Akala ko nung una hindi masyado mahalaga ang kasal sa simbahan. Kasal din naman ang huwes kasi eh.Pero nitong nakalilipas, naisip ko na sana naranasan ko rin. Yung maging abala ..namimili ng susuoting damit pangkasal, mga abay, anung handa, saan ang handaan at lahat ng kagulohan.
Gusto ko rin pala lumakad sa mahabang pasilyo na may dalang bulaklak habang naghihintay sa dulo yung mahal mo.
Lalakad din marahil ako ng may bulaklak...sana nga lang ay humihinga pa ako pag mangyari yun. Hahaha
Monday, May 20, 2013
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Baking Cinnamon Rolls
Baking is a daunting task to some, including myself. I had my shares of pains too. But like what they said, "no pain, no gain". Baking takes a lot of practice.
I made my first cinnamon roll using a ready mix dough (you know those " add 1 cup water and 2 eggs then bake for 20 minutes" box?). It was hard as a rock, even a miracle won't turn it into bread.
The key to baking is to measure all the ingredients before heading to the mixing part. Line them up in your work table; this will eliminate panic and forgetting essential ingredients.
I am using a food processor with a dough blade. If you've decided to halve the mixture, you may use your hand mixer but make sure to use the dough hooks.
For the dough: (makes 24 swirls)
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (115g), preferably unsalted
1 cup water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (10g)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
6 cups all purpose flour
Cinnamon mixture:
2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 cups dark brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
Directions:
1. Warm the milk in a saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat.
I made my first cinnamon roll using a ready mix dough (you know those " add 1 cup water and 2 eggs then bake for 20 minutes" box?). It was hard as a rock, even a miracle won't turn it into bread.
The key to baking is to measure all the ingredients before heading to the mixing part. Line them up in your work table; this will eliminate panic and forgetting essential ingredients.
I am using a food processor with a dough blade. If you've decided to halve the mixture, you may use your hand mixer but make sure to use the dough hooks.
For the dough: (makes 24 swirls)
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (115g), preferably unsalted
1 cup water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (10g)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
6 cups all purpose flour
Cinnamon mixture:
2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 cups dark brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
Directions:
1. Warm the milk in a saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat.
2. Then add 1/2 cup butter to melt.
3. Melt the butter.
4. Add a cup of water and let the mixture to cool until lukewarm. Be patient.
5. Prepare the other ingredients.
5. Combine the milk mixture, yeast, white sugar, salt, eggs and 2 cups of flour in your mixing bowl. Mix well to combine.
6. Add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well each time. Well, you can add 1 cup at a time, the mixer won't mind I suppose.
7. The dough will pull together, as shown. A bit sticky but not wet.
8. Now transfer your dough into a floured surface.
9. Knead the dough mixture. Stretch the dough and press using the heel of your palm as shown below. Kneading gives your final product that elastic and " springy bite"...and some loving touch, so it will taste yummy.
10. Divide the dough and set the other half aside. (You may place this half in a container, let rise for an hour before storing in the fridge for future baking). A half could make 12 pieces of swirls.
11. Roll the dough into 12x9 inch rectangle.
12. In a bowl, mix 2-3 teaspoons of ground cinnamon with 2 cups of dark brown sugar. ( 1 tsp cinnamon to 1 cup dark brown sugar if you are baking only half of the mixture). You can be generous, add more sugar or more of cinnamon. Suit to your taste.
13. Now spread butter generously (about 1/4 cup for each rectangle).
14. Spread the cinnamon mixture.
15. Roll the dough. Just use small amount of water to seal the edges.
16. Cut the dough with a very sharp knife (if not, it will stick to the knife). Or use a CLEAN dental floss. Cut a 10 inch floss, wrap around the dough to cut through. It won't stick to the floss.
17. Cover and seal with cling-wrap. Let the dough rise double its original size. Usually it takes 1 hour for the yeast to work. I make mine 2 hours. (see below how the dough have risen).
18. Meanwhile, preheat your oven for 10 minutes at 375F or 190C oven, or 175C if you are using fan-forced oven. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
19. For the oozy frosting: mix 1 tablespoon of butter to1 cup of confectioners (or icing) sugar and 85 g of cream cheese. Slowly, add 3 tablespoons of milk. Mix until frosting reaches spreading consistency. Add few drops of vanilla essence. Spread over warm cinnamon swirls.
Then make yourself a coffee. Indulge..
Monday, October 17, 2011
Childhood Summer- Part 1
Spending summer nowadays maybe different from how some of us have spent in the early 70s or 80s. Television was just for the privileged; local air travels were expensive, and sea travels would take days to and from.
Growing up in the Philippines, my encounters with nature were few but lingered on with me. During summer (usually from March to May, and school is out), I've spent my days with my grandparents just barely 6 kilometres of the eastern part of the city. It is not that far yet we call it the "farm" or "bukid". To us, anything outside the city is a farm.
We will spend the whole day either helping minor household chores such as sweeping the yard, cleaning the house, or washing dishes. I was a sickly child and washing the dishes was often assigned to me since it was not considered a task too exhausting. Usually with my youngest uncle Arvin, we washed the dishes at a nearby common pumping well. It was a meeting place for everybody who needs water; we washed our dishes, some did their laundry, and others cover themselves with a "malong" or big traditional tube skirt made of cotton, just stationed themselves few metres away to bathe.
We shared simple food cooked by our grandmother. We clean ourselves before heading to bed, of course, we call it "papag". For the little ones like me, we settle on the bamboo floor lined with fresh linens and a soft pillow, underneath a mosquito net. Settling down to sleep, we listened to our grandparent's favorite radio night drama (or opera on air). Until we doze off to a peaceful sleep. It was simple life.
In the mornings, we wake up just before the sun will burst its light. Sounds of crickets and chirping birds will greet us. On some days, my cousins and other siblings would tag along with our uncles and head out to the "forest" to gather branches, twigs, fallen palm leaves, some "uyo" and coconut husks as cooking fuel. It was expensive to use bottled gas back then.
My grandparent home has a small running creek behind it. It was clear and shallow. During humid and warm days, we will just sit in there and cool ourselves with the flowing water. Stacking stones to a level, swinging on tree branches; it was a big event.
Itay and Inay had a small pigpen at the backyard, with 2-3 growing pigs. At times, the mother pig or inahen would give birth to 6-7 suckling pigs. During mother pig's birthing, we were all awake watching the arrival of each cute piglets. Itay had fighting cocks and some laying chickens too. There was a pet dog named Fields (after a popular PBA import Andrew Fields).
My favorite was the 10 feet tall "Kamias" tree (or Camias ginger lilly). The fruit stood proud with all its greenish fruits usually 2-3 inches long. On days, I would chomp on this sour fruits filled with oxalic acid. I just fancy it dipped in salt! My Inay would gather the fruits and cooked heavily in sugar as kamias candies.
During the summer vacations, adults and teenagers would gather a league of basketball players and play in a makeshift basketball court at the heart of the forest. Goals were nailed on coconut trunks, the soil was painted with white to resemble a court, and scores were written down the earth. Later on, they got a blackboard as a scoreboard.
My grandma had her own table of refreshment. She sold a drink consisting of gulaman cubles and/or sago (tapioca pearls) suspended either in milk, fruit juice or brown-sugar water flavored with pandan leaves. A tray lined with "turon", or Banana Lumpia, which is deep-friend crispy thinly-sliced bananas and jackfruit strips, cooked and dusted with brown sugar, rolled in spring roll wrapper. Sometimes, a mini-stove was set to cook Banana Que, which is deep-fried Cardaba (saba) banana, coated with caramelised brown sugar in bamboo skewer. Another version , grilled banana in bamboo skewer was a popular choice.
Everyone has his or her own favorite team to cheer on. The crowd was electrifying with energy. Teams beating teams after teams until the best was hailed at the Basketball summer league champion. Everyone was ecstatic. At the end of the day, whether you're rejoicing with the winning team or licking the wounds of losing, we all gather and clean the area before we leave. Then it will start again next summer.
Growing up in the Philippines, my encounters with nature were few but lingered on with me. During summer (usually from March to May, and school is out), I've spent my days with my grandparents just barely 6 kilometres of the eastern part of the city. It is not that far yet we call it the "farm" or "bukid". To us, anything outside the city is a farm.
We will spend the whole day either helping minor household chores such as sweeping the yard, cleaning the house, or washing dishes. I was a sickly child and washing the dishes was often assigned to me since it was not considered a task too exhausting. Usually with my youngest uncle Arvin, we washed the dishes at a nearby common pumping well. It was a meeting place for everybody who needs water; we washed our dishes, some did their laundry, and others cover themselves with a "malong" or big traditional tube skirt made of cotton, just stationed themselves few metres away to bathe.
We shared simple food cooked by our grandmother. We clean ourselves before heading to bed, of course, we call it "papag". For the little ones like me, we settle on the bamboo floor lined with fresh linens and a soft pillow, underneath a mosquito net. Settling down to sleep, we listened to our grandparent's favorite radio night drama (or opera on air). Until we doze off to a peaceful sleep. It was simple life.
In the mornings, we wake up just before the sun will burst its light. Sounds of crickets and chirping birds will greet us. On some days, my cousins and other siblings would tag along with our uncles and head out to the "forest" to gather branches, twigs, fallen palm leaves, some "uyo" and coconut husks as cooking fuel. It was expensive to use bottled gas back then.
My grandparent home has a small running creek behind it. It was clear and shallow. During humid and warm days, we will just sit in there and cool ourselves with the flowing water. Stacking stones to a level, swinging on tree branches; it was a big event.
Itay and Inay had a small pigpen at the backyard, with 2-3 growing pigs. At times, the mother pig or inahen would give birth to 6-7 suckling pigs. During mother pig's birthing, we were all awake watching the arrival of each cute piglets. Itay had fighting cocks and some laying chickens too. There was a pet dog named Fields (after a popular PBA import Andrew Fields).
My favorite was the 10 feet tall "Kamias" tree (or Camias ginger lilly). The fruit stood proud with all its greenish fruits usually 2-3 inches long. On days, I would chomp on this sour fruits filled with oxalic acid. I just fancy it dipped in salt! My Inay would gather the fruits and cooked heavily in sugar as kamias candies.
During the summer vacations, adults and teenagers would gather a league of basketball players and play in a makeshift basketball court at the heart of the forest. Goals were nailed on coconut trunks, the soil was painted with white to resemble a court, and scores were written down the earth. Later on, they got a blackboard as a scoreboard.
My grandma had her own table of refreshment. She sold a drink consisting of gulaman cubles and/or sago (tapioca pearls) suspended either in milk, fruit juice or brown-sugar water flavored with pandan leaves. A tray lined with "turon", or Banana Lumpia, which is deep-friend crispy thinly-sliced bananas and jackfruit strips, cooked and dusted with brown sugar, rolled in spring roll wrapper. Sometimes, a mini-stove was set to cook Banana Que, which is deep-fried Cardaba (saba) banana, coated with caramelised brown sugar in bamboo skewer. Another version , grilled banana in bamboo skewer was a popular choice.
Everyone has his or her own favorite team to cheer on. The crowd was electrifying with energy. Teams beating teams after teams until the best was hailed at the Basketball summer league champion. Everyone was ecstatic. At the end of the day, whether you're rejoicing with the winning team or licking the wounds of losing, we all gather and clean the area before we leave. Then it will start again next summer.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Illusions
I read this quote: " The problem with guys is that they pretend they love you even when they don't." Hmm, sounds sour.
Then it was followed by, "The problem with girls is they pretend they don't care even when they do." Well, the latter is, of course, self-punishing.
The problem with both gender? They assume too much.
Guys don't pretend they love you, they won't. If they do love you, they will tell you , "I love you". Otherwise, they are just really enjoying your "friendship" or your company. The girl just "assume" that he hangs around simply he is having difficulty admitting his feelings. Uh-uh..not the case. Guys could always muster "courage" to say the three-magical words, if they do feel it. So girls, if he is not "verbalising", do not assume and fall into the trap of "Ok, I'll-wait- and-give-him-the-chance-to-say-it.." until..forever?!. Alright, give him some time but not a lifetime.
On the other side of caring, pretending not to care even if you do, is all set for martyrdom. Can you believe a lying self? Can someone lie to oneself? Wasting valuable feeling is waste of time and energy. It should be reciprocated, if not, then learn how to un-learn the feeling. Focus on another hobby, focus on goals, focus on other matter that will generate something beneficial rather than sulking for something that not is existing.
Alright, somehow, we've passed through this "puppy" stage of make-believe; but there is life and reality to wake up with. Do a favor, do not be a big joke to yourself.
Then it was followed by, "The problem with girls is they pretend they don't care even when they do." Well, the latter is, of course, self-punishing.
The problem with both gender? They assume too much.
Guys don't pretend they love you, they won't. If they do love you, they will tell you , "I love you". Otherwise, they are just really enjoying your "friendship" or your company. The girl just "assume" that he hangs around simply he is having difficulty admitting his feelings. Uh-uh..not the case. Guys could always muster "courage" to say the three-magical words, if they do feel it. So girls, if he is not "verbalising", do not assume and fall into the trap of "Ok, I'll-wait- and-give-him-the-chance-to-say-it.." until..forever?!. Alright, give him some time but not a lifetime.
On the other side of caring, pretending not to care even if you do, is all set for martyrdom. Can you believe a lying self? Can someone lie to oneself? Wasting valuable feeling is waste of time and energy. It should be reciprocated, if not, then learn how to un-learn the feeling. Focus on another hobby, focus on goals, focus on other matter that will generate something beneficial rather than sulking for something that not is existing.
Alright, somehow, we've passed through this "puppy" stage of make-believe; but there is life and reality to wake up with. Do a favor, do not be a big joke to yourself.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Life is a Caterpillar Ride
Royal Perth Agricultural Show
Life is a like a caterpillar ride. It has its ups and downs and a lot of bumps. However, without it, the ride will never be fun. You can never call it life.
Everyone is born with a purpose; one should take time to realise and fulfill his "message" in this short life. As the saying goes, we will never pass this way again, to fulfill our purpose.
Life is a like a caterpillar ride. It has its ups and downs and a lot of bumps. However, without it, the ride will never be fun. You can never call it life.
Everyone is born with a purpose; one should take time to realise and fulfill his "message" in this short life. As the saying goes, we will never pass this way again, to fulfill our purpose.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Pursuing Happiness
We thought of relaxing...that will be good. My husband and I took our respective lazy boy, and played this DVD.
Wow! The story line amazingly grabbed us the minute the film started. Chris Gardner's story was so gripping, it will pierce your soul. Denzel played the character so well. Aftet the film, I was in tears...I can't believe what this man has gone through without losing his nuts. He got no money, has no real job, lost his partner, lost his home and has to fight every afternoon to have a space at the shelter. Yet he should be tough enough for his boy. He took a training program without a cent-wage nor a promise of a real job. To get the job, he got to beat the other aspirants.
He is tough cookie, overcoming all the turmoils. My story telling won't do justice on the lessons you'll learn when you read (watch) the story yourself.
Can you pursue happiness? Why is it elusive? Can you say you're content and also happy, do they really go together? If you are content and therefore happy, is there anything else to pursue? Once you feel discontent, you start searching for something to make you feel happy again. So is happiness a real thing, or just a positive feeling? Search within.
Go ahead, be inspired.
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