#QuarantineCookbook: Lemon Square #SiksikSaSarap Recipes

One of the few bright spots of the community quarantine and being stuck home is the emergence of many a newbie baker’s latent genius in the kitchen.

I’ve been through a baking phase a few years ago but I gradually lost interest due to lack of time and the increasing demands of my job.

When the quarantine was put in place, however, I found myself with more time on my hands and eager to get back into the kitchen to whip up tasty treats for the fam. Being the sweet tooth I am, these dishes tend to be desserts.

I was also recently issued with a challenge: create a snack or dessert using Lemon Square Cheesecake as one of the ingredients.

Lemon Square

Lemon Square is a thirty-five-year-old brand that has been serving up real goodness through affordable and nutritious snacks. It has a family of flavors that cater to every personality and snacking quirk in the brood, starting from its flagship variant, Lemon Square Cheesecake, to snack cakes Lemon Square Whatta Tops and Lemon Square Lava Cake, as well as Lemon Square Whatta Flakes crackers and Lemon Square Cookie Bites.

Well, challenge accepted!

Here are – not one, not two, but – three desserts using four of Lemon Square variants. Check them out:

Crema de Fruta with Lemon Square Cheesecake

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

Ingredients:

1 pack (10 pcs) Lemon Square Cheesecake
1 small can (432 g) of fruit cocktail (drain the fruits and reserve 4 tbsp of its syrup)
1 small can (108g) condensed milk
1 pack (250ml) all purpose cream

Procedure:

In a bowl, mash the Lemon Square Cheesecake pieces until they break apart into small crumbs. Add the reserved fruit cocktail syrup until the crumbs form a loose, streusel-like mixture.

In another bowl, mix together the all purpose cream and condensed milk until well-blended.

In an eight-inch tin can, assemble the crema de fruta in alternating layers of crumbs, sweetened cream and fruit pieces.

Refrigerate overnight to allow the dessert to settle. Serve well-chilled.

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

Tipsy Chocolate Cake with Lemon Square Lava Cake and Chocolate Cookie Bites

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

Ingredients:

1 pack Lemon Square Chocolate Cookie Bites
4 pcs Lemon Square Lava Cake
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp Baileys Irish cream
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Procedure:

Crush the Lemon Square Chocolate Cookie Bites until they form a fine powder. Set aside.

In a bowl, mash the Lemon Square Lava Cake until they form into thick crumbs. Press them to the bottom of an eight-inch tin can. Set aside.

To make the tipsy ganache, add the Baileys to the heavy cream in a saucepan. Stirring periodically, heat the mixture over low fire until just before the it begins to boil. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate until well-combined.

Allow the mixture to cool for three minutes before pouring it on top of the mashed Lava Cake in the prepared tin can.

Using a strainer, dust the top of the ganache with the powdered Chocolate Cookie Bites.

Place the tin can in the refrigerator overnight until the cake is fully set.

Serve chilled.

Note: You can lessen the amount of Baileys you put in or take it out all together to make this dessert more kid-friendly.

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

Avocado Ice Cream Cake with Whatta Flakes Spanish Bread

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

Ingredients:

For the crust:

6 packs crushed Lemon Square Whatta Flakes Spanish bread
1 stick of softened butter

For the ice cream:

Three avocados peeled and seeded (equivalent to 2 cups)
1 300ml and 1 108ml cans of condensed milk
4 cups heavy whipping cream

Procedure:

In a bowl, combine the crushed Whatta Flakes Spanish bread with the butter. Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom of five 8-inch cake tins then set aside.

In a blender, puree the avocado while mixing in the condensed milk until well-blended. Set aside.

Whip the heavy cream at high speed until it thickens. Gradually mix in the avocado puree until well-blended.

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

Freeze for at least six hours or overnight. Serve frozen.

Note: This is an update of the Avocado Ice Cream Cake recipe I published a few months ago, incorporating some improvements I discovered after making this dessert quite a number of times.

Lemon Square Recipes

Lemon Square Recipes

There you have it: three #LemonSquareSiksikSaSarap dessert recipes that you can easily whip up to experience real goodness at home.

Lemon Square Recipes

Product samples were provided to facilitate the recipes.

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

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Making memorable snacking moments with Lemon Square

Remember simpler times when you were younger – spending sunny afternoons with your friends sharing yummy snacks lovingly prepared by your mom?

Playing outside may not be advisable nowadays, but you can still create memorable snacking moments with your kids and Lemon Square.

Lemon Square

Lemon Square

For thirty-five years, Lemon Square has been a part of every Filipino household, serving up real goodness through affordable and nutritious snack cakes. Its flagship brand – Lemon Square Cheesecake – has carved its place in every millennial’s childhood as the ultimate comfort merienda that is both tasty and filling.

Lemon Square

Lemon Square

Mothers also love Lemon Square products for its affordability, accessibility, and nutritional value.

Lemon Square

Lemon Square

Lemon Square also makes snacking more exciting with its family of brands that cater to every personality and quirk in the family:

  • Lemon Square Cheesecake: the classic favorite that is siksik with the real goodness of fresh eggs and milk
  • Lemon Square Whatta Tops: whatta cake, whatta topping, whatta filling! Make snacking more exciting with its moist cake, exciting toppings and creamy filling
  • Lemon Square Lava Cake: a moist, cream-filled snack bar made with real chocolate and oozing with home-baked quality goodness
  • Lemon Square Whatta Flakes: light and crisp crackers with a kakaibang feel in the mouth and kakaibang flavors
  • Lemon Square Cookie Bites: light, crispy, bite-sized, melt-in-your mouth cookies bursting with Lemon Square’s classic flavors: Cheesecake and Chocolate, it will make your quirky kids jump around in joy

So stay home and let Lemon Square be your family’s perfect snacking companion.

Lemon Square

Experience Real Goodness, Always.

Happy fam brunch at Over Easy, Marikina

When we think of brunch, we think of ladies leisurely eating a meal while exchanging gossip.

However, one Tuesday, while my mom was out doing errands, my daughter #ExhibitA and I decided to take my groovy dad out for brunch at Over Easy.

So, after a short trip from our house in Pasig to this trending resto in Marikina, soundtracked with classic rock ‘n roll from my daughter’s Spotify, we found ourselves at Over Easy’s sprawling premises.

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

And my dad lost no time taking a pose! (So now we know where I got it from! 🤪)

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

Actually, the resto’s premises is quite conducive to photo opps (“IG-worthy” is how kids today would call it).

From the colorful wall murals to the artfully displayed tchotchkes, Over Easy exudes an atmosphere of warmth, comfort and welcome while still retaining that “cool” factor. Badly put: you might get dragged here by your tita, but, deep inside, you wouldn’t mind.

Yep, you wouldn’t mind hanging out here one bit especially once you’ve tasted what Over Easy has to offer such as what we enjoyed during our brunch with Daddy-o:

Macaroni and Cheese (Php220). This is actually #ExhibitA’s go-to dish. Over Easy’s version features creamy and hot melted cheese mixed in with macaroni and topped with bacon bits.

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

Fish and Chips (Php295). Fish fillets coated with beer batter, deep-fried until golden brown and served with parmesan dusted potato chips and tartar sauce.

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

BBQ Ribs (Php510 for half-rack with 2 side dishes). Fall-off-the-bone tender braised ribs, then grilled to get that rich smokey flavor, then served with Over Easy”s signature barbecue sauce. All I can say about this dish is that the bones were picked clean by the time we’re done.

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

While my dad sipped on his Coke Zero (Php55), #ExhibitA and I treated ourselves to a European Strawberry Cooler (Php140), a refreshing fizzy drink flavored with sweet strawberries (yeah, it’s a tita drink, hahaha!)

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

Lava Cake (Php195). Our foodie adventure here wouldn’t be complete without dessert. We got ourselves a molten chocolate cake topped with classic vanilla ice cream and doused with chocolate syrup. What a perfect way to cap our meal!

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy, Marikina

This brunch may not have been an all-out gossip over drinks sesh among ladies but it allowed my daughter and me to spend some precious time with my dear daddy.

Over Easy, Marikina

Over Easy is located at G&W Terraza, Mayor Gil Fernando Avenue, San Roque, Marikina City, open Mondays to Thursdays from 7am to 11pm and Fridays to Sundays from 7am to 12 midnight. For inquiries and reservations, call +63 2 2554686.

Over Easy Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Disclosure: Part of our meal was sponsored by Over Easy through gift certificates shared by Harvard of Always Hungry PH.

Check out my blog posts on breakfast joints around the metro:

Recipe: Lava Cake in Less than 5 Minutes

I got myself a pair of Hershey’s Lava Cake Makers from Gourdo’s a couple of months back.

These nifty plastic mugs enable you to make mug cakes using your microwave oven. They even come with lids so you can have your mug cakes on the go.

Imagine the possibilities:

  • Whenever you have craving for sweets, you can easily whip up a dessert
  • You can teach your kids how to make their own sweet snacks in a fun, fast and easy way
  • You can have something to serve to unexpected guests in a matter of minutes

The packages come with 2 lava cake recipe options: one using the cake mix from Hershey’s and one from scratch. Since I have the ingredients readily available, I decided to make the lava cakes from scratch. I wrote down the recipe as I thought I might lose the hardcopy (and I did!). This recipe yields 2 yummy mug cakes, great for sharing!

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tbsp cocoa
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Procedure:

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, milk and vanilla. Add the flour, sugar and cocoa and whisk to combine.
  2. To make 1 lava cake: place 1/8 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips at the bottom of the mug, then pour in 1/4 of the batter to cover the chocolate chips. Place another 1/8 cup of chocolate chips then cover them with 1/4 of the batter.
  3. Microwave on HIGH for 90 secs or until cake is fluffy.
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to make the second mug cake.

Enjoy the lava cakes while they’re still warm! You can add a few dollops of vanilla ice cream as an extra treat.

If you have trouble finding the Hersheys Lava Cake Makers in local stores, you can order them from Amazon.com.

Want to try this recipe today? There’s no need to leave home to shop for ingredients.  With Honestbee, just order your groceries online and you’ll get them delivered right at your doorstep at your preferred time. Use this referral link and get Php500 off for a minimum spend of Php2,500.  You can download the Honestbee app on iTunes or Google Play.

If you’re in the US and an Amazon Prime member, sign up for a free trial of Amazon Fresh to get your groceries delivered to you.

Happiness Overload at Hanamaruken, Trinoma

I have been going through my #ramenphase for quite a while now.  I seek out ramen joints in the hopes of tasting rich creamy broth, firm noodles and flavorful melt-in-your-mouth meat.  The ramen that started this phase is actually the Signature Happiness Ramen I tasted during a Zomato Foodie Meetup at Hanamaruken, Ugong a year ago.  (Check out my Zomato review here.)

Since then, I have been converted to a Ramen Girl.  While I have gone around various ramen shops along my usual haunts in Pasig, Marikina and Quezon City, my thoughts would always go back to the ramen that started it all: the ramen that I measure all other ramen I tasted since against.

Imagine my absolute delight when one fine Friday, after a long and grueling meeting that extended to lunch time, my boss agreed to have a happy lunch with me and my work buddies at Hanamaruken in Trinoma.  And oh, what a happy lunch it was!

Our group of four divided among ourselves:

  • 2 bowls of Signature Happiness Ramen (Php580 each)
  • 1 order of Gyoza (Php240)
  • Initially 1 order of Chocolate Lava Cake with Ice Cream (Php180) but it was sooooo gooood that we ordered another one!

The Signature Happiness Ramen lived up to its legend in my mind.  One bowl was hearty and more than enough to satisfy two hungry and stressed office workers.  The gyoza was also flavorful and whet our appetite for the ramen while the lava cake with ice cream was a decadent cap to the meal.

I look forward to embracing this kind of happiness again when I eat at other Hanamaruken outlets.

This Hanamaruken branch is located at Second Floor, Trinoma Mall, Bagong Pag-Asa, Quezon City (call 02 7209283 for reservations).  Other branches are located at:

  • The Grove By Rockwell, E. Rodriguez Jr. Avenue, Ugong, Pasig City (tel: 02 695 3643)
  • Second Floor, Alabang Town Center, Alabang, Muntinlupa City (tel: 02 869 9857)
  • Hole in the Wall, Fourth Floor, Century City Mall, Kalayaan Avenue, Poblacion, Makati City

Hanamaruken Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Why not try your hand at preparing Japanese cuisine at home?  Check out these recipe books from Amazon.com!

Want to try some recipes today? There’s no need to leave home to shop for ingredients.  With Honestbee, just order your groceries online and you’ll get them delivered right at your doorstep at your preferred time. Use this referral link and get Php500 off for a minimum spend of Php2,500.  You can download the Honestbee app on iTunes or Google Play.

If you’re in the US and an Amazon Prime member, sign up for a free trial of Amazon Fresh to get your groceries delivered to you.