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This is the first time cocktail mixing will be featured here and it was really quite an interesting experience. The Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute (CTHI) invited NomNom Club late last year to seat in and participate in one of their lifestyle courses entitled Cocktail Mixing 101.

Cocktail Mixing 101

Popular cocktail drinks featured during the seminar were Strawberry Margarita, Frozen Pina Colada, Strawberry Mango Daiquiri Frozen, Mojito, Strawberry Mojito, and Tequila Sunrise. And as expected, we tried all of them! 🙂

Strawberry Margarita

Strawberry Margarita is a mixture of pureed strawberry, Tequila, lime juice and crushed ice served in a sexy margarita glass.

I personally love the Pina Colada Frozen. It’s a mixture of rum, pina colada mix and crushed ice served in hi-ball glass and garnish with pineapple wedge and straw.

For the Strawberry Mojito, you can use 7 mint leaves, strawberry halved and 2 lime wedges, rum, fresh sour rocks mix, pureed strawberries topped with soda.

The Tequila Sunrise is the easiest to prepare with few ingredients just the Tequila, orange juice and grenadine with orange juice and straw to garnish and serve in a hi-ball glass.

Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute

June Bug

Strawberry Mojito

Tequila Sunrise

Cocktail Surprise

Moulinex

Love vodka? Try the Melon Ball, a mixture of vodka, melon liqueur and orange juice. Serve it in a double old fashion/rock glass and garnish with orange wheel.

Melon Ball

This three hour long cocktail mixing 101 seminar was delivered by Sir Joel. It was an information-overload for me, but I learned a lot from choosing the right glass, mixing and garnishing, and knowing how to prepare popular cocktails in a professional way.

Here’s video taken during the seminar.

Special thanks to Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute.

Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute (CTHI)
2nd Floor Paragon Plaza, EDSA Cor. Reliance St. Mandaluyong City
Telephone Numbers :861-1061/ (+632) 584-7343
Website: http://www.canadiantourisminstitute.com/9/home

CTHI

The Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute (CTHI) is the first international franchise of the Canadian Tourism College (CTC) based in Vancouver, Canada. With its thirty (30) years of providing real-world quality tourism education, Food and Beverage Services is just one of the many programs being offered at CTHI.

Programs are divided into three areas- Diploma Courses, Certificate Courses and Professional Development.

Cocktail Mixing 101

Before the Cocktail Mixing 101 seminar ended, Sir Joel did us some flair bar tending exhibition. It was an interesting show as he juggled and flipped bottles and shakers with amazing skills.

A lot of people don’t realize that in the midst of the meat-eating restaurants, there are also vegetarian alternative places to go and eat. If you are a vegetarian, finding these restaurants can be difficult if you don’t know where to look.

They are around though and easy to locate. If you can look away from socializing on the internet or playing Foxy Bingo for a while, it is very easy to find vegetarian cuisine here online. If you aren’t a vegetarian, though what are the benefits of trying the food?

Sabah Vegetables (close to our 'Kangkong' but less leafy and more on trunks/stems)

Vegetarian Alternatives

The answer is simple: vegetarian food tastes better than what people expect. Whether you fancy Chinese, Italian, Indian or even Thai, there is always a tasty vegetarian option. For example, you could eat vegetable fried rice, vegetable curries, soups, potato samosas and vegetable sushi. All delicious alternatives.

Nurture Spa's Garden Salad

The choice of restaurants that serve vegetarian food in Metro Manila alone is vast. Places like Barbara’s at the Orchidarium, a Thai style restaurant that offers soups, tofu and vegetable dishes, or Green Wok Deli & Café in Quezon City which supplies all the flavor you would expect of a meat-based dish, only without the meat. Vegetarian Chinese food is also available in places like the café, Happy Veggie Health Food on Masangkay Street, Manila or Kong Tiak in Quezon City. You don’t know unless you look. 🙂

Vegetarian Menu

If you have problems with the menu in a restaurant, there are ways around the issue. Ask the chef if he can make you something vegetarian with the ingredients in the kitchen. Remember they want you to dine again so they will help if they can.

If you are dining around someone else’s house, make sure you let the host know your preference in advance. This will be less awkward if they supply a meat-only meal. Offer to buy vegetablesfor the cause or bring a dish over to share with fellow guests.

Starbucks Philippines' Roasted Vegetables on Flat Bread

Great vegetarian food is just around the corner from you, wherever you are in the country. You just need to keep an eye out.

The new Philippine tourism slogan was launched last Saturday and marked the start of DOT’s new tourism campaign. It says: “It’s More Fun in The Philippines!“

Slogan issues discussed in this article aside, the propagation of the slogan highly depended on social media and its viral nature. To be more specific, the DOT wanted to promote the Philippines online through a meme.

Wikipedia defines a meme as

1. An element of a culture or behavior that may be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, esp. imitation.
2. An image, video, etc. that is passed electronically from one Internet user to another.

It's More Fun in The Philippines

‘It’s More Fun in The Philippines‘ Food Meme

And as NomNom Club‘s contribution in this social media effort, we have joined the ‘Fun‘. I opened up food-related folders and looked for something Filipino.

First of our contribution which I released this afternoon is the ‘Banan Leaf‘ meme. This is a shot I got about early October of 2011 at Venuce Piazza in McKinley Hill, Taguig City. We were dining alfresco in one of their dining promos.

I encourage you to create your own food memes too that will fit in promoting the Philippines as a fun food destination. Feel free to post your food photos Facebook and Twitter with the hash tags #ItsMoreFunInThePhilippines #1ForFun so that it will automatically be collated. Feel free to share our post in Facebook. Check out this tutorial on How to Create Your Own It’s More Fun in the Philippines Meme.

Help out and prove that it is indeed ‘More Fun in The Philippines!’

The Food Adventure at Venice Piazza is back. It’s where you can taste the flavors of 12 restaurants for P600.

We have tried something similar to this mid of last year and another one about three months ago called Platter for 8 also in Venice Piazza where 14 participating restaurants offered big servings of dishes fit for eight people only for Php800.

This time, the Food Adventure if from 12 restaurants and only for P600! I have yet to try this one but they will start this weekend January 7 and every Saturday and Sunday following that until March 31, 2012. It is also offered only during 4pm to 9pm. Let’s see how this compares soon.

The Participating restaurants are :

• Blackwood Bistro
• The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
• Empire Deli
• Figaro
• KBOP
• KUSE
• Little Asia
• Old Vine Grille
• Pho Hoa
• Pinchos
• Red Crab Alimango House
• Ramen Bar
• Sol Gelato
• Yo Swirls

Food Adventure at Venice Piazza

It’s nice to see Figaro joined the promo this time as they were not in the list of previous promos (or maybe it’s a new branch, I don’t know). 🙂

Check out the details of the promo mechanics at Taste of Manila blog (click on link).

12 Restaurants - Php 600

So if you’re not doing anything this weekend, you might want to drop by McKinley Hill and check out the Food Adventure at Venice Piazza. Personally, I suggest you try it starting January 8 onwards, you wouldn’t want the inconsistencies of first day blues that goes with new activities. On the other hand, I’ll be at Market Market on Saturday, hopefully I can pass by. Bring your family to enjoy!

It was humid and sunny on the day I visited Mercato Centrale for the first time. I kept saying it didn’t feel like Christmas because of the weather. And so before I go on ranting about the obvious effects of global warming, I decided to just enjoy the company of new found friends. Soon enough I found myself again just marvelling on what a wonderful new day the good Lord has given me.

Flavors of Christmas

So what brings me to Mercato on a Saturday morning of November 19, 2011? Not only am I excited to visit Mercato for the first time but I also wanted to check out The Flavors of Christmas: A Grand Member’s Treat presented by San Miguel Great Food Club (Living the Good Life).

On this warm sunny day, there are four presentations prepared by San Miguel Food Club for its members. Everyone stayed on their seats anticipating what Flavors of Christmas San Miguel has prepared for us.

Danny Dela Cuesta set up an actual dining table within the demo area to show the audience how to create a festive Christmas Table

Before that, different samples of San Miguel products are available for Mercato visitors to partake. It is no joke when I said that San Miguel Great Food Club members are really anticipating the Flavors of Christmas event because I find it a challenge for anyone to stay under that heat for hours.

CHEF ED QUIMSON ensures that frehsness and quality of ingredients are preserved when using San Miguel Purefood Products

But the number of audience did not waiver. In fact, it seemed to even grow especially when Chef Ed Quimson demonstrated how to prepare a Christmas ham using Purefoods Fiesta Ham.

Flavors of Chrsitmas

So what exactly were the activities witnessed by San Miguel Great Food Club members during the Flavors of Christmas event? It started with Mr. Danny Dela Cuesta talking about “Setting the Mood: The Festive Christmas Table“.

Lori Baltazar of Desserts Comes First charms the crowd with her wit and humor while demonstrating her Chocnut Queso Recipe

It was then followed by Chef Ed Quimson’s cooking demo. The dishes he prepared were the Christmas ham, Roast Jumbo Chicken with Green Grapes and Cranberry Jelly and lastly Pork Pata with Lentils (Top Photo).

One of the distinguished food bloggers in the country, Ms. Lori Baltazar also demonstrated three yummy desserts namely Brownie in a cookie-cookie and Chocnut-queso de bola cheesecake. Lastly, Chef Dennis Edillon talked about “Planning a Menu: Serving the Right Proportion“.

Favorite Activity

Among the activities, what I enjoyed the most is the table setting lecture of Mr. Danny dela Cuesta. His Flavors of Christmas table setting tips can give any table a festive air which is timely this coming holiday season. While listening to Mr. dela Cuesta, I felt like Julia Child while taking notes on her French cooking class. There are so many new things I learned about table setting in general that I really felt the Flavors of Christmas starting to set in the air.

Lori Baltazar's CHOCNUT-QUESO DE BOLA CHEESECAKE

Lori Baltazar's BROWNIE-IN-A-COOKIE COOKIE

Wanda Chicken of Magnolia Chicken Station and Ropig of Monterey entertain the audience with their awesome dance moves

With the growing festive mood inside me, I found myself hungry. Fortunately, food was served to the media who attended the event. I ate heartily (which I only do when I am happy).

For me the important thing to bring home when attending food events such as this is to sample the products being showcased during the event – it doesn’t matter if you’re a blogger, a photographer or just a plain housewife. Maybe something that you have observed, tasted or heard can inspire you on your next home project.

And this is what I took home when I left the Flavors of Christmas event of San Miguel. I enjoyed munching on Edam cheese so much I told myself from now on I’m eating spaghetti with Edam cheese.

Chef Ed Quimson's Roast Jumbo Chicken With Grapes and Cranberry Jelly

I loved the corned beef on top of crackers that I went to the grocery the next day to buy one and reminisce the experience I had when I ate it at Mercato. And my final inspiration was to challenge myself to cook a whole herbed chicken for my family to enjoy this holiday season. Just like Julie Powell was inspired by her mentor, there were lots of inspirations one can bring home after attending the Flavors of Christmas.

Chef Ed Quimson's Christmas Ham

SMPFC's Culinary Services Manager Maricel Manalo opens the event by welcoming the attendees of The Flavors of Christmas

*Story by Ia Adam-Lim; photo from San Miguel Great Food Club

I wonder when will be the next flavour San Miguel will have its members take and I truly hope to be part of that event.

Have you been to any San Miguel Great Food Club event? Or are you interested to join one just like the Flavors of Christmas? We would love to hear from you by commenting below. Merry Christmas to all!

Weight will never be an issue for a girl as skinny as I. That is what others thought of me. But, like the majority of the crowd who attended the new Del Monte Fit ‘n Right launch last November at One Rockwell, I just don’t seem too happy with my figure. Good thing, I have met health and fashion experts to ask if what I’m feeling was normal.

🙂

As I went in the function room, Nicole warmly approached me and led me to 3 different booths: fitness, food and fashion. First, I had my weight, fat mass and body fat percentage measured. Then, I proceeded to the next booth were Rajo Laurel’s team took my figure measurement.

Science of Sexy

Sexy Chef Barni Alejandro

The last booth I went to was Sexy Chef’s. I told her that even if I ate a lot I still get my average weight. And, I’m not quite happy about it.

She told me that I must be happy because not all people can eat a lot and have their metabolism fast, like I’ve got.

“Frequent eating makes our metabolism fast.”, she added.

She actually recommended some of the food I need to include in my meals, like brown rice, which contains plenty of health benefits. She also mentioned that our age also has something to do with our metabolism. The older we get, the more our metabolism slows down. I wanted to chat with her more but lunch was ready, prepared by hers truly.

(L-R) Fit ‘n Right brand manager, Sexy Chef Barni Alejandro, Fitness Expert Raul Banzon, and Rajo Laurel

After all the tummies were filled with delectable food, the program started. The basic formula to fight fat was revealed by the experts. And the Science of Sexy Challenge was introduced.

(FAT= Calories consumed – Calories burned) / (Basic formula to fight fat)

To explain, fat accumulation is determined by the calorie content of the food you eat vs. the calories you burn through regular exercise. So, to lose weight and reduce fat mass, we need to increase physical activity to burn more fat, and/or eat fewer calories.

New Del Monmte Fit 'n Right

The recommended rate of weight loss is 1-2 pounds per week. This means working in at least 30 minutes of daily aerobic activity in our daily routine. Plus, daily rice intake by 1 cup (1/2 at lunch and another half at dinner).

Simple? Of course not without discipline, self-control and a help buddy, the discussion recommended the new and improved Del Monte Fit ‘n Right.

Fit ‘n Right now has the combination of L-Carnitine plus new GCE (Green Coffee Extract), a natural ingredient taken from unroasted green coffee beans. But don’t worry the taste was proven to be more of a fruit juice than a coffee.

The panel shared that GCE’s role is to block our body’s absorption of sugar. The less sugar our body absorbs, the less excess calories that can turn into fat. A clinical study shows that with daily consumption of GCE, there is significant reduction in fat vs. L-Carnitine alone vs. diet and exercise alone. Check out trial results below.

Trial Results

To be more realistic, 2 from the group of challengers were invited in the event.

(L-R) Hiroshi Okuda (loss -2.5% body fat) and Jana Fyfe (loss -1.2% body fat)

And to challenge the crowd, here’s the 30 days Fit ‘n Right Science of Sexy Challenge.

Fit 'n Right Science of Sexy Challenge Mechanics

Del Monte Fit 'n Right Prizes

Fit 'n Right Winners' and Runners up Prizes

For the top winner: 1 outfit by Rajo Laurel and a trip to Boracay for 2 including; roundtrip tickets and transfers, and 3 days/2 nights accommodation in Discovery Shores. And an outfit by Rajo Laurel for 3 runners-up, each.

(L-R) Group of already sexy bloggers; Earthlingorgeous, Krisified, Fashionista Commuter and ClumsyClariss dared to take the challenge and received a 1-month FREE membership at Gold’s Gym plus Fit ‘n right to follow

*Photos & Text by Clarissa Tubeo

Now after some insights on calories from the Fit ‘n Right event, I’m so excited for the results!

Giant Lady Bug

From December 1 to 4, bring your kids and family to a different kind of world as Candy Corner, in partnership with Wonka, opens the doors of an enchanted factory that harvests dreams and turns them into candies –The Wonka Imaginarium at the Atrium in Shangri La Plaza Mall.

The Wonka Imaginarium is a four-day exhibit that puts the spotlight on Wonka Candies, it allows everyone to bring their candy fantasies to life.

Wonka Imaginarium's Talking Tree

Wonka Laffy Taffy

Wonka Imaginarium's "The Magical Forest"

I got the chance to explore the Wonka Imaginarium the other day and it was a great experience. It brings back my  childhood days as I walked into the magical forest with giant bugs and talking trees.

Aside from the Magical Forest, explore the Tunnel of Lost Wishes and Forgotten Dreams; fly and fall from the sky and learn magic straight from a witch – all to find the rainbow (the dream that makes the happiest of all candies).

Wonka Imaginarium Raindow of Candies

“The Wonka Imaginarium is the first of its kind in the Philippines, and we’re happy to be doing this for the holiday season,” shares Ricky Andre, President of Candy Corner Philippines.  “More than just giving everyone a chance to get to know more about Wonka Candies, our main goal is to give people of all ages a great avenue to feed their imagination and find a different, unique activity for the whole family to share this Christmas.”

Candy Corner Philippines

Wonka Chocolate

A candy brand that uses licensed materials from Roald Dahl’s Charlie & the Chocolate Factory and its two movie adaptations, Wonka’s distinct packaging and colourful taste has propelled it to become Candy Corner’s flagship brand with best sellers such as Nerds and Pixy Stix just to name a few.

*Photo & Text by Marjorie Pineda.

The Witch

Wonka Gobstoppers

Candy Corner is the first outlet in the Philippines to combine traditional packaged and novelty sweets with the concept of having customers choose and combine their own selections of treats. Catch your candy fantasies at http://www.candycorner.ph/.

If you read this post in time, you might just be able to catch the last day of The Wonka Imaginarium.

🙂

“Potato potato Tomato tomato”. That was the tune playing in my head when I entered Restaurant 9501 found at the 14th Floor ELJ Communication Center, Eugenio Lopez St., Quezon City for the Thanksgiving Dinner hosted by the United States Potato Board (USPB) last November 14, 2011, 6:30 PM. I know I will be loading on carbs that night and somehow a scene in the movie “When Harry Met Sally” keeps popping in my head.

This would be my first time to be invited by the U.S. Potato Board through NomNomClub.com and I am curious what interesting potato dishes will be served to satisfy the guests’ cravings for this most-loved tuber.

Tomato Jam for the Potato Bread

As blessings literally poured outside (heavy rain after a very hot day) and inside (celebrating a cozy USPB Thanksgiving dinner) together with the distinguished guests of the US Potato Board, I fumbled on my seat for my camera. I wanted to capture the appetizer spread generously on our table. The most appealing to me is the abundant fresh fruits found on every table. All that is missing is a cornucopia and it would have been indeed a symbol of good harvest.

USPB Thanksgiving Dinner & US Frozen Potatoes

Attending the USPB Thanksgiving Dinner made me discover something new about myself. My love for tomatoes will reach a new level after tasting the tomato jam on a potato bread. So there is a reason for the tune in my head!  The tomato jam spread thinly on the homemade potato bread was delightful. I hope they can make potato crackers next time. That would be lovely with tea.

I was disciplined enough to just limit myself with one slice of potato bread because I know there is more potato dishes to come for the USPB Thanksgiving Dinner. Before indulging to our gluttonous desire for more USPB potatoes, we were graced with the presence of Chef Myrna Segissmundo who gave us a short introduction about her off-the-menu recipes using US Frozen Potatoes for the U.S. Potato Board Thanksgiving Dinner.

Truffled Mashed Potatoes Soup with Porcini Mushroom

All that talk of turkey, potato and gravy is making the crowd hungrier, so without further ado, the second USPB potato creation arrived shortly. By this time, short introductions were made between the guests on my table which turned out to be a great conversation by the end of the meal.

I missed the potato in the Seared Scallops with Straight Cut Potatoes, Apple Waldorf Salad Basic oil but the Truffled Mashed Potatoes soup with Porcini Mushroom Froth was delectable. You have the truffle before and after, and all potatoes in between.  I was actually tempted to ask for a second serving and just enjoy it with the homemade potato bread.

The fruits were a nice way to wash the taste of the previous dishes and prepare my palate for the next one. I’m not much of a wine-drinker but I indulged myself with a glass for the USPB Thanksgiving dinner because I know it will be compliment my dining experience while eating turkey. The wine was semi-sweet not too dry and I did enjoy it a lot with almost all of my food.

The main dish is of course a turkey dish specifically Roast U.S. Tom Turkey with bread and nut stuffling, minted orange-cranberry relish, creamed spinach, candied crinkle-cut potatoes and giblet gravy. It was not my first time to eat turkey but so far this is one of the best I’ve tried. I miss having to cut the turkey though. That is half of the fun.

Thanksgiving Dinner with Roast US Tom Turkey

So what makes Chef Myrna’s turkey dish enjoyable for me?

It was the combination of the creamy spinach, the candied potatoes, and the turkey that did the trick. The main USPB turkey dish worked for me when I eat these three elements in that specific order.

Do you remember in the movie Ratatouille when Remy described the sweetness of the grape combined with the salinity of the cheese? Well that is how the main dish played inside my mouth. Alone the mashed spinach was creamy with a slight “earthiness” (because it’s a vegetable) then comes the sweet potato which is smooth and silky to taste. The two combined gives you a hint of earth and clouds then finally the turkey follows which is different from the texture of the greens and the potato. It gives you a little bit of something to bite but it will not distract you from the interplay of these three items in your dish. I must have enjoyed that main dish because I finished it, which is rare for me.

Among the five USPB creations of Chef Myrna Segismundo, I really enjoyed the soup and the main dish. There are so many things to be thankful for that day. But what made that meal truly satisfying were the new friends I met that day and the wonderful conversations we had. The food can be great but with no one to share it with it will seem bland. However, when you are amidst friends any meal, even boiled potato, will taste the best. Now combine the two and you have a dining experience of a king.

Apple Waldorf Salad

Know more about US Frozen Potatoes and USPB programs at http://www.potatoesusa.com or call Ms. Reji Retugal-Onal at 534.8534 / 534.8223.

*Contributed by Blogger Apprentice: Ia Adam-Lim.

Happy Thanksgiving Day to all and thank you to the US Potato Board! How about you, what’s your potato story? And what are you thankful for? Please share it with us.