Kumori: Fluffy Buns and Tasty Pastries

Kumori, cloud in Japanese, describes the fluffiness of their bread. It is a Japanese bakery which had a stall in SM Makati. We had a few of their items for lunch. Yes, dessert first before main dish. You can never go wrong with bread and pastries.


Matcha Bun (Php 50)

In terms of taste, this is my favorite among the three. Slightly bitter matcha filling, cream filling, and soft bun balance each other to form a semi-sweet snack. I would go back to get more of these.



Green Apple Bun (Php 45)

Best in terms of aesthetic, this bun mimicked an apple - from the layer of green coating, a pretzel stick for a stem, and Kumori label for a leaf. Inside was cooked sweet apples similar to what you find in an apple pie.



Melon Bread (Php 45)

There's no melon in this bread :( . I bought this one since it reminded me of the melon bread in an anime (Yakitate Japan) which was filled with melon. I guess they only named it that way because of the melon pattern form the crumble on top of the bun. It was simple, highlighting the softness of the bun and the texture of the crumble topping.



Krone (Php 35)

Custard filling is piped into one of these crispy pastry tunnels upon order. My friend ordered this one and was consumed right on the spot. I'm guessing it tasted good.


On my next visit, I might also try their cheesecakes which received good reviews. As for the pricing, I think it is quite similar with other bakeries like Bread Talk or French Baker. I hope there is a branch closer to our place so that I can sample all of their buns and pastries.




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Morelli's Gelato

Just perfect for the hot hot weather. We already said good bye to the cold breeze so here we are looking for a substitute.

We got online discount vouchers to try out the gelato concoctions of Morelli's. Served in uniquely shaped glassware, you can admire and enjoy the gelato at the same time.

I got an Almond Amaretto which had a scoop of coffee, vanilla, and hazelnut gelato. It came with a small shot of warm amaretto liquor. The sweetness of the gelato complemented bitterness of the liquor. This was more evident with the sweet hazelnut gelato.

My friend got a special offer gelato sundae where you get to choose two gelato flavors, and a crunchy topping. The dark chocolate was the bitter chocolate we expected it to be. I forgot the other flavor's name but it had fruity sour flavors. reminiscent of summer fruit drinks.

Warning: Some, if not most, of their sundaes are good for sharing (three scoops and above). Unless you are like us who have a special stomach reserved for desserts, we suggest you share an order with someone.




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7 -Eleven: Slurpee Donuts

Well, with cakes being turned into drinks (red velvet shake, and other cake-shakes), why not turn drinks into baked goodies? Hence, we have Slurpee doughnuts brought to us by 7-Eleven.


Raspberry (Php 25)

Pretty sparkly sprinkles! These weren't really sweet. The cream gluing it to the dough isn't that sweet as well. It was actually quite bitter, probably imitating a cherry taste. This one was really interesting to look at. But I'd rather just look at it next time. The sparkles were really eye-catching though.



Peach (Php 25)

For me this was better in terms of taste. It had a faint orange taste. A simple layer of this orange glaze gave it flavor which was similar to the fruit flavored cereal I had as a kid. I guess the base of the doughnut is the same as the other one. Their toppings differentiate them from each other.



It was an interesting pair of doughnuts but I'd stick to my regular sprinkled or chocolate ones for now.




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Llao llao: Newest Froyo in Town

The newest frozen yogurt place is in town! Llao llao (yao yao) frozen yogurt has opened its first store at Mall of Asia. I was lucky to be one of their first customers for the day and got coupons for a free medium size yogurt, one for each of the coming three months!

I think they only have one flavour of yogurt but there are a whole lot of options for toppings. Syrup, crunchies, and fruits are available.

My order was simple – a small sized tub with Lotus caramelized biscuit as toppings (Php 99). Small size wasn’t so small at all! Unlike other yogurt servings which were hollow in the middle, this one was very siksik! It kept me full for around 3 hours.

I bet their medium and large size is good for sharing. They also have shakes, smoothies, and other froyo variations.

Although satisfied with my order, I kinda wish I ordered the Sanum (Php 199) to try 3 fruits, 2 crunchies, and 1 syrup together with my froyo. No to mention the layers created by the mix look good on photos. Maybe I’ll try on my next visit.

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Magnum Infinity

Last week, Magnum gave away free samples of their new Magnum Infinity variants! Chocolate caramel and chocolate raspberry were the options. I chose the Chocolate Raspberry. Sweet with a little fruity sourness seems like a good idea.

Thick dark chocolate with mounds of cocoa (I think) coats the ice cream bar. Inside, there is a layer of chocolate ice cream and raspberry ice cream. I did not see raspberry syrup swirls unlike the photos on advertisements, but there is a refreshing combination of the not so sweet chocolate and the hint of sourness from the raspberry. If you are up for more sweetness, maybe the chocolate caramel variant is for you.



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Auntie Anne's: Red Velvet Almond

It has been a while since I ordered from Auntie Anne's. And when I did order, I tried Red Almond pretzel nuggets.

We waited for a little while for our pretzel nuggets (fresh!). The pretzel itself was indeed red from the red velvet dough, but not too sweet. The almond crumble was the "almond" part. You can easily finish a regular serving in one sitting since it is a little addicting. I just wish there was more almond crumble on all of the nugget pieces.

P.S. There was a pretzel shaped light above us as we ate.




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Fiorgellato: For the Gelato Weather

This Fiorgellato branch at Pasay opened around a month ago and this is exactly what I need in this hot weather.

We ordered a double scoop of the following:

Straciatella (Choco Chips) had a buttery vanilla base and chocolate chips mixed into the ice cream.

Doppio Cioccolato (Double Chocolate) was ordered by my friend and from the lloks of it, she liked this one.



...and 5 scoops on a waffle cone

Yam (Ube) - personally not a fan of ube flavors (except for ube hopia) but the group liked it
Cappuccino - a bit of coffee flavor to wake us up
Menta (Mint) - I have always liked mint flavors although this one is a bit borderline on the toothpaste kind of mint
Mango - the crowd favorite, a refreshing fruit flavor
Raspberry - the scoop is hidden underneath the others. I chose this flavor but the others did not like it very much because of the hint of sourness(which is fine with me)


This ice cream was really affordable - just Php 35 for the double scoops! Although the flavors were a little common and the ice cream did not really have the texture of a gelato, it is worth the price and again, perfect to cool off the hot weather.

We also has a Margherita Pizza to balance off the sweetness with a little saltiness.




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Hattendo: Chilled Cream Buns

A few months back, Hattendo had a promo on their cream buns: 150 for two buns of any flavor. I got 2 of my favorite azuki red bean, a piece of matcha, and another piece for chocolate.

Azuki Red Bean

This is my favorite among the three flavors I tried. Flavored chilled cream plus actual azuki beans add texture to the filling. I also don't see a lot of azuki flavored desserts around the country so I consider this a little different from the usual dessert offered by other stores.



Matcha

It's actually not sweet, but not too strong on the tea taste either. Of course it was still creamy. Perfect for those who prefer the less sweet desserts.


Chocolate

A classic flavor, chocolate always fulfills my comfort food needs. It was like having the goodness of a fresh milk chocolate shake in cream form within a soft bun.


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Home Baking Series: Apple Walnut Raisin Crumble

When you crave for apple pie but you feel lazy (or unskilled) to make a pie, make apple crumble instead. Using a pre packed crumble mix, preparing apple crumble ala mode is made easy for a beginner like me.

Ingredients:
1 pack Tecso Crumble Mix
2 apples
walnuts (about 14 pcs)
raisins (about 2 spoonfuls)
a scoop of your favorite ice cream

*You can actually use any fruit or filling mix you like. I was going for pseudo apple pie with this one.

Preparation:
1) Slice the apples
2) Spread the apples evenly on a baking pan
3) Add in some walnuts and raisins to your liking. I added around 2 table spoons of raisins and about 14 pieces of walnuts, sliced
4) Top the filling with 1 pack of crumble mix. Make sure to cover everything
5) Heat in the oven for 20-30 minutes or follow baking and temperature instructions at the back of the crumble mix pack.
6) Get a slice and top with your favorite ice cream

Photo above shows the crumble mix on top of the filling. This was very easy to make. Maybe slicing the apples was already the step that required the most effort. Everything else was just mixing the ingredients.

This particular batch was a little overcooked since I exceeded the prescribed thirty minutes baking time. I thought the crumble wasn't cooked enough yet so I added 5 more minutes.

The texture of the crumble mixed with the occasional crunch from the walnuts and fruit flavor from the apple and raisins was satisfying already. Topping it off with ice cream just made it more decadent and perfect for the summer heat.

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