Thank You Cheriza!

My pole buddy Cheriza is the absolute sweetest. I love her enthusiasm and her fearless disposition. She'd chat with me in Facebook about the latest pole trick she accomplished. As she shares her adventures and enthusiasm to me, I can't help but really gush with happiness too. She's just too happy!

Last Saturday, she gave me a box of French macarons. She loves them and she has been hunting for a shop that sells them. I love them too and she gave me a box with three flavors: strawberry, mocha, and chocolate. Yay!

They're in this little shop in Trinoma, I forgot to ask the name. It's sweet though but it tastes really good. Probably these were my agimats that day because I was able to do nicer inverts.

Thanks Cheriza!

When Nutella meets French Pastries

When Amaya, one of my pole instructors, mentioned a little French cafe that serves a super-good amazing nutella donut that's hardly stingy with the filling, I waited for the right time to try one for myself. After my shoot at LRI plaza yesterday, I knew that I had to take a mini-detour to Makati Ave to search for this cafe for myself. Since it was a tiny, tiny cafe, it would be easy to miss so I kept my eyes peeled and open. Luckily, Amaya mentioned to me that it was near Jolibee and I spotted the Jolibee already while trying to find the U-turn that would take me there. And here, right smack at the boundary that separates Makati Central Business District from the red light district like a little oasis that is Paris Delice.

Paris Delice would be a little cafe with yummy colors of cream and chocolate brown in a clean architecture with clean lines that spells elegant simplicity. It's really quite small, with only a little number of chairs and tables, and on a Saturday afternoon, we have it really quiet, which is a refreshing change from the overcrowded coffee shops in the mall or dotting practically the Metro.

In the mini-pastry display, I was able to spot the nutella donut, which could be pricey at Php85.00 a piece but I was told that each penny would be worth it.

Just like Paris Delice's interiors, it's a simple filled donut with no glaze or garnishings. This is it heated on the microwave (low until just warm or else it

would dry and burn). Pretty simple...

Until you stick a fork and take a bite and see all the hazelnut filling flow like gold. Definitely generous with the filling. Since nutella is sweet enough, The dough was kept bland so as not to overpower the senses. Love how good it is and so that no drop of nutella goes to waste, spread a bit of nutella on the bread.

Another thing to love about Paris Delice is free WiFi! Well, all places should be free WiFi anyway! Will I go back here? I just did. In fact, I texted Amaya and told her how much I loved the Nutella Donut and she said she was just there too that afternoon. On another chance that I'll be passing by the area, I know just where to go.

Paris Delice is located at No 1. Juno St. Corner Makati Avenue, Makati City. It's located right beside Jollibee and outside a blue Bel Air 2 Village gate.

Interpretations: Pork Chop with Red Onion Confit

I allowed pork to enter my kitchen, but on the condition though that it go here in the style of fine French food.

Dinner today was an interpretation of one of the recipes in Laura Calder's French Food At Home, which I watch over at Asian Food Network. I found the dish simple and fuss-free with few simple key ingredients that could be found at your local supermarket. Oh, this is the Pork Chop and Red Onion Confit, and the recipe could be found here.

The confit was the first one I made. The trick was to slice the red onion really, really thinly so it resembles noodles and fry it in hot butter seasoned with salt and pepper before splashing it with balsamic vinegar until it gets this deep color. I set it aside and keep it warm.

The chops on the other hand, I made a mistake of choosing chops that were super lean, since I needed a bit of marbling on the fat so that the meat cooks in its own fat. However, a little hot butter was my as i fried it for 5 minutes on each side until the pork cooks through but not too tough. I like pork while it's golden and falls right off the bone. The sugar in the recipe was used to sprinkle each side of the meat as it fries so it comes out in that nice golden color. Then I present it in the plate and top it with confit.

The confit has a strong but sweet flavor which is the perfect accompaniment to the pork chop. I didn't use sauce for this but cook the chop just right and juicy and it would go perfectly with the confit.

As for the salad, since onions fried in rich butter and pork are rich on their own, we needed something light and tangy. The salad was made of parmesan and parsley but since I'm far reach from a grocery, I used another sharp-flavored fresh herb, which was fresh basil and a cheddar slice since my parmesan's the pre-grated one, and I needed something that's sharp.

I'm searching for another recipe to cook the two chops remaining in the ref. I'm sure there's one here somewhere.