Just When You Thought It Couldn't be Anymore Filipino

The mamon is the Filipino version of a yellow sponge cake. I thought that the pastry alone was already a symbol of Filipino creativity and culture. But then Red Ribbon redefined the common notion of the sponge cake and turned it into an even more Filipino product. This is the Ube Mamon. It is infused with the flavor of Ube or purple yam, a traditional Filipino confection made from a type of root crop.

The sponge cake has a glossy surface because it is topped with a thin layer of the purple yam cream. The exterior has a deep purple color, which makes it more appetizing. The inside of the pastry is soft, moist and flavorful. It is like eating Ube Cake minus the cream so there is less fat. Also, the texture is firm unlike its cake counterpart, which crumbles down easily. For Php 20 per piece, the price is reasonable and the product's uniqueness is worth your money. So the next time you want to buy pastries, drop by Red Ribbon and have a purple dessert.

White Forest Cake

Presenting the White Forest Cake, the latest creation of Red Ribbon. Honestly, using white chocolate on cakes never entered my mind so this is really an innovative concept. I'm a big fan of white chocolate so this product is a must-try.

Since white chocolate has more milk and sugar than cocoa, the bitter-sweet taste is absent. This enhances the taste of the cherry jam lining the layers of fluffy chiffon cake. The cherry flavor penetrates deep inside the entire pastry. To be honest, the strong fruity taste slightly overpowers the milk chocolate. I'm not sure if milk chocolate is really weaker compared to its dark counterpart or if my taste buds are just indiscriminate to this kind of taste. It seems that the creamy characteristic milk chocolate is supposed to have is not that noticeable. I'm still impressed though, since the cake's concept is innovative and its cherry flavor achieves my standards of taste intensity. Cheers to Red Ribbon!

Band Name Fail?

I found this Australian dairy product in our local supermarket. I'm not sure what the brand managers are thinking but I definitely think the product name fails hard. If you're still clueless, click HERE to find out why.

Mongolian BBQ @ Cafe Azul

I love having the Mongolian BBQ bowl at Cafe Azul, a fine-dining restaurant in our university sports center. It has the traditional style of combining your ingredients of choice from rice and noodles to vegetables and condiments. What keeps me coming back for more is the variety of sauces. A customer can choose savory Mongolian sauce, sweet teriyaki sauce, spicy chili paste or a combination of them all. The best part is that you can get as much vegetables and spices as you like. That is, of course, as long as it fits in your bowl. The amount of squid and meat is rather controlled. 60 grams is the fixed weight for the mini bowl (see above photo) while the regular bowl has 100-grams. The choices are either beef, squid, chicken, pork or a mix.

For Php 100 per mini bowl that comes with a glass of iced tea, the price is reasonable but there are some things to remember:

1. Learn the art of compacting the ingredients into the tiny bowl. The value of your money depends on how much rich and vegetables you put in.

2. Choose more oranges than greens. For some reason the food always seems less after it has been cooked. The cabbages and onion springs tend to shrink and disintegrate when heated while the other s don't. So instead of getting a mountain of cabbage shreds, it is better go choose more tomatoes and carrots to minimize food loss.

3. A scoop of teriyaki sauce goes a long way. Unless you want a real sweet taste, go easy on this sauce. It easily overpowers the other flavors.

There you have it. I highly recommend trying the Mongolian BBQ bowl at Cafe Azul. Although it may be tricky in getting the perfect mix of ingredients right the first time, this dining experience is worth your time and money.

Going Large

Ever since the shift of consumer preference to healthier lifestyles, manufacturers have been boosting the volume of their products to satisfy the market's demand. Take these two beverages for example: Del Monte has recently launched a 1-Liter Fit'n Right juice drink in their product line. On the other hand, URC felt that their 1-Liter C2 Tea Drink wasn't enough to satisfy their customers so they launched a gigantic 1.5 -Liter variety. It was the biggest bottled ready-to-drink tea I've ever seen.

So, what are the implications of such quantity upgrades? First, it obviously means that the demand in consumption for such healthy products is so high that manufacturers can afford to create large-scale version of their goods. In theory, the number of heavy consumers makes it viable for companies to increase their product's volume per package and lower the costs. Second, the bigger quantities can also mean that the products have gone beyond personal consumption and spilled over into groups. The sense of a healthier lifestyle is now an ideal that is shared by people within communities and families. A bigger bottle of juice or tea shows more than just the magnitude of consumption. It exhibits the kind of lifestyle people want to share with each other and achieve together.

Fish Fail

I found this fish at the seafood section of the supermarket in our neighborhood. This type of fish is often caught with another smaller fish in its mouth. Kind of cannibalistic and messed up if you ask me... Now, does this picture look familiar?

It should

[Photo Source]

Coffee Desserts: Black Forest

Here is another food twist from URC: Great Taste Coffee Desserts Black Forest Flavor. I was excited when the product was first released around November of 2008. In fact, I was even invited in a sponsored event to give a taste test and feedback. The unique selling proposition was promising since it was the first coffee to have a new kind of flavor. Coffee is usually mixed with vanilla, mocha or hazelnut extracts but this one is infused with the essence of cake! What made the product more exciting is that black forest is my favorite dessert. The sweetness of chocolate and cream complements the fruity taste of cherry jelly to dazzle the taste buds.

But is the product holding up to its promise? Unfortunately, the faint black forest flavor is only noticeable in the aftertaste. A single 20-gram sachet may be insufficient to give intense taste when diluted in a regular mug. Either one uses 2 sachets of coffee or dissolves 1 sachet in less water in order to enhance and bring out the product's true flavor. Great Taste Coffee Desserts is a great alternative to the classic instant coffee . It offers affordable flavored coffee at around Php 5.00 per sachet. However, if it is flavor that you are searching for, it's best to stick to expensive, restaurant-grade coffee.

Not Exactly Food...

[Photo Source]

Yeah, I know. It's not exactly about food but it's just so damn funny. Food doesn't get any more fresh than this.

What Great Syrups Are Made Of

No reviews about chocolate drinks for today. I want to share something I saw at the supermarket. It's a box of red, luscious raspberries. That fruit is normally grown in countries with cold climates so obviously it is nowhere to be found in this tropical country. As an imported good, it carries a hefty price tag and it can be bought in A-market areas. I found this in a grocery in Makati City.

I love raspberry in its processed form like syrups, candies and fruit ice cream. The mildly sweet taste of this produce makes it a great additive or flavoring. The fruity essence of raspberry syrup complements the bitterness of drinks such as coffee and black tea. As for its raw fruit form I still have yet to try it, though. I bet it will pack a strong citrus taste, which is absent in its processed form.

I'm not entirely sure about the existence of raspberries grown in the Philippines. In Baguio, I saw a boxes of blueberries but they are only sold in small quantities. Probably the farmers there are in the verge of perfecting the cultivation of berries. Hopefully there will be locally-grown raspberries in the future instead of just strawberries. And speaking of strawberries, check out this box of fat suckers I found in the same grocery.

Nestle Premium (and a Glimps of My Fridge)

Welcome to... my fridge. As you can see I tend to try out a lot of beverages in the market from coffees to vodkas (see background). But for now, I'll be reviewing Nestle's Chocolate Pleasure. For starters, it is a commercial-grade chocolate drink, meaning it is readily available in supermarkets. This type of ready-to-drink beverage is trickier to keep around the house compared to its dehydrated, powder counterparts. It needs constant refrigeration and has a shorter shelf life so watch out for those expiration dates.

As for the taste, it has a very creamy texture. The drink is composed of more milk than chocolate. But I guess that is no mystery. After all, the product's name is Nestle Premium Dairy. It has a moderately sweet chocolate aroma. The kind of scent reminiscent of Magnolia's Chocolait. The aftertaste of the drink is similar to that of milk, instead of the usual bitter-sweet essence. However, after consuming an entire serving, it leaves my lips and throat quite dry. I have no idea what causes that effect and I'm not sure if it only happens to me. It could be the rich dairy ingredient but I cannot be certain.

Signature Chocolate - Starbucks

As you may have already noticed, I've been blogging a lot about chocolate drinks. I'm actually in search of the ideal cocoa beverage. One that has real chocolate taste yet at the same time has the perfect balance of creaminess and sweetness. Now, the Signature Chocolate of Starbucks is under the spotlight.

The first noticeable characteristic was its strong bitter-sweet cocoa taste. I strongly believe that the beverage was not tainted with sugar or any dairy products. Sure, it has whipped cream on top but it did not compromise the original flavor. The chocolate was so pure that I felt like I was drinking a water-diluted Hershey Cocoa Powder Mix, the type used for baking. I'll give Starbucks major credit for the authentic cocoa taste but the lack of milk and creamer leaves the texture of the beverage thin. The richness of its overall flavor did not meet my expectations. As for the price, the product gives you more value for your money. At Php 115 for a tall cup, it certainly beats the small-sized drink of Cafe Xocolat, which also has the same price.

September has passed...

The month in which I promised to blog about food items has come to an end. But I've enjoyed creating reviews so much that I have decided to continue this hobby. So from now on, expect more food reviews on Random Talk. It will be the main theme of by blog but don't worry. I will still post rants and raves of whatever I find under the sun from time to time.