"TAPASTEK"

'Tapastek'

Beef Tapa and Bistek Tagalog (or famously known as 'Bistek') are just two of my favorite food to eat.Traditionally, Beef Tapa is a Filipino breakfast best served with sunny side up eggs and garlic rice collectively known as "Tapsilog" But Filipinos, with their love for food, they can have this one breakfast dish any time of the day. Beef Tapa is almost similar to Beef Jerky. Thinly sliced beef cured with salt and dried directly in the sun, though most Filipinos don't do drying because it takes so much time. And then marinated with garlic and soy sauce and then fried to almost a crisp. Bistek on the other hand is beef steak with a Filipino twist. You can search it on google.

We had beef tapa in the fridge and i was craving for bistek. So, I thought, how about mixing them. Besides, bistek is only beef strips cooked in boiling soy sauce mixture with onions and garlic and pepper and brown sugar. And viola! You have Tapastek!

What I did was, since tapa is a little bit firm, I cooked the tapa in oil a little bit until brown on both sides or at least you see some crusts forming. And then I put some water and let it simmer to somehow make the beef tender. Keep adding water until you feel like the meat is tender. You can taste it just to make sure. Then when all the water evaporates, add some more water and then soy sauce and let it boil a little. When it starts boiling turn  the heat to low and add the garlic and the onions. Let it simmer. Add more water if you have to, just a little bit. You can also add a little bit of cornstarch to thicken the sauce. You can even add cream to make it creamy. But it's your choice. And finally, to make it sweet, add about a tablespoon of brown sugar. Brown sugar and not white sugar. 

Then you can now start plating. Enjoy!

Martinelli Pizza Deli

What is traveling without food? Food is very essential. In every travel you discover something new. Different places offer different kinds of food. Well some may offer the same kind but could go beyond expectation or fall down with disappointment.

One of Ormoc's gems would be Martinelli Pizza Deli. It was introduced to us by our host, R. According to her, it's one of her favorites and she's happy to share it with us.

Martinelli Menu List
(not my photo)

Actually, we never went to the pizzeria. R just brought 2 pizzas at home for midnight snack. 1 was The Boss All-Meat Fiesta and the other one was something chicken (I think the chicken pineapple) for W because he's Muslim and he can't eat pork. But pizza? You just can't make pizza wait til' midnight so we devoured the pizza during dinner.

The Boss All-Meat Fiesta looked like your typical meat lovers pizza. It had bacon, beef chunks, pork chunks (i think?), pepperoni with lots and lots of cheese. And drizzled with a generous amount of pepper.

The first bite reminded me of Shakey's Belly Buster (minus the olives and the greens) but after some more bites, I realized its more than the belly buster. There's something in there that I couldn't really pinpoint that makes it oh so good. I guess it's a secret something (?) It was really good to be honest. 

The Chicken Pineapple was a little so-so. I did not take interest on that one because I already was making love with the other pizza. But if given the chance again, I guess I could give it a feedback.

What I like about the pizzas was, according to their carton, they use the fresh-iest ingredients from pure Italian olive oil, basil, cheese etc. And their dough is made of whole wheat flour. And when we say whole wheat, we say healthy. I guess the 'healthy lifestyle' fad has reached the world of pizzas!

It's funny that Ormoc being badly hit by the storm Yolanda last year, the deli is still getting so many customers. I guess there's no storm that can harm people's cravings for PIZZA! No storm can beat down a good pizza!

But yeah again, if given the chance again to go to Ormoc, I'd visit the place again and try the other pizzas on their list.

So readers, if you decide to get lost at Ormoc City, don't forget to drop by Martinelli's Pizza Deli. 

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Martinelli Pizza Deli

Osmena Street, Ormoc City

Phone: +53 255 9068

Operating Hours: 2pm - 10pm

Gelatissimo: LIMONCELLO

With the summer heat blazing, I could only think of a few things to cool down. One would be taking a cold bath. Second would definitely be Ice Cream.

Ice cream is everyone's (well, majority) comfort food. There's something in ice cream that make us happy when we're sad, make us even happier when we're happy. It enhances the happy hormones. And its also one of the best things that beat the heat during summer (in our case in the Philippines, the dry season). Right now, I'm feeling the heat and all I could think about is Gelatissimo's Limoncello flavored ice cream.

'Summer in Positano'

image from Google.com

I was strolling along the north wing of SM Cebu when I saw Gelatissimo's ad. And knowing me I'm a sucker for ice cream so even if I don't have enough money or even if i'm not hungry, if it's ice cream then I have to get it by all means necessary. I was intrigued with their 'Summer in Positano' ad plus the idea that you get a free beach ball when you spend a certain amount, skipped the beach ball even though I wanted to get it. I don't have any use for it.

Looking through the glass, they have a wide array of flavors to choose from. Everything was good for me. But what really caught my attention was the LIMONCELLO flavor. I've heard about it (limoncello) from National Geographic People when they featured it on one of the cooking shows. According to the show, Limoncello is an Italian alcoholic beverage made up of one of the most expensive kind of lemon in Italy. The lemon is different from the lemon that we know because the lemon used in Limoncello is sweet with a little sour in it. So I ordered a single scoop of limoncello flavored ice cream.

Gelatissimo's Limoncello Ice Cream
The Real Taste of Italia

I know in my heart and in my mind (even my taste buds know) that this was going to be good. But I wasn't prepared when I took the first bite of the ice cream. It was like 'sex in my mouth' or to exaggerate more, it was like the 'creation of the universe' in my mouth. The first taste was piquant. A combination of sweet and then the lemon zing takes over, you'd want more. Every bite was orgasmic. Each bite would bring you to Italy, enjoying a glass of ice cold lemonade while basking under the sun. It really gives you the summer feel. At this point, I'm imagining eating it again. I consumed the whole thing in 3 to 5 minutes. I really enjoyed the experience.

If you love tangy flavors, well, the 'Summer in Positano' selection is really for you. You'd enjoy it. Go to your nearest Gelatissimo branch now.

Unfortunately, for us Davaoenos, we don't have Gelatissimo. Yet! And I don't know if anyone has actual plans on bringing the brand here so Davaoenos can also enjoy the great flavors this Italian ice cream brand can offer.

For more info, visit Gelatissimo Philippines Website

Buon Appetito!