Baking: Live, Love, And EAT!

The lovable Wolfgang Puck has impressed on me one too many times that life is incomplete without good food.

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When life gets crazy, as it often does, I choose to spend my time milling over other things to un-crazify the situation. This usually involves writing in my journal, reading a book, watching TV series, spacing out, and painting. I am a little lass who loves the indoors as much as the outdoors because I really find it comforting to find privacy in my little red bedroom. But one of the things I would like to share with the world is how I also find solace in our good ‘ole kitchen.

No, I do not eat my feelings out. Rather, I like making goodies for people to eat—no matter how they feel! The kitchen is a haven that gets my hands itching to grab the egg beater and start whisking away. It also gives me the butterflies. Heh.

I enjoy food, and I think God has blessed me with a set of tastebuds that are adventurous enough to try almost anything…at least once. I like exploring different textures and tastes, and I love interesting flavor combinations. Yes, I have eaten those icky worms seen on Fear Factor, and I have digested a cricket or two (quite yummy!). But my palette and gastronomic adventures are not limited to insects and other creepy crawlies because that would be downright odd…and gross.

Today, I’d like to talk about the craftsmanship behind my love affair with food: cooking and baking. I grew up in a home where my Ama (grandma in Chinese) and Mum were always in charge of the kitchen: scheduling meals, making trips to the wet market and the grocery, cooking, and making me the jolly, chubby kid I was/am.

A short introduction: I have always been interested in the culinary arts ever since I was in my nappies. I’d take vegetable peelings, drown them in water, and turn them into some form of imaginary soup. I’d also get into trouble for taking flour and making inedible dough balls that would end up in the trash. I ate the Play Dough burgers and sundaes I made from my McDonald’s Play Dough kit (thank God they were non-toxic). My first dish was Sunny Side Up Egg, which made its way to Fried Rice, and finally evolved to more glamorous-sounding meals such as Seafood Rice or Paella Negra.

Baking, on the other hand, was something I recently tapped into during my senior year in college. I like being spontaneous once in a while, so I got an ordinary cookie recipe and tweaked it with a lot of Good Stuff That I Love. I thought that I was going to burn them or they would end up tasting like poop, but in the end, I heard the hallelujah chorus! From then on, I started baking more than I cooked, and here are some of my creations. : )

Taadaaaa! Rainbow Cupcakes! A delightful spin on the traditional vanilla cupcake! Mico lovingly calls them Boyoyong Cupcakes because of their playful colors. Moist and delicate, these are sure to tickle your tastebuds!

Nutella Swirl Cookies. Sink your teeth into this chewy melange of cinnamon and Nutella! Mmmm mmmm mmmm…

Super S’more Cookies. Need I say more? These cookies are sure to remind you of those campfire days! Graham cookies filled with generous chunks of Semi-Sweet chocolate and studded with toasted melty marshmallows.

Rainbow S’more Cookies. Your good ‘ole Super S’more with a colorful twist!

THE COOKIE MONSTER. Just because two cookies are better than one! Homemade chocolate chip cookies wrapped around Double Stuf Oreos. Perfect with a tall glass of cold milk!

Rockin’ Red Velvet. That popular cupcake made even more special with French Valrhona chocolate topped with a zesty lemon-cream-cheese frosting and lovingly adorned with candy sprinkles.

Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Attack! This dreamy dark chocolate cookie with hints of PB was inspired by the Peanut Butter & Co.’s popular Dark Chocolate spread. This is exactly that…cookie-fied.

Oreo Cheesecake Cupcake. Wheeeeee! One of my favorite cheesecakes in a cup! Savor this classic combination of Oreos and Cream Cheese. I crave for these from time to time.

Red Velvet Cookies. Bite-size Red Velvety delights ready for devouring! Cream cheese is usually sandwiched between two of these cookies, but trust me, they already are heavenly on their own.

Hmmmm. Sounds like a potential future business eh?!! Well, it’s a work in progress. This is a mere attempt to lure you into buying these goodies once they are up for grabs. Hahahaha!!! Anyways, writing this post alone got me hungry!

I think I’ll have some cookies and cupcakes for dinner today. Hmmmm. : )