Chocolate Muffin or Cupcake? ;)

Muffin or Cupcake?

I had this same question many posts ago. The most common answer would be cupcakes have icing/frosting while muffin could have fruits. There's also the consideration of when they are eaten, muffins are great for breakfasts and goes well with coffee while cupcakes are eaten as desserts and goes well with tea (but there's debate about that, depending on what one prefers to drink). There's consistency too, since they have different ingredients, cupcakes (cake-like) tend to crumble and are baked relatively smaller than muffins (breadlike) which being able to hold itself together can be baked bigger (makes you fuller than when eating cupcakes too). Per use of oil, butter and sugar...muffins are voted healthier for using oil and bits of fruits.

So according to Diana's Desserts: 'A basic formula for muffins is 2 cups flour, 2-4 tablespoons sugar, 2½ teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 egg, ¼ cup oil, shortening or butter and 1 cup milk. When the fat, sugar and egg ratio in a recipe reaches double or more than this, you have reached the cake level.

There you go.

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Browsing about, there's a joke that bakers and baking enthusiasts seem to enjoy;

"If you throw a cupcake against a wall you get a sound like "poof"; if you throw a muffin against a wall you get a sound like "thud" ! (Remember, Lucy Liu's in Charlie's Angels?)

The best answer I read though was this; A muffin is just a confused cupcake. ;D

What say you? I missed this meme. lol.

(P.S. Above is a muffin.)

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Lasang Pinoy Sundays is a weekly GALLERY of the FILIPINO TASTE focusing on Food Photography.

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Grocery List

If you haven’t noticed rising prices at the supermarket lately, it could be you haven’t been paying close attention to your spending. That is why a grocery list is convenient for your regular trip to the market, separate food and non-food items. You know the basic rule, sticking to your list and keeping your budget to avoid excess buying.

I also find it helpful to list down meals that you would like to cook for the family. I have mine for a whole month, alternately I listed dishes for chicken, fish, beef, pasta and a bit of pork (we are not fond/fan of it).

So far, my trips to the grocery were not erroneous. I haven't come home from the grocery store with things like oversized vacuum bags,  industrial hand wheels, chocolate syrup for ice cream, sour cream and too much chocolates. ;)

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Frutti di mare pizza (Food Friday)

Frutti di mare, Meeresfrüchte, Fruits of the sea...it is not surprising that Italy would have such a variety in pizza toppings (they have Marinara as seafood pasta so why not seafood pizza?). Italy is after all (almost) fully surrounded by water.Sardinia in particular is a small island in the Meditteranean, whose name is the origin of  a fish specie, sardines, where they are in abundance.

So here's a recipe from finestchef.com:

Ingredients:

For the pizza dough:
2 1/2 cups flour,
1 portion dry yeast,
3/4 cup warm water,
1 teaspoon each, salt and sugar.

For the frutti di mare topping:
1 1/2 cup grated mozzarella,
14 raw shrimp, sliced lengthwise to half,
4 ounces calamari rings,
20 steamed mussels, out of the shell,
(or use canned smoked mussels)
4 anchovy fillets,
1 cup pizza sauce or marinara sauce,
dried oregano and basil,
salt and pepper to taste
kani/surimi and olives (optional)

How to:

This recipe is for one large Frutti Di Mare pizza.

1. Mix together the yeast and warm water and let it bloom for 10 minutes.

2. Place the flour, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl or food processor, pour in the yeast and knead until you have smooth dough. Cover the dough with cling wrap and leave it in a warm place for 20-30 minutes to proof.

3. Sprinkle your kitchen counter with whole wheat flour and roll the dough. Grease a pizza pan with little oil and place the pizza dough on it.

4. Spread the pizza sauce and apply the toppings and the cheese. Cook the seafood pizza in a preheated oven at medium-high until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is cooked.

Cooking tip: Brush some garlic flavored oil over the pizza dough before you spread the pizza sauce and you will notice the difference by yourself. This tip applies for any pizza by the way.

I was surprised seeing the anchovy on my slice, I have never noticed them before! If in any case, these toppings won't tickle your fancy, you can always go for the classic favorite, Pizza Hawaii!

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Supplements

There are diet supplements review websites that provide useful information on what a pill is actually consisted of. There are those that gives lasting effects while some would only have a yoyo effect. If pne decides to try them it would be wise to know the pros and cons, the real deal so to say before spending hundreds or thousands...better yet, do it the right way, eat healthy, exercise and sleep well.

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Congratulations Khae!

My 27-year-old neighbor told me yesterday that she'd be having a baby girl! For the past 6 months when I bump on her on the street, she would ask me tips about pregnancy, kids and motherhood in general. Since I do not have a younger sister, I felt as though I am an older sister giving advice. :D

Having gone through pregnancy three times is a good enough reason to be confident in giving out advice! Lol. The very first thing I told her was to lessen her intakes of bananas, yesterday, I told her to remove it completely from her meals. Well, based on personal experience, bananas made me constipated. It is a case of individual differences though. Since banana contains lots of fiber it should be other way around, but I'm not sure, I still warned her.

Second is to have a bottle of water by the bed. This will come in handy in the wee hours when she gets thirsty. Of course, frequent trips to the toilet is unavoidable, it is good to replace the liquid. I also warned her about cramps. It's a good thing that my hubby wakes up easily so he knows what to do when I shook him. Unfortunately, neighbor's husband is not yet with her, so it is quite a difficult phase. I told her to ask her doctor for some magnesium and other supplements, if not there are over the counter prenatal vitamins that she can get from the Apotheke. These will help not only her but the baby as well...magnesium lessens the cramping.

There are other bits and pieces I shared to her which I'm sure she heard from other friends as well. In the end, I told her; when your baby comes, you will know what to do, it's the thing they call instinct and you'll feel very happy about it. ;-)

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Weight loss and that

The information highway has lots to give about diets, health and nutrition and even the best weight loss products in the market. There are different trainings recommended, tablets that works as suppresants, food intake diets,  cleansing methods, plastic cloth therapy, skin-tightening lotions, medical treatment all for the goal of making one's self look better.

I must admit I have tried some of those (not all lol!), and none has worked with lasting results so far. I have been to the gym, tried the negative calorie diet and the gm diet but still, I'd look ok then fat, ok then fat and I'm just tired of it. I plan to do Pilates come February...so let's see...

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Krapfen

Wikipedia says Krapfen(Austrian, in Germany they are called Berliner) are the same as French crullers...it could be in the way they are baked/cooked but looking at them I'd say they are filled donuts that lack chocolate toppings :D.  Above are vanilla-filled Krapfen with the standard confectioner's sugar on top, should that have been chocolate then I'd have Boston creme! (my...how I miss Dunkin' Donuts!) Krapfens take the sour rather than sweet side with its filling...strawberry and apricot are the most popular ones but I won't say no to those with chocolates or caramel.

Here's a simple recipe I got from a book...Ich helf dir kochen by Hedwig Stuber...

Ingredients (for about 25 Mini-Krapfen):

500g all-purpose flour

20g yeast

50g sugar

250ml lukewarm milk

3 egg yolks (L)

100g melted butter, lukewarm

a pinch of salt

about 750g clarified butter, lard or coconut oil for frying

jam for the filling (pick your choice)

confectioner's sugar for dusting

How to:

1. Sieve flour into a large non-sticky mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Add a tablespoon of sugar and the yeast, crumble the yeast as you put them in.

2. Pour lukewarm milk into the well. Add the other ingredients (sugar, egg yolks, melted butter and a pinch of salt).

3. Knead well, either by hand or with a mixer until dough can be easily removed from the bowl. Add a bit more flour if the mixture feels sticky. Let the bowl rest in a warm place for at least 30 minutes or until the dough has almost doubled, cover with a kitchen towel.

4. Roll out the mixture with a rolling pin about 2cm thick and shape your Krapfen. You can also make minis by using your cookie cutter.

5. Leave the pieces on a floured tray, cover again.

6. Heat the oil of your choice in a large pot (or deep-fryer) to 175°C (~345°F).

7. Drop in the dough one at a time. Close the lid after...the steam helps the Krapfen to float...which gives the Krapfen its distinct middle ring (lol). Flip them in case the other side didn't turn brown. Scoop out the Krapfen in time and let sit on paper towels to remove the oil.

8. When they cool, fill them with your favorite jam using a long piping nozzle. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Chocolates on top won't hurt too! ;)

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Supplements

Aside from ensuring my kids get the needed glow, grow, go foods, I also give them a daily supplement, that is for better appetite and for them to grow a "bit" taller. I myself take vitamin C supplements from a friend in Japan, helps my skin glow! ;-) I also see to it that hubby takes in his required vitamins and minerals with a daily balance supplement. So far, I've seen good outcome from it. He has less sneeze attacks now. Though spring hasn't come yet, I am certain he won't be having the allergies like the past 2 years. My mom gets joint supplements from time to time as well. She's 60 and of course, she gets the feeling of being a bit out of tune, hehe.

If you are looking for a particular supplement for yourself or anyone in the family, browse the supplement reviews page SupplementCritic.com. The site provides a categorized page for different supplements, a page for the best online prices that customers can compare and lists of users' recommended supplements.

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Burn

While browsing at a friend's page of skin supplements, I noticed one that seem to not belong to the group...the section:

fat burner. I was almost tempted to try it because there were lots of comments from those who have bought the product. Seems as though they are giving out good testimony for the effectivity of the product. In the end though, I just bought what I originally planned to buy, the skin vitamin supplement...I just told myself, I will get there: to losing weight, soon, hihi.

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