Food is virtually the rockstars of today’s generation. Notice how most of the posts on Instagram revolve around food—preparing the food, devouring the food and even the aftermath?
I am guilty of this haha
In recognition of this digital phenomenon and in appreciation of the Filipino food, culture and heritage, global leader in household appliance, Electrolux launches the Instant Discover-E Photo contest, an avenue for all foodies to share and exchange food pictures, or to simply drool over all delicious pictures.
The photo contest is aimed at encouraging virtually everyone to take a picture and upload scrumptious Filipino food using Instagram and Twitter. Once a week, three entries with the yummiest picture will be awarded free items, gift certificates and Food Passports for Electrolux Discover-E Food Festival!
“We are inviting everyone to discover the Filipino cuisine with us, one post at a time,” says Andrea Pionilla, Group Product Manager, Electrolux Philippines. “We have made this contest as simple as possible—all they have to do is take a photo of any food, post with the hashtag #DiscoverE and tag @ElectroluxPH on Instagram or Twitter and they will get a chance to win.”
Do not forget to tag @aireize on IG and @irispulga on Twitter as well!
Contest period is from between May 15, 2013 and June 30, 2013. Winners will be announced every week.
For more information about Instant Discover-E Photo Contest and the Electrolux Discover-E campaign, visit electrolux.com.ph/discover-e
I rarely attend events nowadays but this one came as a surprise, AND because it was about cakes, I gladly went. Good thing my blogger friends Peachy and Levy were there, I didn’t look like a confused, lost child during the ceremony LOL
The Cake Deco Expo Last February 24, 2013, the 4th Goldilocks Cake Expo was held at the Hall 4 of SMX Mall of Asia. Like the previous Cake Deco Expo, this one was a huge success too.
It was so nice of the management to allow the public to experience what they have prepared that day. So for P50, kids and kids-at-heart alike enjoyed activities such as the Avoset Whipped Cream Workshop, and the Cake Deco Hands-on Workshop. Bakers and homebakers also got the chance to shop from various cake suppliers from the metro.
For a minimal fee of P 50.00 per person, the public was given the chance to experience the many offerings of Goldilocks placed under one roof. There was the Avoset Whipped Cream Workshop and the Cake Deco Hands-on Workshop.
Goldilocks products used with Avoset Whipped Cream
The Fly for Hope Activity Area allowed participants to design their own cake balloon for a donation of P 20.00 while the DYC Booth gave an opportunity for budding cake designers to try their skill for the cost of P 60.00 which included one fluffy mamon and cake decorating materials. Donation proceeds will go to the Goldilocks Foundation F.E.E.D. Program.
Fly for Hope Workshop
As always, the event culminates in the annual Intercollegiate Cake Decorating Challenge (ICDC), which is now on its eighth installment. Ten schools from all over the Philippines will compete live on a kitchen stage, decorating different cakes under a time limit, all without prior knowledge of the cake themes and/or decorating parameters. “This is the perfect opportunity to highlight future pastry chefs, and provide support to Hotel and Restaurant and Culinary Arts training at the school level,” Yee emphasized. Indeed, the Overall Champion will receive a baking showcase for their school worth over P250,000, apart from individual prizes.
The finalists this year are Centro Escolar University Manila, La Consolacion College Bacolod, Lipa City Colleges, Lyceum of the Philippines Batangas, Lyceum of the Philippines Laguna, St. Anne Lucena Inc., St Louis College Valenzuela, STI Fairview, University of the East Manila, and Western Institute of Technology Iloilo. Thanks to the format of the competition and the talent of these up-and-coming culinary professionals, the audience is given the opportunity to witness the actual process of cake decorating first-hand. The distinguished panel of judges include noted chefs Penk Ching and Heny Sison, Ms. Nina Daza Puyat of Appetite Magazine, Mr. Richard Hsu of Rich’s Products, and Ms Pinky Yee.
Decided to hold your child’s party at home is a fabulous idea as it saves on cost but also allows you to do the things you want to do. So depending on the age of your child this guide is usually from 1st-5th Birthday party ideas.
The first thing to do is decide on a theme this could be anything from Animals, pirates, trains, fireman sam, Hello kitty or just a basic colour scheme. Once this is decided, say you choose trains then order your thomas the tank engine party supplies and Invitations. The party stuff should include plates, cups, napkins, cutlery, banners, balloons and table covers. Table ware is items that are put on the table ready for the food, other decoration items like banners and balloons will decorate the venue, you can also use a centre piece in the middle of the table and use scene setters and add ons to stick on the wall.
The next thing to do is decide on the food, many places like Iceland sell party platter type food that can be cooked in around 20 minutes so as long as you have a warm oven, start around 9:30am with your cooking, once an item is cooked put on a tray and wrap in cling film and place on the buffet table, that way when the kids arrive the buffet is already done and ready to eat. Most kids parties have pizza fingers, chicken goujons, chips, chicken balls as well as finger foods. If you wanted to take the healthy option then go for sandwiches and crisps.
Thirdly is the entertainment – Are you going to entertain the kids yourself? Pick a selection of activities the kids can do – Treasure hunt for a pirate theme, dressing up for the princess style party, bubbles and balloons for the 1st birthday party. There are many different types of entertainment available from party buses that come and park outside your house with entertainment to magician, puppet shows, balloon modelling is a great idea as they can take the balloon home as a favour. If the weather is nice outdoor races an activities can be great for a boy party.
The fourth item on the agenda is party games and there are the normal every party type of games such as musical statues, pass the parcel, musical chairs and then other games such as the colour in a corner game where each corner is a colour and the kids run to 1 when the music stops and one corner is picked at random to be out. Then there are other games like charades for kids using nursery rhymes and passing the balloon between legs.
Last but not least is the cake being lit with candles, singing happy birthday and then putting a piece of cake in each party bag for your guests. However it does seem a little daft putting just 1 piece of cake in a party bag so it is a good idea to look for other fillers such as little toys, jokes, novelty items or maybe sweets or a book or fruit depending on what suits the feel of the party.
Successful bake sales are not made overnight. It needs a lot of planning and several minds during brainstorming to make it work. The goals here are: to sell good homemade products without breaking the customer’s pockets and soar beyond the very stiff bake sale competition.
How to Have a Successful Bake Sale
Planning is the key
In everything we need to do, we don’t just jump in and be successful. We need to plan ahead, organize stuff and execute what was planned. No one will go wrong if these steps are followed. The first step a fundraiser coordinator must do is to organize a meeting. During this time, the number of volunteers is finalized and roles are distinguished. During this meeting, you need to reiterate the goals such as:
Target sales
Possible locations
Best goods to sell
Marketing plans
It is important that all questions about the event are addressed here.
Target Sales
How much are you planning to raise? A successful bake sale should have a target so you know your financial goals. Earning less than what you have planned will gauge the success of your bake sale and is a notable point for your next bake sale.
No matter how high your targets are, keep your prices moderate. Check goods throughout the day and lower prices if needed. The trick here is to give value to your products and give people their money’s worth.
Possible Locations
Finding a very high traffic area is a must. More traffic, more sales. Think about the most crowded commercial area in your place like churches, supermarkets and outside of malls. Securing a permit to sell on these areas is also a must. It is also best to check out local events such as car shows, street festivals, and school fairs among others.
Best Goods to Sell
Brainstorm on what each of your volunteers will bake. Go with the usual cupcakes, cake slices or wholes, bars, brownies and don’t forget the sugar-free and nut-free ones as there would always be potential customers with allergies who will check out the fair. Ensure that you only limit your choices to 5-6 best selling goods and all should not need refrigeration. The packaging should be uniform and goods are well presented.
Marketing Plans
This has to be done at least 2 weeks in advance. Make use of fliers, social networking channels like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest among others, emails in sending the details of your bake sale. Take mouth-watering photos of the products and use these on your ads. Ask your volunteers to promote the bake sale to family, friends and co-workers. The more people know it, the better. Press releases are also helpful – you can submit this to your local media. Also make use of your daily local newspaper, TV and radio. The trick here is to spread the word quickly and pick people’s interest.
You could even take your marketing and promotion to the next level by incorporating the use of promotional products. These include everything from pens and pencils, to ball caps, keychains, and koozies customized with your logo or brand; which in this case might be a colourful cupcake or decadent looking brownie. Then you can literally hand these out at will, or perhaps even “accidentally” leave them in areas that see a lot of heavy pedestrian traffic such as doctors’ offices and gas stations.
Organize
No matter how good your plan is, everything will go down the drain if you fail to organize.
Map out your plan, take notes and gather everything. Keep a book of everything you must do and keep a note on who’s assigned to this and that task.
There are so many things to do in bake sales and an organizer has to be organized and must unleash his or her OC-ness to keep everything from falling apart.
Execute it Right
The purpose of the meeting is futile if it is not executed well. During this time, everything that was discussed during the meeting will happen, from baking, packaging, marketing and the sale per se.
During the bake day sale, have a schedule that would work on all volunteers. Encourage them to bring their families to get more sales people and sales as well. Their friends of friends will surely drop by if they know about it.
Final Words
A successful bake sale takes a lot of planning, effort and sales to succeed. Take note of everything and use it on your next bake sale.
Cakes are unarguably one of the favourite desserts of all times. Because of the popularity of cakes, there have been hundreds of cake flavours that have been baked and people are tempted to eat them. Despite these hundreds or even thousands of cake recipes, it cannot be denied that there are still top cake recipe choices that continue to attract people no matter how convenient some of the flavours may be. The top five cake recipes that are really very tempting basing on the number of consumption include:
1. Cheesecakes
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No matter what the flavour is, cheesecakes have been a staple for desserts. Most common cheesecake recipes include blueberry cheesecake, brownie cheesecake, chocolate ganache, creamy cheesecake and mosaic cheesecake. But for me, blueberry cheesecakes are really the best because the creamy cheesecake complements very well with the sweet and sour blueberries. If you love cheesecakes, there’s no harm eating a slice in a day.
2. Carrot cakes
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Who has not tasted carrot cakes? Well, because of its popularity and availability, carrot cakes are simply very common on the dining table. Whether it is holiday season or just an ordinary day, putting your carrot cake in the refrigerator is very tempting. Carrot cakes also tend to be healthier than other forms of cakes because they rarely contain high-caloric frostings and creams plus they are made of carrots—a healthy cake choice.
3. Chocolate cakes
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Are you a chocolate lover and would want to bring your chocolates into your cakes? Then, preparing a chocolate cake is the best for your chocolate cravings. Although some may say that chocolate cakes are too overrated because being too sweet for “sweet cakes”, they still satisfy millions of people all over the world because of the very appealing chocolate taste. You can use a generic chocolate or cocoa ingredient or pick your favourite chocolate from Hershey’s and the like.
Tiramisu is simply very attractive, tasty and satisfying. It has this delicate flavour that is not too sweet, but will satisfy any sweet tooth out there. Tiramisu needs no introduction because even homemade Tiramisu can beat those baked cakes. An advantage of tiramisu is it is a layered cake and doesn’t need to be baked so you can prepare it yourself even if you don’t have any experience in baking. If you just want to prepare some cake, but are too lazy for baking, tiramisu is your best option.
5. Triple flavoured cakes
Cakes with more than one flavour are also very popular because they beat the boredom of single-flavoured cakes. Triple cakes usually consist of a layered flavour including chocolate, mocha and vanilla. In each bite, there is a balance of flavour that makes the taste sweet in a subtle way. As compared to eating chocolate cakes, triple flavoured cakes are very appealing to adults.
These cake recipes may not be there on the top five list if they aren’t, why not give them a try this holiday season. You can look for extraordinary recipes to redesign these common cake flavours.
Michelle Tan is a pastry chef and has her own line of cake flavours in her own coffee and pastry shop. She has been discovering unconventional cake recipes, but says that people still come back to basic cakes. For excellent cake recipes, visit Shahiya recipes.
Any event that requires food could potentially need to hire a catering company, although of course many events can be self-catered. If you’re throwing a huge soiree with lots of guests it can be overwhelming to cook and prepare all the food yourself, particularly if you actually want to be able to enjoy the party. Here are a few of the different types of events that often require catering:
Weddings
It’s incredibly common for weddings to hire catering companies, particularly if they’re being thrown in an unusual location that doesn’t have its own kitchen, such as a barn, beach or field. Hiring a specialist catering company for a wedding can add a little extra touch of magic, with a menu devised specifically to your tastes.
Wakes
Catering companies are commonly hired to provide food at wakes, as people are usually too upset to prepare all the food themselves. Hiring a catering company can be a welcome relief in a stressful time, as it’s one less thing you need to do.
Birthday Parties
Special birthdays, such as 16th, 18th and 21st birthdays, are often accompanied by big parties with lots of guests. It’s difficult to cook for such a large group yourself, so hiring a catering company to provide the food can be a good idea. Buffets are a good option for birthday parties for younger people, which involve drinking and dancing, whereas a sit-down meal might be more appropriate for an older birthday party, such as a 30th or 50th.
Corporate Functions
It’s a good idea to include food as part of your corporate function or office party, especially if there’s going to be drink involved! Ensuring everyone has some food in their belly can mean less embarrassed workers in the office the next day!
Engagement Parties
Similarly to weddings, engagement parties are a great time to hire some caterers. Being catered for is a great way to celebrate your new engagement, and you can enjoy a proper sit down meal with your closest friends and family to toast the new life that awaits you.
Christenings
There’s no happier event than the christening of a new born baby, and a beautifully catered event can perfectly complement such an occasion. A delicate afternoon tea or a sophisticated dinner can be the ideal accompaniment to a christening, making the day that little bit more special.
Bridal Showers
Bridal showers are a time to celebrate an upcoming wedding, gifting the bride with many lovely presents to help her prepare for her future marriage. A tasteful lunch provided by a catering company is a great touch to make a bridal shower that little bit more special.
Anniversary Parties
No matter how long you’ve been married to your loved one, an anniversary party is always a fantastic way to celebrate. A catered lunch or dinner can add that special touch to an already wonderful occasion, and is a great way to celebrate with your closest friends and family who’ve been by your side during your marriage.
Preparing gourmet food is not only challenging, but is also rewarding, so long as the meal turns out great. Of course, it isn’t uncommon for one here or there to be unsuccessful, as it can even happen to top chefs from time to time. What is important when preparing these delicious meals is to present them beautifully, because the presentation will either add or take away from the taste. Pay special attention to the way the different ingredients are placed on the plate, and their relation to the others. Be sure to keep it all looking neat, without drips on the sides or rims of the plate.
Culinary art has to do with sophistication and refinement, so only the top, and often exotic, ingredients will be included in the recipe for the best results. The chef should take time in getting to know the recipe well before taking on the challenge of preparing it by reading it over a couple of times. Once it has been rehearsed in the mind, which is natural after reading, line up all the ingredients to avoid confusion during the cooking process. Try to recall how top chefs you may have watched on television cooking shows have each of the ingredients measured and awaiting its turn to use. It saves time and lots of frustration, as well as avoids the chef from forgetting to include an ingredient when things start getting hot in the kitchen.
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Follow the step-by-step instructions to minimize the risk of failure. Be patient and confident, and cook with love and passion. After the cooking process is complete, then comes the show, which is the presentation. The better it looks, the more appetizing it will be, so take it slowly to ensure the best arrangement. Have a clean towel on hand to wipe up any messes or drips caused by sauces where they shouldn’t be. That will surely make it an enticing dish, good enough for a king.
After all is said and done and everyone is full and happy, it is likely to have some leftovers, which should be carefully stored away. Be careful to use the best gourmet food storage containers to seal in freshness until you are ready to eat them. It is more economical, and you get to enjoy another delicious meal without the hard work.
Sandy was a recent reminder of the need to be food secure. Many people had to rely on their pantries as power outages and storm damage made it impossible to get to the grocery store. With a little advance preparation, families can stockpile everything that they need for an emergency, and they can even ensure that they have the right foods on hand for a holiday like Thanksgiving.
Turkey and Gravy Substitute
The great thing about preparing for an emergency Thanksgiving is that a lot of traditional Thanksgiving dishes are already made from canned foods. If possible, you should try to cook a turkey for Thanksgiving, but in a case where that is not possible, canned turkey and jars of gravy can act as a viable substitute.
Your Own Bread for Stuffing
Stuffing is probably the tastiest thing that you will ever from a box. A box of stuffing simply requires the addition of water. If you wish to make your own stuffing, you can easily do that with a few items from your pantry. Flour, warm water, yeast, and a touch of sugar are all you need to make a tasty loaf of homemade bread. After this bread sits for a day or two, it will be ideal for stuffing.
Green Bean Casserole
Canned cranberries, canned sweet potatoes, and canned green beans are suitable sides in any circumstances. If you wish to have something extra special but still simple and cheap, you can make the Green bean casserole. This is simple to do with pantry items. This classic dish can be prepared with a can of cream of mushroom soup, a couple cans of cooked green beans, and some French onions. You will need to add a bit of milk, and if you do not have fresh milk on hand, you can easily use powdered milk.
The Pie
If you are caught without a pie crust, there is no reason to despair. Pie crusts only require flour, shortening, and a touch of sugar and salt. If it is your first attempt at pie crust making, it may not look perfect, but it will taste good. The filling is just canned pumpkin, evaporated milk, and a few spices.
All of these dishes are simple to prepare using items from your pantry, and you can get more ideas from the dailybread website. The potential downfall of all of these dishes is that they require electricity to heat them. To get around this, you may use a camp stove. If that’s not possible, you should celebrate a simple Thanksgiving with cold canned turkey sandwiches and cranberry sauce for dessert.
If you are planning a birthday party and the day feels that it’s coming in quicker than you expected then you’re lucky you found us. We want to help you with the most important part of any birthday party; the cake. With so many options on the market today, it can feel a bit intimidating because the last thing you want to do is choose a cake that completely bombs. So, take a deep breath and follow these simple tips in order to find that cake you’re dreaming of. Don’t worry; the day is going to be amazing!
Choose a Flavor Everyone Will Love
One of the most important things to take into account is who is going to be at the party. If kids are present especially, you want to make sure that you choose a simple flavor that you can be sure they are going to enjoy. Something such as vanilla or chocolate is great. Also, make sure to ask people if they have any allergies and if you want to choose something more intense, ask around and have people vote to help you choose something unique that people will love to eat.
Pick Something That Matches Your Theme
Once you have a flavor in mind, it’s time to choose the colors and theme of your cake. This depends on the decorations you are going to be having. Maybe you have a pink theme and a Princess cake or if it’s for a wedding then a white cake is always a safe bet with intricate designs.
Ask to See a Portfolio
Now it’s time to find the perfect person to make your cake. The best thing you can do is check out a few peoples’ portfolios. This is going to help you select someone who you know you can trust to get the job done. You want to also compare prices with various different people and/or companies to get a good idea of your price range. This is the final step in selecting the perfect option for your unique needs.
Consider the Size You Need
Once you have everything else figured out, it’s time to decide on a size. Figure out how many people are coming and add a handful more just in case someone else wants to tag along. You always want to plan for a bit more just in case. It’s always better to have a bit extra than to not have enough and people aren’t going to complain about some yummy leftover cake!
Healthy Cake Alternatives
Just because the person the cake is for is on a diet does not mean you cannot get them a cake. A cake doesn’t have to ruin your healthy eating habits because these days a lot of bakers offer cakes that are made out of fruit and don’t include all the sugar and calories. There are just as many ways for you to customize them so don’t feel like you’re being gypped.
Nigella Lawson is a food critic and a food blogger. Birthday cakes are her favourite and her speciality. Her blogs are mostly on different kinds of cakes for various occasions.
Almost every day, questions like “how big is your smallest cake?” or “what’s the size of your 8″ cake?“and sometimes “gaanoposiyakalaki? parangplato?” are thrown at me. It is very time consuming and confusing to some, so to save myself from answering the same set of questions over and over again and avoid any confusion and nasty size-related comments like clients being shocked on how “tiny” the delivered cakes are, I made this very simple, easy-to-understand infographics on PH Bakehouse’s Cake Size and Servings.
The PH Bakehouse Cake Size and Servings Infographics
The minimum height of our cakes is 4″ and that’s only the base. The height of the toppers are still not included.
