Tag Archives: pick-me-up food

Incessant Cravings

Without the rain, Ilocos can become oppressively hot and humid. For three days straight, I’ve been having godawful cravings for, of all things, Dippin’ Dots bubble gum ice cream, Happy Lemon rock salt and cheese green tea and Pinkberry green tea yogurt, which are not in Ilocos just yet (ah, dreamin’)! Hahah, there’s no possible way to fake a nitro-frozen dessert, I don’t know with the salty, cheesy tea, I bet this an original recipe and I am almost tempted to make my own version, maybe with Pasuquin salt and some melted cheese. Well, I heard  LA’s  phenomenal Pinkberry is opening in Greenbelt soon, or has it opened (with the same Philippe Starck chairs and  Le Klint lamps, I hope)? I wonder if they are bringing in the berries as well?

Image credit: Happy lemon on Facebook

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The Colors of Easter at Cupcakes by Sonja

Cupcakes by Sonja are not your ordinary cupcakes. I’d like to call them couture cupcakes, inspired by New York’s famous Magnolia Bakery, where the owner, Ms. Sonja Ocampo, apprenticed before opening her own shop in ritzy Serendra at the Fort Bonifacio Global City. The Magnolia Bakery cupcake fever was made famous by Carrie and Miranda’s cupcake eating scene in SATC. Hyped as well as pecked at, the pretty expensive little cakes  by Sonja  are still being chased by sugar junkies since after they were introduced in the Philippines four years ago — proof of the icing on the cake.

I have a thing about cupcakes. Part of my collection are printed cupcake liners even if I don’t bake. In fact, I made a huge 3-layer cupcake stand to hold store-bought cupcakes for Alexa’s rubber ducky-themed baptismal party when cakes in Laoag were still synonymous with marshmallow frosting. The visit to Sonja’s was wonderful bliss, a feast for the senses! Names such as Lemon Drop, Peppermint Patty, Southern Pecan Cupcake Pie, Pistachio Berries N’ Cream, Crème Brûlée Cupcake Tart, Valrhona Chocolate something, etc., were symphony to the ears. It felt like forever spring inside.

The festive colors of Easter are all over the place.

I asked  Ms. Sonja’s assistant: If I were to buy one, what would you suggest?

“The Red Velvet Vixen.”

If she mentioned something else, I would have still bought the red cupcake — it stood out among the rest.

And if I purchased a 70-peso cupcake, I might as well share a donation to charity. That’s cream cheese icing on the cupcake!

A Happy Easter All!

Photographed by Blauearth Copyright © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved

Dreamy Creamy Cheesecake at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf

Okay, I needed more calories to be able to last ’til dinner, so we dropped by The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf for chai latte and some cake.

In LA, where the coffee place originated, it is called simply The Bean.

It’s been away for a while, so I chose White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake over Guiltless Chocolate Delight. The best cake in years! It had a thin crunchy crust with rich filling, yet not as heavy and cloying as other cheesecakes. If I had to describe it in one word, I would say “orgasmic!”

Photographed by Blauearth Copyright © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved