Batangas Food Festival in Matabungkay Beach Hotel by Filipino Culinary Masters

What happens when you put together two extremely passionate, creative and talented master chefs, both successful in their respective fields, a managing director of a popular resort and her culinary team all together? That’s what Security Blanket had witnessed when I was invited to the media launch of Batangas Food Festival 2016 at Matabungkay Beach Hotel. It was a gorgeous lunch that could be called a symphony of flavours, tastes, aromas and textures that make up the Batangas Food Festival menu. 

Ms. Charley Leviste-Antonio, managing director of Matabungkay Beach Hotel in Lian, Batangas put together top chefs Ms. Nancy Reyes-Lumen, the “Adobo Queen” herself and Chef Jaja Andal to collaborate on the menu for this year’s Batangas Food Festival, which will run from October to December 31^st, 2016. 

Power of Pen: A Food Writing Conference (Visayas Leg)

Press release: 

Life experiences and travel create a well-rounded food lover.

As food critiquing, and food writing in general has become a more recognized ‘career’, seminars, workshops, food and heritage tours are sprouting up geared specifically to food writing.

STRAM, INCORPORATED, an events company based in Manila has been creating and organizing the POWER OF PEN – a Food Writing conference and forum since 2009. Since then, the Power of Pen which happens every two years has now evolved and developed regional food writing workshops to cater to the growing demands of the food writer’s community.

This November 19, the Power of Pen will be touring the Visayas region with the University of San Carlos as its  co-presentor and official venue for POP Visayas. The one day forum will gather distinguished personalities from the writing industry composed of editors, authors, culinary and heritage workers and news writers.

The POWER OF PEN is something which one can seek out if you do not have an educational background in writing or to simply boost your writing skills. The topics handled by our specially chosen speakers will help you think in new ways to make your writing come alive.

 POWER OF PEN VISAYAS will have experienced and seasoned writers, among them – Michaela Fenix (cook book author and writer for Phil Daily Inquirer), Myrna Segismundo ( Doreen Gamboa Food Writing Competition Founder), Anne Marie Ozaeta ( Editor in Chief, FOOD by ABSCBN Publishing), Louella Alix (Author of Hikay : The Culinary Heritage of Cebu for the  University of San Carlos Press), and  Jobers Bersales Ph.D. (Publications Manager , the University of San Carlos Press) .The POWER OF PEN Visayas will have the following topics for the day : General Over-view of Food Writing, Importance of Research for food stories & ideas,  Techniques & Tips for Recipe Writing,  Writing & Editing for Publications, and Regional Food writing and the Importance of  Culinary Heritage.

Registration fee of Php1,200.00/head will include the refreshments and the Certificate of Attendance signed by all the speakers. Special rate for students currently enrolled is also being offered at Php 600.00/head. (Valid school ID for the current school year required before anyone can avail of this).

To register, please call STRAM,INCORPORATED, (02) 352.31.87 & (02) 927.72.08 or you may also email them at : info@strameventsinc.com.

Midea provide home solutions

Press release: 

A few years ago, Midea was basically a new entrant brand in the minds of the Filipino market. With so many established appliance brands already etched in every consumer’s thought whenever on a search for appliances, Midea was on a tough road in competing to capture the attention of the market, more so, landing a space in their homes. But slowly and surely, Midea made its way to consumers through the help of their retail partners, the first line of people these consumers meet, who effectively convey the philosophy behind the brand and the benefits of Midea’s consumer friendly solutions.

“When we were set to bring the brand in, what we were looking for is not just selling boxes, not just selling products,” Concepcion Midea, Inc. General Manager, Mr. Phillip Trapaga also points out that home chores are taking away a lot precious time for the whole family, “for us, it is really about studying the consumers, the pressures and the problems they are having with home chores, and bringing them friendly solutions that would make doing home chores easier for them.”

Abensons and Robinsons are just few of the first major retailers which easily welcomed the brand and have taken in its philosophy of not just ‘pushing the boxes’.  “What we wanted to do in pushing the Midea brand to consumers is to stop talking much about the technology and start talking about the benefits and teach the consumers how they can have a worry-free life with our home-friendly products,” Trapaga said.

Product Review: Mrs. Lam Premium Sinandomeng Rice + KIMCHI FRIED RICE, KIMCHI BOKKEUMBAP Recipe

Rice is a Filipino staple food. Most of us cannot live without eating rice. In fact, when I went abroad for the first time, I felt that my meals weren’t complete because there was no rice available. There are lots of rice variations: brown rice, red rice, black rice, yellow rice and of course, white rice. I recently received 2 kilograms pack of rice brand called Mrs. Lam Premium Sinandomeng Special rice for a product review from Ad Garlic. 

Mrs. Lam’s Rice is guaranteed 100 % locally harvested and carefully selected over-milled crop from the best regions in the country. What makes Mrs. Lam’s rice different from other rice is its naturally fragrant aroma, white, long grain, smooth shiny and silky in appearance. When cooked, Mrs. Lam’s produces a white soft long grain with a slightly chewy texture.

Produced utilizing the state-of-the-art innovative technology of rice-polishing along with its advanced laser sorting machines, Mrs. Lam’s Rice ensures the best quality rice. Guaranteed to deliver the best rice but sold at a very reasonable price, it ensures every customer’s satisfaction and continues patronage.

Mrs. Lam's Premium Sinandomeng Special Rice after it's cooked

 Aside from its longer, slimmer grains, what distinguishes Mrs. Lam’s long-grain white rice from medium or short grained white rice (the kind used in risotto or sushi respectively) is that after cooking it remains fluffy and separate. Long grain rice such as Mrs. Lam’s contains less of starch called amylopectin, which is what makes rice stick together.

Celebrity mom Danica Sotto Pingris endorses Mrs. Lam's Rice

Mrs. Lam's Sinandomeng Premium Rice is neutral in flavor, perfect for providing backdrop in other foods. Nonetheless, high quality white rice such as Mrs. Lam's rice--like good white pasta, or a real French baguette--offers pleasingly chewy "al dente" texture and a slightly fragrant aroma on its own. On my last trip to the International Rice Institute, I was able to learn that processing per se affects the rice flavor. All rice starts out brown' to become white, it is milled. It goes a process that removes the husk, bran, and germ, which contains flavor compounds as well as nutrients. The longer the rice is milled, the whiter the rice becomes--and the more flavor is removed. Most brands of rice are then enriched to replace the lost nutrients. Overall, I loved Mrs. Lam's Premium Sinandomeng Soecial Rice. It had subtle notes which reminds me of "nuts" or "barley." Even with added flavors in rice pilaf or Korean bokkeumbap, I prefer Mrs. Lam's rice for its winning brand quality in both taste and texture.