(Vlog Series) The Cooking Fashionistas: Episode 1

          Issa and I have been working on two projects together this year -- a blog series, When Food and Fashion Meet; and a vlog series, The Cooking Fashionistas. Our first post for When Food and Fashion Meet was published earlier this month, and now finally, the FIRST EPISODE of our vlog series is out! 

         So, what's this vlog series about? Well, if you can't decide which you love more -- food or fashion -- this is the perfect series for you! Basically, this concept is a product of Issa asking me to teach her how to cook, and me, asking Issa to teach me a thing or two about fashion tricks of the trade as well. Watch the video below and see if I'm right. ;)

        Lemme just fill you in on the recipe featured in the video and how to make it:

Ham, Mango and Cheese Quesadilla

w/ guacamole and fresh tomato salsa 

Ingredients:

1   pack          soft tortilla (up to you if you want 6" or 12")

1   small bar    Eden MeltSarap, grated

1   pack          King's Cooked Ham, sliced into half

2   whole        ripe mango, sliced

1   small stick  Magnolia Butterlicious

(for the guacamole)

1      whole   ripe avocado

1/2   pc        lime/calamansi

                   salt

                   black pepper

(for the tomato salsa)

5   whole    green tomatoes, de-seeded and diced

1   whole    red onion, chopped

2   tbsp       olive oil

1/2 pc        lime/lemon

                 salt

                 pepper

Procedure:

1. Make the tomato salsa and guacamole first:

          (for the guacamole)

              - Mash the avocado in a bowl with a fork.

              - Squeeze out the juice of half a lime or lemon on the avocado.

              - Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

          (for the tomato salsa)

              - In a bowl, mix together diced tomatoes, chopped red onion, olive oil  and lime/lemon juice. 

                 - Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

 

     2. Assemble the quesadilla on a plate in this order: 

                 

                        tortilla

                        grated cheese

                        sliced ham

                        sliced mango

                        grated cheese

                        tortilla

       3. Heat a teflon pan or grill pan or grill. Melt a bit of butter to give your tortilla that grilled look. 

        4. Cook quesadilla on both sides; at first, browning one side, and then browning the other until both are of crisp perfection.

        5. Slice on a chopping board and serve on a plate with guacamole and tomato salsa.

         Just 5 easy steps! If Issa can make it, so can you! :D

If any of you will try the recipe at home, it would be great if you could post pictures on my fb page: facebook.com/babeforfood

  For the fashion d-i-y, just visit my crazy little friend's blog, issaplease, and be amazed at all the wonders this girl could do to your wardrobe or style. 

We'd like to thank Ejay Williams of Zage Media Productions for being so kind to shoot this episode for us and offered us his home for the set. I wish I had his kitchen. I DIIEE at the beauty of it. :D

And special thanks to Rachel Arandilla and Luis Quibranza III for being mechanical and moral support through the cameras and all. 

I hope you liked this post and I hope you'd look forward to the next episodes of The Cooking Fashionistas. 

Don't forget to like and share the video ad subscribe to our channel. Thank you! 

The Cooking Fashionistas Vlog Series

Hey, foodies!

        If you've visited this blog earlier this month, I just started a blog series collab with my good friend, Issa Perez of issaplease.blogspot.com, called When Food and Fashion Meet. Well, that's not the only collab we're doing... 

        We're also launching a vlog series together, entitled "The Cooking Fashionistas", where I teach Issa how to cook and she teaches me some d-i-y fashion tricks. She is after all my ultimate fashion guru. :D

          So, this vlog series is both for foodies and fashionistas. If you love to cook in style or love looking as good as the food you eat, or if you love cooking or food as much as fashion, this show is for YOU! 

        Fortunately, for this project, we have our great friend, Ejay Williams, to help us out with the shoot and even offer us his beautiful home and kitchen to cook at! 

          Hope you'll like it! Please do watch for it this week. Thanks! :D

  

Pass the Plate Indeed

        Yummy Magazine's first visit to Cebu was definitely a success! It was an inspiring and educational afternoon at the Ayala Activity Center where guest chefs Katherine Jao (food stylist and contributor, Yummy) and Dianne dela Cruz (Knorr resident chef) demonstrated five easy and delicious recipes. 

       Registration was free for all and the event was packed as soon as it started. Phoebe Kay Fernandez was the host and engaged the audience in an entertaining fashion as she gave out the trivia for the raffle prizes from Knorr and Unilever.  

host: Phoebe Kay Fernandez

       Chef Dianne dela Cruz came out first and did three recipes -- Moringga-Squash Cream Soup, Binalot na Tilapia sa Pechay (Sinanglay) and, Cream Dory Fillets with Sofrito. I love that she gave food safety tips along with technique tips. And of course, all the dishes were delish! :D 

Moringga-Squash Cream Soup

Binalot na Tilapia sa Pechay (Sinanglay)

Cream Dory Fillets with Sofrito

        Chef Katherine Jao was next and she made Mexican dishes -- Mexican Tortilla Soup and Barbeque Chicken and Veggie Quesadilla. Both were awesome, too! The flavors exploded in the mouth. Loved it! 

 

Mexican Tortilla Soup

Barbeque Chicken and Veggie Quesadilla

      I certainly enjoyed that afternoon as I was refreshed of cooking basics and learned new recipes. The best part was getting to taste almost all (because we weren't given a sample of one dish) the dishes. I guess that's why the event was called "Pass the Plate". I'm sure everyone learned a thing or two from the adorable chefs as well.

        This was my first time to actually attend a cooking demo at Ayala and I made it memorable by having a photo with the pretty chefs, Chef Katherine Jao and Chef Dianne dela Cruz. I also met one of the cool Manila-based bloggers I know (online) -- Frances Ang of frannywanny.com!

This is the only photo I have of frannywanny (second from right) :(

Chef Katherine Jao, Babe for Food and, Chef Dianne dela Cruz

           I've read Yummy since I was in high school (which isn't so long ago, mind you) and I think you should too! It's a great way to learn new and easy recipes and know what's hot in the culinary world of the Philippines. It's how I got acquainted with most of the amazing local chefs and find inspiration. 

     Congratulations on your first visit, Yummy! Hope to see you again soon! :D

         Yummy Magazine is a publication of Summit Media and is available in newsstands, bookstores and supermarkets nationwide. 

        Visit their website at www.YUMMY.ph, like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter for updates. 

Quick Fix

Lookey what I found in the freezer! 

I made a batch of this spinach cream cheese dip a few months ago and kept it in the freezer portioned in ramekins. When I couldn't have anything else to eat for dinner today, I rummaged through the freezer and found this! Perfect!

I just popped it in the microwave for 2 mins. and toasted some sliced wheat baguette to pair. Voila! My quick fix. :D

This dip is really easy to make and is usually taken as appetizer or snacks. Unfortunately, I don't really write down my recipes because I usually just get right to what my head is thinking; but I'll try to get the right measurements for you. :)

Spinach Cream Cheese Dip

2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 pc white onion, chopped

250 g spinach

50 g mozarella/quickmelt

1 cup cream cheese

50 ml fresh milk

parmesan cheese, grated (your preferred amount. don't scrimp!)
salt

black pepper, freshly cracked


Directions:


1. Blanch spinach in salted boiling water for 15 seconds to retain bright green color then shock in water with ice. Squeeze out excess water and roughly chop. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in pan and saute chopped garlic and onion. Add spinach and remaining ingredients. Keep on medium heat while stirring constantly until you reach a thicker consistency or when the mixture coats the back of a spoon. 
3. Season with salt and pepper.


Tips:


* You can also add fresh mushrooms to this dip for an added texture and flavor. Just saute with garlic and onion.
* To use as a sauce, just add more milk to make a thinner consistency. Great for grilled seafood and meat. 
* You can rub a clove of fresh garlic on your sliced baguette right after toasting for a kick. :) 

Hope you guys like this! And do tell me if you tried it and what you think. Just email me at justinnego@gmail.com or comment on this post.


Have a great weekend! :D

Babe For Food

your new BFF in Cebu dining! :)