homemade – Jellybeans in the City

Hoppity-Poppity Carrot Cake from Chrissy Bakey

We’re nearing the end of the first of this year’s “-ber” months and you know what that means…

The holidays are upon us!

Despite the quarantine restrictions and the near-constant worries we momshies saddle ourselves with, there’s no denying that this holiday season presents us with the challenge of making it one to remember for the right reasons.

And what better way to celebrate all that we have accomplished despite the odds this year than to enjoy great food with our nears-and-dears.

Homemade desserts, in particular, do more than just inject us with a bit of sugar rush. They bring us back to those simpler and carefree times when the highlight of our days were biting into a sweet slice of heavenly cakes.

That’s what thirty-seven-year-old Pasig-based entrepreneur Chrissy Caballero hopes to achieve with her online bakeshop Chrissy Bakey.

Having been a home baker for ten years, she grew her business from her habit of baking sweet treats for her son’s snackbox and whipping up cakes for family celebrations. After experimenting with various dessert recipes, even setting baking challenges for herself, she decided to quietly launch the Chrissy Bakey in late 2019, using the brand name when taking on orders and requests during the Christmas season.

She was gearing up to make 2020 her banner year…

…and then the pandemic happened.

Though initially discouraged by the stresses brought about by the pandemic while also juggling a full-time marketing job and overseeing her son’s online learning at the same time, Chrissy finally started selling her desserts again during the ECQ, then formally launched Chrissy Bakey into the world during Indepence Day this year.

Chrissy Bakey offers whimsical takes on classic dessert favorites.

The creatively-named Hoppity Poppity (Php650), for instance, is her version of the all-time favorite Carrot Walnut Cake. An eight-inch round pan of moist and sweetly-spiced carrot cake highlighted by chopped walnuts and raisins then topped with a rich cream cheese topping, it will surely get the kiddos (and some of the grown-ups!) hoppin’ for another slice or two.

Chrissy Bakey also caters to chocolate lovers with Mom’s Legendary Chocolate Cake. Other treats such as Lemon Bars and Red Swirlies are available upon request.

Chrissy Bakey opens up slots for these yummy creations every Friday and Saturday. To order, send a message via Instagram. Payments via BPI and GCash are accepted. Chrissy Bakey’s goodies can be delivered to anywhere in Metro Manila via Grab, Lalamove and Joyride (delivery fee to be shouldered by customer).

So momshies, how about we give our loved ones a taste of our fellow momshie Chrissy’s yummy dessert creations over the holidays?

Disclosure: Product sample was provided to facilitate an honest review.

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

#QuarantineCookbook: Easy Banana Crisp

Sure, banana breads has become more popular lately as newly minted home bakers have tried their hands on making this ubiquitous pastry.

Well, how about another sweet incarnation of banana as a dessert, say a banana crisp?

A crisp is a dish of baked fresh fruit with a streusel topping that typically includes oats. As the dish bakes, the oats will crisp up, adding another level of texture to the dessert, hence the name.

Unlike banana breads that require overripe fruit, banana crisps need the bananas to be just ripe.

This is a makeshift banana crisp recipe that I improvised with ingredients that I already have on hand when I was struck with one of my cravings for something sweet again.

Check it out:

Ingredients:

4 bananas sliced into thin circles
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup instant oats (my substitute for rolled oats)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
4 tbsp butter, softened

Procedure:

To make the topping,combine the flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and salt a medium bowl. Add in the softened butter and work the mixture with your hands or a whisk until crumbly. Set aside.

Evenly distribute the banana slices into two cake tins. Cut up some of the bananas to fill in the smaller spaces in between slices.

Sprinkle the topping mixture over the bananas, enough to cover the fruit.

Place inside the oven pre-heated at 205 deg C (400 deg F) and bake for ten to twelve minutes until the topping becomes firm and gets a golden brown color.

Serve while still warm from the oven.

Enjoy as is or topped with vanilla ice cream (see my recipe for Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream).

Try this recipe out and let me know what you think.

Looking for other easy-to-cook dishes to try out while in quarantine? Check out my other kitchen adventures:

#QuarantineCookbook: Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Hey, foodie!

Come on, let’s list the uses for vanilla ice cream!

A dessert on its own
A topping for dessert pies and crumbles
The thing that floats in a root beer float
The thing that makes milk shakes extra decadent
The thing that’s sandwiched when you typically make ice cream sandwiches

I’m sure there are lots more that good ole’ plain vanilla ice cream can contribute to the enjoyment of foodies everywhere.

Surprisingly, I’ve been having trouble finding vanilla ice cream in my neighborhood grocery and convenience stores the past few days. And with the modified enhanced community quarantine just around the corner, I can be sure that ice cream deliveries to these local stores will be delayed.

This is quite unfortunate as I have hankering for pies and shakes that include this treat.

Since necessity is the mother of invention, I decided to make vanilla ice cream myself.

Here’s how:

Ingredients:

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk + 1/2 cup all-purpose cream (my substitute for the 1 cup half-and-half that the original recipe called for)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp vanilla

Procedure:

Combine the milk, all-purpose cream, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Mix until well blended.

In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until it begins to double in volume or form stiff peaks.

Mix in the vanilla mixture until well combined.

Freeze overnight.

Now, I have vanilla ice cream ready to use for pies and milkshakes!

Try this recipe out for yourself!

Looking for other easy-to-cook dishes to try out while in quarantine? Check out my other kitchen adventures:

#QuarantineCookbook: Homemade Avocado Ice Cream Cake

Relief from this summer’s oppressive heat and humidity is few and far between.

It makes me want to cool down with some frozen treat. How about you?

Well, since I recently learned how to make homemade ice cream, I set about learning how to add a twist to it: make it into a cake!

And of course, I just had to try it with my favorite fruit: the avocado!

This fruit has been having quite a resurgence lately, appearing in a variety of trendy and previously unheard-of dishes from toasts to pastas. However, the avocado’s real siren call to me is as a dessert. Its rich and creamy texture, as well as its earthy flavor make the avocado absolutely sensational when sweetened, making it a great showcase ingredients for desserts such as this homemade avocado ice cream cake.

It turned out to be so easy!

Ingredients:

For the crust:

2 cups crushed Christia toasted bread (can be replaced by an equal amount of crushed Graham crackers)
1 stick of softened butter
3 tbsp white sugar

For the ice cream:

1 cup avocado puree (made by pureeing the flesh of two ripe avocados in a blender)
1 300ml can of condensed milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Procedure:

In a bowl, combine the crushed Christia toasted bread, butter and sugar. Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom of two 6″ x 2″ cake tins then set aside.

In another bowl, mix together the avocado puree, the condensed milk and heavy cream at low speed until the ingredients are well-combined and the mixture begins to thicken.

Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue mixing until the mixture forms stiff peaks.

Transfer the mixture into the prepared cake tins, gently pressing the mixture into the containers and smoothing out the top using a spatula.

Freeze for at least six hours or overnight.

What you get is a wonderful creamy blend of avocado sweetness and crumbly buttery crust with each spoonful. My kids (and I!) absolutely love it!

Well, it sure looks like I’ve got new favorite dessert!

Plus, wouldn’t you know it! You can use this recipe to make other fruit-based ice cream cakes! You might need to adjust the amount of condensed milk you use depending on the native sweetness of the fruit you’re using. Check them out:

Mango!

Banana!

Strawberry!

If ever you need to bring dessert to a potluck party or want to give out ice cream cakes as gifts, you know you can always whip ’em up in a jiffy.

Which fruits would you like to make into homemade ice cream cakes? Try this recipe with your favorite fruit and let me know how it turns out.

PS: Truth be told, the recipe originally called for Graham crackers but after scouring through three supermarkets looking for this out-of-stock item, I decided to use Christia toasted bread as a substitute. It had a buttery flavor and a more crumbly texture that went well with the ice cream. Still, if you want a more conventional crust for your ice cream cake, you may opt to stick to the crushed Graham crackers.

Looking for other easy-to-cook dishes to try out while in quarantine? Check out my other recipes:

#QuarantineCookbook: Homemade Mango Ice Cream

How’s your summer going, foodies?

If you’re feeling the summer heat like I am, you might be craving for some lusciously decadent ice cream packed with the flavors of summer.

And what can be more summer-y than mango? Ooh, just imagine the sweetness of ripe mango bursting in your mouth from the cold, soothing silkiness of ice cream.

If only it was more readily available, right?

I usually had to go to large supermarkets or specialty stores to get a tub of mango ice cream. However, with the enhanced community quarantine, stores would have a lot more difficulty keeping it in stock.

Well, thanks to my mommy, I found out how to keep my own stock of yummy mango ice cream: I just have to make it myself!

Mommy made me a batch of homemade mango ice cream for my birthday. What’s even better is that she gave me the recipe!

It’s actually quite simple. Check it out!

Ingredients:

1 cup of mango puree (made by blending the flesh of two ripe mangoes in a blender)
1 300ml can of condensed milk
2 cups of heavy whipping cream
2 drops of yellow food coloring

Procedure:

In a bowl, mix together the mango puree, condensed milk and heavy cream at low speed until the mixture begins to thicken.
Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue mixing until the mixture forms stiff peaks.
While mixing, food coloring.
Transfer the mixture into a small loaf pan or ice cream tub, gently pressing the mixture into the container using a spatula.
Freeze for at least six hours or overnight

This recipe serves four, at approximately 680 calories per serving.

You might be wondering if you can substitute all-purpose cream for the whipping cream. I wouldn’t recommend it because you would be sacrificing the ice cream-like consistency. Whipping cream has a higher fat percentage which makes it suitable for desserts such as this.

Now, I just need to stock up on ingredients and I know I can easily whip this up and have my mango ice cream fix whenever the craving hits!

Check out my other recipes: