-piece it would seem as if I eat a lot! Hahahaha! I was happy when Jollibee offered the heavy meal because it can fully satisfy my burger steak cravings, but the thing is, I find the meal a little overwhelming - with the French Fries and Egg included in the meal. With the Jollibee Big Burger Steak, I felt it was just the right meal for me.


The Jollibee Big Burger Steak is as big and thick as the Jollibee Champ patty. The flavor is still the same Jollibee Burger Steak we all love - and something you can share... but I doubt that. :) For more pleasurable eating experience, I suggest you put drops of hot sauce. Yummy!!!

If you fancy something BIGatin without any added extras on the side, I definitely recommend you guys try out the Jollibee Big Burger Steak the next time you visit Jollibee, or call 8-7000 for delivery (if you don't feel like using their online delivery service.

The Jollibee Big Burger Steak can be enjoyed solo for only 89 pesos, or with a regular drink for only 95 pesos.

Have you tried this #BIGatin treat? Please follow @Jollibee on Twitter and Instagram, and @JollibeePhilippines on Facebook, share your #BIGatin escapades with the new Jollibee Big Burger Steak.

*** Jenn ***