…the one on page 48 of the August issue of MyHome. Grab a copy, and suddenly most of the backgrounds you see in my photos will become very familiar. (wink) It's an odd feeling seeing my kitchen (not to mention my whole house!) in print. A disclaimer: A blurb on the magazine cover calls me a “pastry chef.” I’m flattered to be regarded as such, but I’m not a pastry chef, and I’ve never claimed to be one. I’m certainly not qualified. I’m a passionate home baker, and that’s it.

The food of the month (at least for me) is cake. Everywhere I go I see cake. And I want a piece. It must’ve been the book I was reading. Whatever it was, I made cake to appease my cravings and my household was happier because of it. Here are the new recipes. Click on the appropriate links or hit the Recipes tab on the nav bar. Carrot Cake It all started because my best friend, Bal, mentioned that he didn’t like carrot cakes. Could eat carrots but not the cake. (Weird boy). Then I started craving carrot cake, and had to have it now. We went to Segafredo and I tried their carrot cake, which has the distinction of being one of the worst carrot cakes I’ve ever met. This was not a carrot cake. What it was was a yellow cake with some grated carrots. Pathetic. Here’s a carrot cake that could be the gold standard. It’s from the Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins, a classic cookbook in any baker’s library. This has received raves on all the online message boards I’ve ...

Some restaurants are for eating a straight meal. Other restaurants are for the experience. Gaudí belongs to the latter. Named after the Spanish architect and designer, Antoni Gaudí i Cornet, the restaurant strives to be a testament to the man’s genius. Gaudí’s work in Barcelona led to the creation of some of the city's most notable landmarks. He was also at the forefront of the Art Nouveau movement in Spain. Formerly along Jupiter St. in Makati, Gaudí is now comfortably ensconced at the fourth floor of Greenbelt 3, where Famous restaurant once was. As far as locations go, Gaudí may have hit the jackpot. The place offers a view of the fountain below and at night, the starry skyline. Inspired mosaics decorate the walls, all original creations of Nicole Cacho. There is also a full service bar, and a menu devoted completely to various libations. But of course it’s the food that we’ve come for. On a Monday, traditionally the slowest day in a restaurant week, the place was packed and the waiters were hustling. We began with the plato de Ibericos (P415): a platter of serrano ham, salami, chorizo, and manchego cheese ...

note: This website, Dessert Comes First, was originally named, Dessertfirst. Blog-o-Rama Manila Bulletin, July 29, 2005 A blog where the dessert comes first By Annalyn S. Jusay (now blogging at www.annalyn.net) The name of the blog alone, Dessertfirst at http://dessertcomesfirst.blogspot.com, indicates that the site is owned and was written by someone with a sweet tooth. From cakes to pretzels to doughnuts, Lori Baltazar's blog is so full of the kitchen's heavenly delights that one is very much tempted to rush to the nearest restaurant or bakeshop after reading her entries, never mind the calories of course. It helps that the author is no ordinary blogger but is in fact a chef and a culinary writer. Thus, her posts are written with the standards of someone who is well-exposed to goings-on in the food industry and has the keen insights (plus years of experience) to go with it. Surprisingly, Dessertfirst is not only about sinful sweets. It also talks about other kinds of food and has an interesting review of Manila's restaurants, both positive and negative. Readers will find useful Lori's directory of great resto/cafe finds, complete with addresses and telephone numbers. Also a must-check is her separate site on Multiply.com which lists ...

It's a first! Dessertfirst has been written about in the Manila Bulletin. Of course I'm thrilled beyond belief and want to share this with all of you.

Every afternoon, I hear the familiar call, which starts on a high note and ends low: “Tahoooooohhhhh! Tahoooooohhhhh!” This is the familiar refrain that comes from the person we’ve dubbed as the “taho man,” or simply, Manong. Manong carries two aluminum containers, one that is long and narrow, the other one short and squat, each a precious repository of the components of a traditional and treasured Filipino snack. The two tubs are balanced on a bamboo pole and carried by Manong, who is lean and strong from hours of walking carrying his precious wares, and sunburned from time spent under the sun. The long and narrow container that Manong holds is for the taho (ta-HOH), unpressed soybean curd mixed with a coagulant. The resulting texture is that of quivery crème Brulee. The short and squat container on the other hand, holds two compartments; one for the sago (sa-GOH), or tapioca balls; the other is for the brown syrup called arnibal. Viscous and shiny, it’s similar to molasses. First ...

Until I met Anabel Tanco, the owner of Bizu, I wasn’t a fan of the French patisserie and bistro. Granted, the place was truly a feast for the eyes with its lavish display cases, and ornate cakes with their euphonious names -- but it wasn’t the place I’d go to for dessert. I found the cakes, complicated as they were, to be too froufrou for my taste, all style and no substance. And the prices! wooh, how prohibitive. Then the food magazine I write for sent me to interview the owner of Bizu. When I met Anabel, my whole view on Bizu changed and now I’m a fan with a terribly expensive addiction to their pistachio macaroons. (They cost P25 each!) Bizu started out as a kiosk at Glorietta back in 2001. They introduced macaroons, those circular glories of egg whites and crushed almonds to Filipinos who had until then only known macaroons as gloppy coconut and condensed milk confections. Then there were those cakes, individual in size and costing as much as P195 each. With names like Samba, Opera, and Amour, they evoked images of romance and French dreams. ...

When it comes to baking, muffins are not my thing. Not because I don’t want to bake them, but for some reason, I can’t get them right. They always come out tough and hard –not at all like the fluffy muffins I eat in my dreams. Barring that however, the banana-nut muffins at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf come pretty darn close. Recently, I decided to face my fears, take the bull by the horns, and shake a whisk at er, making muffins again. I still had some leftover bananas, so I utilized those as well as come miniature Callebaut chocolate chips someone had given me. This recipe for Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins comes from the King Arthur Flour Baking Companion, a book that some of you may notice I use a lot. This is without a doubt, one of my favorites, the recipes are so darn reliable – I just know I’ll come out with something good. And good these muffins were. They’re soft and moist, and very decent compared to the hockey pucks I’ve made before. The original recipe calls for whole wheat flour (I assume to salve ...