buy local – Jellybeans in the City

Gift your loved ones with goodies from Bake Boss

It will be a different Christmas this year, won’t it?

We won’t be able to gather with friends and family, travel to our favorite haunts, nor have boisterous merrymaking.

The holidays may be subdued but the Christmas spirit should still be alive and well through the time-honored practice of gift-giving.

Presenting our loved ones with yummy treats is one way to keep sweetness in this world gone awry.

Take Bake Boss’ baked goodies, for example. Made with love by thirty-seven-year-old baker Earl Reyes, these sweet somethings should give your nears-and-dears a bit of sugar rush that will usher in some holiday cheer.

Aside from her involvement with the family construction business, Earl busied herself with her hobby since high school: baking. She whipped up baked goodies for family, friends and coworkers during the height of the quarantine, and, bolstered by her husband’s encouragement, eventually launched her online food business in May of this year.

Bake Boss’ homemade sugary treats include:

Chocolate Banana Muffins (Php347 for 6 pieces | Php573 for 1 dozen). Moist and chocolatey muffins with the naturally rich sweetness of bananas. Gift this to avid chocolate lovers and banana loaf fans.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (Php297 for 9 pieces | Php360 for 1 dozen). Soft, buttery and chewy oatmeal cookies with the fruity tanginess of raisins. Be a Santa and treat the little ones to a plate of these yummies along with a glass of milk as a reward for being good kids all year.

It’s never too early to plan out your presents for your family and friends. So be sure to make a list and check it twice, then order your foodie presents from Bake Boss via Instagram at least two days before delivery date. Cashless payments via GCash are accepted.

All of Bake Boss’ goodies are freshly baked and can be delivered from Paranaque to anywhere in Metro Manila via Grab, Lalamove, Happy Move, MoveIt, Angkas, Mr Speedy and others (delivery fee charged to buyer).

Christmas may be different this year, but with sugary treats as delicious holiday gifts, it can be just as sweet as it always has been.

Disclosure: Product samples were provided to facilitate an honest review.

Check out my blog posts on other small enterprises and startups in the food business:

A delicious taste of home with Tia Carmen’s Apple Crumble

Home is where the heart is, so they say.

Well, given the restrictions on mobility due to the community quarantine, many of us found ourselves stuck at home, though our hearts may be somewhere else.

If you’re yearning to be back in the hustle and bustle of the metro, or to roam free amidst wide open spaces, I’m sorry to say it but you may have long to wait.

In the meantime, why not take comfort in the haven of home by relishing the sweet delights you can enjoy there, with the people closest to you?

That’s the idea that the folks behind the new online store Tia Carmen Fresh Pastries wants to push. The enterprise is named after Carmen Escriva (sister of Saint Josemaria Escriva de Baleguer) who supported her brother’s ministry and championed a love for home.

Launched only last July 14, Tia Carmen produces homemade baked pies and crumbles that bring back happy memories of childhood and sharing good food with loved ones.

Its Apple Crumble (Php550), for example, is a masterpiece flavors and textures. From its buttery, slightly crunchy and crumbly topping that gives way to soft and sweetly-spiced apple filling, it is the quintessential comfort food, that can satisfy the sweet cravings of four to six people.

Did you know that the crumble originated in Great Britain during World War II? Because of the food rationing instituted by the government, the ingredients needed to make pie crusts were in short supply. Some enterprising bakers used what flour, fat and sugar they had into making a crumble topping and a new dish came to be.

The apple crumble is best enjoyed warm, with the aroma of apple, cinnamon and butter wafting to your nose. Add a generous dollop of vanilla ice cream to it and you’ve got an irresistible treat!

(Note: I’ve read in several sources that Americans sometimes enjoy apple pie with sharp cheddar. Curious if the same can be applied to apple crumble, but lacking authentic cheddar in my pantry at the moment, I substituted a few slices of processed cheese on a slice of apple crumble. The result? An interesting interplay between sweet and salty that I won’t mind exploring further.)

If your constitution – or refrigerator – can’t handle a whole pie, or you just want an intimate dessert for two – or just one! – get an Apple Crumble Cup (Php200) instead.

Go ahead and get yourself a taste of Tia Carmen’s Apple Crumble so you can also get a taste of the warm comfort of home.

Tia Carmen’s Fresh Pastries also offers Banana Crumble (Php450 for whole | Php180 for cup) and Apple Pie (Php500).

Its ovens are baking every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with pies for delivery on the same day to ensure freshness.

To order, just fill out this online form. Payments via BPI, Metrobank and GCash are accepted.

Check out my blog posts on other small enterprises and startups in the food business:

Open a box of happiness with cinnamon rolls from Rolls.PH

Did you know that cinnamon rolls originated from Sweden where it is called kanelbulle (“cinnamon bun”)? This Swedish pastry is an offshoot of the British Chelsea bun (a currant bun), the German schnecken (rolls made with sugar and currants), and other butter-infused yeast dough pastries that became popular in Northern Europe in the mid-1700s.

The cinnamon roll is usually enjoyed by the Swedish during fika, the time when they take a break from their day to sit down with friends and family to share some baked goods and coffee.

And who wouldn’t want these rolls during coffee break, hmm? The smell of the cinnamon wafting from the warm bun would surely tease your nose into lingering over a few cups of coffee as you ruminate over your day.

The Chelsea bun and the schnecken made their way across the Atlantic in the 1800s through English and German immigrants and found themselves in the New World, particularly in the cultural melting pot of Philadelphia where the size and make-up of the Chelsea bun are combined with the fillings of the schnecken roll, resulting in a large, caramelized cinnamon roll.

Today, cinnamon rolls are practically staples in coffee shops, oftentimes topped with a cream cheese icing that adds even more richness to the pastry.

But, guess what: you can enjoy it at home, at your workplace or wherever you are thanks to Rolls.ph.

This online business is the brainchild of two Immaculate Concepcion Academy students who discovered a way to produce the perfect homemade cinnamon rolls – soft, moist and not too sweet.

These rolls are all made by hand using premium ingredients and are priced at: