Wednesday, April 4, 2018

When Thai Milk Tea meets Bingsu or Shaved Ice at Fucheer it's dessert heaven

Another dessert perfect for Thai Milk tea lovers is this Shaved Ice Thai Milk Tea concoction of Fucheer.



One serving is good enough to share for three-four people.

The secret is waiting for the shaved ice to melt and soak up the bread
cubes on the side, for a yummy melt in your mouth dessert.

Just like that.

The three of us couldn't even finish it.

It was really, really good though. just saying.


Fucheer Lounge
6th Floor The EmQuartier
693 695 Sukhumvit Road แขวงคลองตันเหนือ เขตวัฒนา 
Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10110, Thailand

Sunday, April 1, 2018

Audrey's for the Best Flower Pot Cakes with Buttercream Icing in Bangkok

The best dessert ever if you love Buttercream Icing, and moist cake are the Flower Pot Cakes from Audrey's. We stumbled upon them as we were walking around the emQuartier Mall looking for dessert, and I'm so happy we discovered them.


If you love Thai Milk Tea, you absolutely need to try the Orange Rose Cake, which has Thai Milk Tea filling and Buttercream Icing.




It was so good, I went back and brought a friend to try it. Though some of the cakes were on 50% off, so we limited our choices to that. Hahaha.
Yellow Rose (Peanut Butter Filling in Banana Cake)
and Strawberry Shortcake.



Both were good, but I still liked the Thai Milk Tea one better. It's really quite a steal at Baht 125 for 2! They sometimes bill you service charge when you eat in, but sometimes they don't. I don't really get that.

I loved it so much, I went back again with another set of friends, and this time we got take away, because the food a L'Appart (Sofitel Rooftop) is good, but their dessert sucks.

Yes, you can get it to go. It comes in this nice box too.

Now I'm torn between wanting to try more flavors, or sticking to my favorite Thai Milk tea. I guess I'll just have to see what's on 50% off next time. sucker for a sale forever. just saying.


Audrey Cafe and Bistro
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Siam Center ชั้น 4 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา EmQuartier ชั้น 8 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Central Embassy ชั้น 5 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Central Ladprao ชั้น 4 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Esplanade Ratchada ชั้น G 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Zpell @ Future Park Rangsit ชั้น 2 
-Audrey Cafe สาขา Central Plaza Westgate ชั้น 2 
-Audrey Kiosk สาขา CentralPlaza Bangna ชั้น G
-Audrey Kiosk สาขา CentralPlaza Changwattana ชั้น G
-Audrey Kiosk สาขา The Mall Bangkapi ชั้น G
https://www.facebook.com/Audrey.Cafe.Bistro/

Monday, March 26, 2018

My NutriBullet Go-To Recipe where I lost more than 20 pounds!

Around this time last year, I went for my Annual Physical Exam required at work. To my horror and great surprise, I was at least 10KG heavier!!! Que horror!!! No wonder all my clothes were tight, and I thought they were just shrinking in the wash.

Me with an extra 10KG +.

I decided I needed a drastic lifestyle change, in a way that was acceptable to me, so it would be sustainable, and I won't bounce back to my unhealthy habits. I decided to give the NutriBullet diet another chance.

The idea behind the NutriBullet is to replace one meal a day with a green smoothie. It's a powerful blender that can convert raw veggies, fruits, and nuts in a filling smoothie good for a single serving. All you need to do is fill the cup, and put liquid (water, almond milk, yogurt, juice, etc) until the max line, and voila, you're all set.

My first attempt to smoothie 3 or 4 years ago

The last time I tried to do the NutriBullet Smoothie, I experimented a lot, and most often than not, my smoothie tasted as bad as it looked. I think I managed to do it all of 3 or 4 days, then I felt sick, I decided it was the smoothie that was making me sick, then I quit.

This time around I was much smarter. I stuck with MILD TASTING VEGGIES, and Strong Sweet Tasting fruit, to find a combination that actually tasted good. It's so good I have been taking it daily for a year now, except for when I'm travelling.

Coley's NutriBullet Smoothie Recipe

Handful of Spinach (use less when you start, and add more as you get used to the taste)
2 Cauliflower Florets (this helps thicken the shake and make it more filling, you can skip this and just add 1 Tablespoon Chia seeds instead)
1 Banana
Half Apple
Half Pear
5 Strawberries
Then I fill the cup with cucumber slices until full
*Water till the max line (to save on calories)

Note that recipes calls for fruit available the whole year.
When Mangoes and Pineapples are in season, you can substitute the apples and pears.

Tip: Papaya, Watermelon and Avocado don't do much to add positive flavor for your smoothie, so just eat them separately.

Another Tip: If you freeze your ingredients before making your smoothie, it will come out creamier.


At first I wondered if I would ever get sick of drinking my smoothie everyday, but I told myself it's just like coffee. So now, I even miss it when I travel.

I have lost more than 10kg in around 5 months but the good thing is I have embraced a lifestyle that has allowed me to keep it off.

I normally take a late low calorie breakfast (why eat if you're not yet hungry) ie baked egg cups and hummus, or sweet potato toast, etc. and half my smoothie for a late lunch and the other half for dinner. Since the smoothie fills me up, I no longer have any space for rice, so I normally eat a lot of veggies as part of my meal with some protein.


The result is I am back to my Singapore weight and I am within a few pounds of my University/ just joined Unilever weight.
This is me in Sri Lanka Oct 2017.

This is me in La Union January 2018, and that Bikini Bottom is a Roxy S!!!
Achieve!!! just saying.

Sunday, March 25, 2018

Culture Crêpes

Our favorite Crêpes place in Paris is Breizh Cafe, but it's such a hassle to go because reservations are required, and they do not entertain walk-ins. You can read my post on Breizh here. One trick I've used before, which only worked once, was to go to their deli next door, which has the same menu, but given that Culture Crêpes is a fraction of the price for just marginally less quality, I think this cozy place in Saint Michel is my new favorite.




This is Jem after 20 hours of sleep.
She finally looks like a person after travelling sick for over
a week.

I was craving for an omelette so I ordered a ham and cheese one, but I shared
Ady's galette and Jem's buerre et sucre (butter and sugar) crepe.

Yummy!!!

The place is small and cozy.
Though the sign says they have tables for a party of 1-10.

We didn't make a reservation, but you may want to. I think next time I will. just saying.


Culture Crêpes
26 Rue Saint-André des Arts, 
75006 Paris, France

Sunday, February 25, 2018

My Vegetarian Birthday Bash at Lucy in the Sky Cafe and Welcome to Pumbaa Nicole

I've been 39 for a week and honestly, it feels fabulous... Hahaha, in preparation for my Fabulous at Forty milestone!

Given the 2.18.18 date, my best friend Jem insisted that I absolutely MUST HAVE a party, which we used to do every year, and haven't done much AS (after Sofia). If you know me from many years ago, you will remember that our parties always have a theme, so this year, I decided to get everyone to celebrate with me... The Vegetarian Way! 

Yes! I seriously told people to snack before. Hahaha.

We checked out Lucy in the Sky Cafe a few weeks before the party. I loved the cozy ambiance, the food that was yummy... in a way that is not forced. (I totally hate vegetarian restaurants that serve tofu in every dish pretending to be something else).


My sister in law checked out the place with me (and Pumbaa was still in her
tummy).
I also dragged Sam and convinced her to work from here one day.

We ordered the dishes they recommended and surprisingly, 2 our of 3 were really good. Good enough for me to decide to have my birthday party here.

 
The Shiitake Tempura was great!!!

The Vegetarian BBQ was yummy too. If you didn't know it wasn't pork,
you may get fooled for a bit as the look and texture is quite similar.

They recommended the sisig, but this one I wouldn't
recommend. Very far from the original.
They had Vegan Chocolate Cake

They gave us a small one to try (for free) and we absolutely loved it,
so we ordered one for the party.

Lucy in the Sky Cafe is actually an offshoot of the Art Studio where they have art workshops for kids. They are closed on weekends, but for important events like my party, they agree to open for a guaranteed minimum consumable amount. I pre-ordered some best sellers, but I also wanted to give my guests the freedom to order anything they wanted off the menu.

Birthday Salubong
In our younger days, we used to welcome our birthday by staying up the night before, and finishing a big cake... because it was "matter of pride!!!" We haven't done the birthday salubong thing in ages, but because of the Big Bad Wolf 24 hour book sale which we visited at 10PM at night, we decided we could do birthday salubong this year. The original plan to go to Sofitel was a bit derailed by the impatient little miss Maria Pumbaa Nicole Therese (you can go directly to last part of this post if you want to meet her) who was impatient to come out, so we ended up at Old Swiss Inn instead, to satisfy Sofia's good-bread craving at 1AM (unfortunately, they ran out of butter, so we had to buy Star Margarine from 7-11).

I swear, we looked fresher in person! The camera was sleepy!

Dark Chocolate Toblerone Fondue is the BOMB!!!

Coley's 39th Vegetarian Birthday Party 
02.18.18
Lucy in the Sky Cafe


These are party giveaways. Not for sale. Hahaha.



Thank you barkada early birds.

Yes, toned arms and nice collar bone cleavage Chipsy!!!

Because Ampaw-Giving-Age na si Tim!!! Hahaha.

My other family.

Only Karl was polite enough to spend time to make small talk with
the parentals.

Selfie by Fi, photobombed by Sam.

Another photo by Fi. This is me, Fabulous at almost Forty.

 I had to invite the gang who was always present whenever we had a
 birthday party!!! Miss you Alf and Jerome!!! Let's meet kahit walang party!

Unilever loves.

Thank you to the two game masters for the most entertaining game ever!!!
Name as many commercial jingles as you can, sing it to get a point, or cancel out the score if another team has it too.
 


I'm still not convinced that this team had no
inside information. BEAM, YC Bikini Briefs... Benta!!!

The ICAn team didn't even put up a fight.
In fairness to the millenials... 






Vegan Chocolate Cake from Lucy in The Sky Cafe,
and White Chocolate Sans Rival from Jem and Ivan.



Thank you to all my family and friends who came to celebrate with me.





Thank you so much Sam for singing. You can watch Sam's rendition of Adele's Make You Feel My Love here.



First to arrive, last to leave. High School friends are the best.


Hi Atch and Ed, See you nalang sa wedding.
Aabangan ko tong photo na to sa video!

Lucy in the Sky Cafe asked if I wanted a buffet set-up or to pre-order everything. I said no, because I wanted to give my guests the freedom to order what they wanted. I promised not to complain if the service took a while. Ate was a one man front of house team and she was wonderful. 
Thank you so much Ate for taking care of all my friends.

After the vegetarian party, we had our usual Sunday dinner... but I got to choose where we'd eat since it was my birthday, so Minamisaki it was!!!
Aburi Sushi craving satisfied! I swear, they have the best Aburi Sushi in
Manila!!!

My other favorite dish is Chicken terriyaki, but I gave away most of the
chicken since I ordered it for the veggies. Note to self, ask for sauce on the side.


Thank you Auntie Lilian for my beautiful birthday cake.
More cakes = More wishes! May they all come true.

After dinner, we went to visit Reen and Timmy at the hospital because my beautiful lucky niece wanted to come out and share my birthday.

So nice to meet you Maria Pumbaa Nicole Therese!!!
The world is so lucky to have the 2 of us in it!!!


Trivia, I was also born on a Sunday Night 39 years ago.

Happy Birthday it was indeed!!!

Thank you Lord for all the blessings, and to my family and friends for spending time to celebrate with me. 2.18.18 was epic. just saying.