Homemade Espresso Chocolate Shortbread Cookies!

Every now and then, I get this mood to bake. And when that happens, I jump for recipe ideas and head to the kitchen. This time around I was in the mood to bake cookies. The only problem was that we just arrived from a month long trip, so our fridge and pantry were limited.. as in, we had no eggs.

So after some research, I decided to try out this Espresso Chocolate Shortbread Cookie recipe. And like with all cooking and baking I do, I adjusted the recipe with my own twists.
- Inside of instant espresso powder, I used a strong shot of espresso which would lighten the color of the cookies but still have that coffee taste.
- For the bittersweet chocolate chips, I chopped up Jacques Torres 60% Chocolate Chips.
- Instead of all chocolate chips, I also added a handful of Scharfen Berger Cacao Nibs. I love using these when I bake. It's the texture of a roasted nut with the bitterness of a dark chocolate.

And after cooling on the rack.. It was awesome! A successful recipe and baking experiment. A recipe to keep in my archives. This shortbread cookie is crumbly, buttery, chocolatey and full of coffee. So yum!

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.

A Spontaneous Dinner at Home

Even though we go to the grocery at least once a week for proteins and produce, we don't plan out what we'll have for dinner every night of the week. Dinner is made depending on cravings, whether it's for seafood, meats, etc. And whether it's the mood to stay in or go out.

For this particularly night, we opened the refrigerator and had a choice between fish soup or rack of lamb. It's been too long since I've had a good cut of lamb. With risotto in the pantry, we had our dinner set!

Roasted rack of lamb, saffron risotto with lima beans, and sauteed mustard greens. Pretty great for a spontaneous menu for dinner at home.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.

Early Morning Breakfast

One thing I can expect after every cross-Pacific flight...jetlag. This time around my jetlag had me in bed before 10pm and up by 5 or 6am (which may seem normal for some people, but I prefer sleeping a bit later and waking up an hour or two later as well). And each time I woke up, I was so ready for breakfast.

After an early 7am mass (which was the first time I was so awake and alert for a mass that early), my parents and I enjoyed a Sunday morning breakfast. Usually, our Sunday routine is brunch past 1pm. Going out to breakfast this early was actually quite enjoyable. There's no traffic, the crowds aren't hitting the malls yet, and the early morning breeze is still refreshing.

We had our first meal of the day at the only place that seemed to be open before 9am at Greenbelt mall, Museum Cafe. We opted for the a la carte menu and not their Sunday buffet selections. It was pretty enjoyable, although the service was a bit lacking.

Place your cursor above "Notes" to read more about the pictures.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.

Comparing Plane Food

When I was living and traveling in the U.S., I grew used to traveling on the domestic airlines. Passengers go in and out of planes as though they are buses. Meal service is simply complimentary juices or sodas, and maybe even a snack on Business or First Class.

Then last year I moved to Asia and began to enjoy the Asian hospitality in the air. Even for flights that are less than two hours, there is an actual meal service, whether you're in Economy, Business, or First Class. It may just be a sandwich and a drink, but it's far better than just a drink. It's amazing because these planes carry more passengers than the flights in the U.S.

On my last trip, I took a couple camera pictures of the extreme range of meal service. The first is on a flight from Connecticut to Nevada. A 6 hour flight on Southwest Airlines.

The second is on a flight from Hong Kong to Manila. A less than 2 hour flight on Cathay Pacific.

These two pictures are on opposite ends of the spectrum. On SW, there are no seat assignments, and there is no class division. On CX, we flew First Class and enjoyed the plating and variety of choices.

Place your cursor above "Notes" to read more about the pictures.

This slide show here runs on Flash. If you cant' see it,check out my Flickr album.

Steak Dinner

What can follow up a lobster dinner? And what's a great meal to cook at home before another long flight back to Manila?

Steak!

Place your cursor on "Notes" as a couple of the pictures have captions.

The slide show here runs on Flash. If you can't see it, check out my Flickr album.