Big on Breakfast: Why You Should Eat in the Morning?

Mom always told us to eat our breakfast. And, now that we're mommies, we hear ourselves saying the same thing to our kids. Why is breakfast so important anyway? 

Breakfast improves concentration, problem-solving ability, mental performance, and memory. 

It helps in weight control since it stimulates your metabolism and boosts your energy for the rest of the day.

It promotes good eating habits by preventing you from being too hungry by midday so you can avoid over eating later at night.

It allows you to eat healthier. Most breakfast foods contain significant amounts of vitamins C and D, calcium, iron and fiber. 

So remember, to keep ourselves healthy and energized that will help us last the entire day, don't skip breakfast because it really is the most important meal of the day. 

Max's Restaurant Gilas Favorite Take Out Treat Promo #PusoToTheMax

For a limited time, The Philippines' most loved chicken Max's Restaurant treats loyal customers and basketball fans to a special promo called Gilas Favorite Takeout Treat where customers can purchase 1 whole regular sarap-to-the-bones Max's fried chicken along with its perfect partner Max's Banana Ketchup bottle and a limited edition Gilas Pilipinas Eco Bag for only Php299! Imagine they could save as much as P134 per order of these awesome takeout treats. 

Promo period is good from June 12 to July 11, 2014. Promo is valid for takeout transaction only. And as if that isn't enough, for a minimum purchase at any Max's Restaurant entitles one for a chance to win in the raffle where up for grabs is an all-expense paid trip and pocket money to see and watch the Philippines' very own Gilas Team in Spain for their upcoming match. How's that for a superb treat right?

So get those hearts unite and feel the fighting spirit high as Gilas Pilipinas competes internationally for basketball. And with a Filipino brand like Max's Restaurant supporting them all the way, win or lose, these men are winners on their own right. 

So take advantage of these awesome treats from Max's Restaurant while it lasts. 

Disclaimer: I am not compensated for this post. Opinions expressed are my own.

Clara Ole Quality Cream Based Sauces

From the same company that has brought us trusted and excellent Pasta Sauces--Clara Olé, a leading name in pasta sauces, tomato sauce, marinades, syrups, jams & jelly, dips n’ dressings, a staple fixture in Filipino household--now launches its newest line of cream-based sauces that will surely provide delight in every family meal.

 

There’s no doubt that these “Quality Cream-based” sauces—Carbonara Pasta Sauce, Béchamel White Sauce, and Creamy Tomato Pasta Sauce—from the Clara Olé line of products by Sysu International Inc., serves as its latest coup de grâce in the Philippine food industry.

With this trifecta of sauces, more Filipino families, working professionals and cooking enthusiasts will surely look forward to heading to the kitchen to whip up a non-stop bevy of delectable dishes using Clara Olé’s impeccable, quality sauces.

 

The Clara Olé “Carbonara Pasta Sauce” is a cream-based pasta sauce that’s immaculately creamy, and fuses salty, smoked bacon and cheesy flavors that will lend your pasta a rockin’ and mind-blowing taste with flavorful creaminess.

 

You can also use the “Carbonara Pasta Sauce” as an exciting dip for nachos, fries, potato chips, topping for sausages, as burger sauce, sandwich spread, dressing for salads and veggie sticks.

 

The other sauce in the line-up is the Clara Olé Béchamel, a cream-based white sauce with a masterful blend of butter, cream and cheese.

 

But unlike its siblings, the Béchamel, touted as one of the “Mother Sauces” of French cuisine, is primarily used as topping on baked pasta variants like the baked lasagna or baked macaroni, veggies, and can serve as filling for rolled chicken meat dishes like cordon bleu, chicken a la kiev, meat pies, and even sandwiches.

 

And extend its use as sauce for fried breaded meat and grilled seafood, spread for canapés, and as dip for salted chips.

 

Finally, the Clara Olé “Creamy Tomato” is a cream-based pasta sauce that combines luscious cream and vine-ripened tomatoes to provide a succulent smell and heart-warming creaminess that strike every palate.

The rich yet creamy, red sauce is used mostly for pastas, and yet can extend its use by transforming to become delicious gravy for roasted or breaded chicken, as dip for fries and chips, sauce for meatloaf and potato dumplings, and even as base for tomato soup or pizza sauce. That’s talking about true variety.

 

So make those pasta dishes—and a whole lot more—come to life by using Clara Olé’s newest “Quality Cream-based sauces.” Truly, Clara Olé remains true to its commitment of offering value for money, convenience and excitingly delicious products for everybody’s everyday meal.

 

Want to see and experience for yourself how Clara Olé can transform an ordinary dish and make it spectacular? Head off now to your favorite supermarkets or grocery stores and bring home the delightful taste of Clara Olé’s “Quality Cream-based sauces” to make your every meal a true spectacle for your family and friends.

 

Know more about Clara Olé value offerings, visit www.claraole.com or “Like” www.Facebook.com/myclaraole or follow via Instagram @ClaraOlePH and share your unforgettable cooking encounters and dining experiences using Clara Olé Carbonara, Béchamel White Sauce and Creamy Tomato. You can even catch exciting Clara Olé “Pot Sessions: A Cook Without A Book” adventure webisode series via their Facebook app: https://www.facebook.com/myclaraole/app_566691690034303.

Seafood Dampa in Macapagal Boulevard: Freshest Bounties of the Sea

I've been hearing a lot of reviews about Dampa in Macapagal Boulevard, just a few blocks away from Mall of Asia complex in Pasay City. I knew it was a take-off from the "original" one found somewhere in Paranaque City. I don't even know if that thing still exists until now because I was told that most of those stalls had already transferred to Macapal Boulevard Dampa. My best friend invited me to come along when they've brought in her foreigner boyfriend to Dampa in Macapagal. They wanted him to experience the "paluto style" of restaurant/eateries as well as try the best seafoods in Manila.

For those who aren't familiar yet, Dampa is basically a wet market where you come to shop (or you may ask someone to do them for you) for fresh seafoods, meats and veggies and then ask restaurants to cook them for you--according to your own preference and liking: it could be grilled, steamed, fried, stewed, buttered etc. The most important thing is to learn the proper technique to haggle with the seafood merchants. If you are totally clueless about it, I suggest you ask someone who knows how because otherwise you might be overcharged in terms of item/product pricing. Shopping your own seafood meal is actually fun. I was surprised to see really huge lobsters, an abundance of seafoods like sea urchins, parrot fish, clams and rich fat crabs at Dampa Macapagal Market. 

It was chow time and we've ordered pusit lumot (small type of squid) for adobo (marinated in vinegar and soda with onion leeks), buttered garlic shrimps, grilled pink salmon belly, shrimp tempura and some flour battered fish. The taste really amazing, surprisingly not "fishy" especially the squid. Its got a sweet aftertaste--a proof that it was indeed a fresh harvest from the sea. I'm not used to eating pink salmon as a grilled dish, we usually cook it sinigang (Filipino tamarind based soup dish) but never grilled. I loved it so much! It bursts of sweet and salty taste. 

But among our orders, I instantly fell for buttered garlic shrimp. It was so addicting, I swear I could finish an entire plate in one sitting. It tasted so good that we all wanted to have a second serving cooked. Even our foreigner guest loved them! We're certain that the next time he visits the country, we'll visit Dampa Macapagal again. That's how well we enjoyed our meal.

Dampa Macapagal is located at Macapagal Boulevard, near Roxas Boulevard and Mall of Asia, Aseana Complex, Pasay City.