I used to have a lot of allergies growing up I've tried almost everything that the doctor could come up with. It doesn't get rid of it, but it does help relieve some of the manifestations. A few years after I graduated from college, I learned about a clinic in Ortigas that offers both eastern and western medicine. The clinic was called SynergyMed Center located at Discovery Suites. I don't think it still exists, but if you guys have an idea if they moved to a different location, do drop me a note.

It's pantry cleaning day and we still have some sukiyaki-cut pork that I've brined. Looking at our pantry, we have our usual tomato derivative (sauce, paste, etc.) stocks, but I didn't feel like using it today. Same goes for going soy-based. Digging deep, I found a pack of Mama Sita's Kare-Kare Peanut Sauce Base.

This has got to be one of the biggest blessings we've received. It has saved us quite an amount of money to pay for the groceries and other items from the SM Group because we can use the points to pay for the items that we buy. We also have a hangout spot in the mall, not to mention the unlimited complimentary drinks that we could avail at the SM Prestige Lounge. All thanks to A's family.

BDO Prestige is a rewards card given to certain BDO accountholders. The privileges of the SM Advantage Prestige card is extended to BDO Prestige as well. Cardholders can also avail of special deal offers through SMAC deals.

I used to avoid going to SM before like a plague because of the human traffic inside the mall. It gets much worse when the mall is on sale, plus the vehicular traffic that it causes on the streets. Now, in order for us to accumulate and/or use points, I go there to shop.

I just hope that they get to tie up with SM Cinemas also =)

I'm not into jewelry (A's very happy with that), but I have been blessed to be given a number of them for free on several occasions. Most, I've gifted to family and friends. I just realized that my jewelry gifts are all Pandora!

Well, since I found it only yesterday, the free copies are only good for August to December. Still, a free Cosmopolitan magazine to keep me and my phone company is worth having around. You can download a copy on to your smartphone or computer if you'd like to read it offlline.

Just click here to avail yourself of one. Happy reading!

Cyma is one of my favorite restaurants. Nothing on their menu that I didn't like. I would understand why certain restaurants would charge an arm and a leg on some of their dishes, but there are just those that are downright too expensive. And I have that one dish in Cyma that I like, but disagree on the price: Roka Salata. It's simply greens tossed in greek dressing, but costs more than Php300 for a solo serving. That's just not right.

And now, a miracle of all miracles, my favorite crew from pepper.ph made my dreams come true by successfully hacking through the recipe. Behold, pepper. ph's version of Cyma's Roka Salata!

You can find a copy of their recipe from their site here. I've been searching high and low for a recipe of their dressing. It didn't occur to me to add mustard the whole time I was experimenting with it. And just to make sure that I wouldn't forget the recipe of the greek dressing, I'm going to write it down here:

1 tbsp mustard
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey
2-3 tbsp sugar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper 

There it is. Now, we can all impress our guest with this delicious dressing! All thanks to the wonderful people of pepper.ph!

This has got to be one of my favorite sidings to make. It takes quite a lot of prep time because of all the dicing involved, but other than that, it's quite simple to do. 

Ingredients:

8 tomatoes, deseeded and diced
1 mango, diced
1 red onion, diced
extra virgin olive oil
parsley, chopped
juice of half a lemon
salt
pepper

Just mixed everything in and voila!

See my Zwilling J.A. Henckels knife? I love using it as it's very sharp. Kitchen knife accidents are actually more prone to happen to those who are using a dull knife as it tends to slip off whatever it is that you're cutting. So, it's actually a good idea to invest in a set of good knives.

After doing this recipe countless of times, I've learned that parsley actually plays a big role in the overall taste. It adds a certain depth to it.  I've also tried it without the mango, but I prefer having it there. I prefer the salsa cold also. I've only tried hot mango salsa once when we were having our food tasting with Kaye Cunanan. I don't have problems with the taste, I just like it served cold. Either way, it's a refreshing dish to accompany just about anything.

AIShouse is finally with Bloglovin!

Today, I thought of starting a gratitude journal as an exercise for me to recognize things that I should be thankful for in our daily life - no matter how simple and casual it may seem to be.

When I got to work this morning, I found this on my desk:

It's a box of El Idea Galletas from Bacolod from one of our seniors. Galletas is a thin biscuit popular in that region. I haven't had one for years, but I remember I like eating it. There are lots of reasons why this box of goodies made my day:

1. I get to taste an old favorite - not just a piece, but a whole box of it!
2. The person who gave it to me is not close to me. So, it was quite a surprise to get something from out of the blue.
3. It was a box of goodies that she originally bought for herself, but when she found out about my condition and that I like galletas, she gave it to us instead (eventhough I didn't ask for it).

I couldn't help but go to her office and hugged and kissed her to thank her for the special gift. We felt so loved!

As Kitchen Boss (and Cake Boss) Buddy Valastro says in his show, "nothing brings a family closer than food," this holds true in our family. Today, I prepared a meal as family and friends of the family paid us a visit in our humble abode. Which means I've been making food preps since yesterday morning (brining the meat alone takes 8 hours). My menu was courtesy of my new favorite food site, pepper.ph.

Here's today's menu: