Too Many Bananas....

Banana is a staple in our house and sometimes we tend to have so many we end up not wanting to eat anymore. LOL!
Last week, my mother-in-law gave us a bunch of "saba"  (a kind of banana we use in Nilagang Baka or beef soup with real beef cubes or shank with veggies, corn and saba
.. YUM!) but since there's only 3 of us and we are not really a fan of that banana, we forgot that it was sitting on our table the whole time.
Anyway, I don't want to waste so I thought I'd whip up a chocolate banana muffin but I didn't have enough flour left so I consulted the ever reliable Google on what to do with left over bananas.
Google returned banana fritters!
This recipe is from +Martha Stewart and you can find the recipe here.
I was remimded of our very own "maruya" but this one is prepared differently.
After letting it sit on a paper towel to remove the excess oil, I dusted it with a little bit of powdered sugar and spinkled with some lemon zest.
YUUUMMMYYY! Perfect Monday after school snack for the kiddo!

~ The Homey Mommy

The Getting Lean Again Project

Good morning, Everyone!

It's been a while since the last time I woke up very very early until the two weekends past. Sigh..sigh...
I guess there really are short-lived happy moments....

COFFEE, anyone?

Anyway, it is a Sunday today and my husband got up at 4.30 to take a shower before going to his bike training. It was raining last night but it didn't stop him from still going though. I admire his dedication to that routine... I hope he would have the same amount of dedication when it comes to getting the dishes done. LOL!

Okay so, he is out to sweat and burn the flabs and I am here writing on my blog... Is there such thing as finger excercises? Hahaha!
I have been planning and planning and..planning on how I will go back to the lean version of me but to be quite honest, IT AIN'T EASY getting the plan into action.
I want to ride the bike but I am terrfied of falling off and ruining probably the only good part of my body. LOL!
I am more of the high heels and dress kind of gal.
My husband is patient enough to help me with starting to balance and I am trying (really trying, I promise! ) to be brave and place my feet on the pedals and push.
In the meantime, he bought this thingamajig here to help me sweat on the bike. It works as a stationary bike at the gym but less expensive.

 attach your bike to this thing and VOILA! Push the pedal to the metal without falling off!

Now there really is no excuse to getting lean and healthy.

SAHMs, I know it is at times challenging to find time to exercise but 10 to 15 minutes everyday should do. The point is WE NEED TO SWEAT and purposely trim off that ugly excess we've been carrying. We don't need it so let's get it on!



Happy Sunday! 

~ The Homey Mommy

To Gel Or Not To Gel?

My poor feet before the spa. Please pardon my legs... 😊

Ahh feels so good to have a massage.😳

My new toe paint! 😊

So finally the long awaited weekend has arrived and here I am in my favorite salon having my feet and nails done. I like my nails painted so I asked for the color palette. I noticed they are labeled by the brand (which was usual) and by the type of polish like regular or gel.  The first one I am familiar with and the latter I am not so I thought I'd give it a try. Plus it sounded nice, so... Anyway, I asked the lady what the difference is and she said the gel last longer and will not chip. I was decided to give it a go then I asked for the price and that was the deal breaker. It was almost P700 for a nail polish. JUST FOR THE NAIL POLISH!
The cheapskate in me cried OUCH! LOL!
I told the lady to forget the gel and get me my usuals - which I have no complains of actually .
I have nothing against women who treat their toe nails with a nail polish as expensive as the gel type, it is just not for me and for my purse. There maybe times when I am able to afford to a few hundred bucks but I just don't find it practical. My feet are very much statisfied with the TLC I give them.
Feet are smiling right now!

It's the weekend Mommies so enjoy and pamper yourself! 

~The Homey Mommy

The Homey Mommy

My Toddler Is Back To School.. And So Are We

It's been a while since the last blog I published. Well, ya'll know how busy Stay-At-Home Mommies are, right? Sometimes we have all the time in the world, sometimes we just don't know where precious time went! 

Anyway, my son started attending school last year and it was an exciting yet a very uncomfortable experience for us as a family, especially for me.. being a MOM.

As mommies, we always want to make sure that our child gets the best of everything and anything and it breaks our heart when we fail to give what we feel they deserve. 

So we scout for schools that will surely teach our kids well in terms of, well, EVERYTHING they need to learn. Sadly, the best of best cost a fortune so we settle for the second best.... is it? 

In passing, I realized that paying the most expensive tuition fee does not follow good and quality education. Yes, the good and quality facilities and amenities come with the price tag but that is another story. Maximixing the tools to learn is dependent on the parents and children. The partnership of parents and teachers in nurturing the child's potential to learn and excel is important.

During Davin's first year in Kindergarten, we were clueless as to how we were going to help him start the new chapter of his life as a pupil. It was a little crazy to be honest. I forgot that school means, sets of uniforms, shoes, sets of underwear, workbooks, school supplies, snacks and most of all, getting up early to prepare everything he needs for school. Not to mention, we must have a flat iron! It is not customary in our household to press our clothes except for the really formal ones so we didn't own a flat iron...and now we have one!

Thankfully they year didn't wrap up with us still running around like a headless chicken. By the grace of God we were able to cope up with the demands of having a toddler who is attending school.

This year we didn't buy a lot of new things for school. His undergarments and socks are the same ones he's been wearing even before attending school. He still feels comfy in them so no fuss. We made sure to buy a pair of shoes that he will outgrow fast. We kept the pencils, coloring stuff and other materials from last year and that saved us quite a few hundreds too!

My little boy has so much more to learn and so are we as parents. It will not be an easy journey but it does not have to be so stressfull either. The name of the school and amount of fees we pay in realty doesn't matter. What is important is that as parents we follow up with our child's learning progress and we collaborate with their teachers on nurturing out kids to be excellent and happy with what they do.  😍

About Pasta...

I love pasta! I have always been fascinated by how pasta can come in different shapes, sizes and most of all by how much the real fancy ones could cost in the grocery!
Well I usually just buy the regular spaghetti but having a kid at home sometimes would call for extra creative efforts in food presentation. So when pasta is in the menu, it would be nice to use the nice, fun shaped and colorful one also like the fusilli, rotini, conchiglie, farfalle and so the list go on. If you are wondering what these lovelies look like, +disgraceonthemenu.com has a list of pasta names with a description of each and photos to help you and me find them easily. 
When I was single and with a fat paycheck, buying from the grocery was always and the only option. Now, priorities have changed and so opening up to other possibilities is a preference. That being said, I decided one day to try and make my own pasta at home. I don't have a pasta machine and I was quite hesitant at first but thanks to this fabulous lady in +Dulce Delight for having +You Tube video tutorial on how to make pasta without the thingamabob. Yay!
I'd like to share photos of how I did my homemade pasta unfortunately I didn't have any (all I have was the photo of my cooked pasta... what a shame..) but you can always visit the +Dulce Delight +You Tube channel for a detailed procedure. 
I have, however,  the list of ingredients and a step-by-step process on how to make pasta from scratch in the comforts of your own kitchen :) 
So let's not waste time, and here are the ingredients:

• 1 cup of All Purpose Flour and 1 Cup of Semolina Flour (I didn't have a Semolina Flour so I used APF in all 2 cups)
• a pinch of salt
• olive oil or any flavored oil of your choice
• 3 eggs, large
• water (just in case the dough gets too dry and you will need to add a little more liquid)
• a fork 
• a rolling pin

Steps:

1. Combine your dry ingredients on a clean surface or on your counter top (make sure it's very very clean).
2. Make a well in the middle and add your liquids.
3.  Using a fork, slowly blend your dry and liquid ingredients starting in the middle.
4. Blend until the dough comes together and you can form a ball.
5. Knead the dough until it's smooth, approximately 15 minutes.
6. Cover your dough in a plastic wrap and let it rest for at least an hour at room temperature. 
7. Cut a piece of the dough and roll it with a rolling pin as thin as you can until it becomes almost transparent or shear. Keep the rest of the dough in the plastic wrap.
8. Cut out strips using a sharp knife, circles using a piping tip, twist the cut out pasta strips, you can pretty much do anything your imagination is your limit. 
9. Let your pasta stand to dry for at least an hour before using.

One tip I learned when cooking pasta, the water has to be really boiling and should be more than the amount of the pasta. Don't add oil in the water, just salt, salt and salt. Leave the pasta in the boiling water for 45 seconds and take it out of the water to prevent it from overcooking. 
Just like the commercial pasta, you can cook a lot of different recipes with the you made at home and the ingredients are just in your sitting in your cupboard or fridge.

Sauté some tomatoes, garlic, onions and basil in olive oil and mix them to your cooked pasta and voila! Pasta heaven! So simple, so easy to put together, so delicious most of all, so light on the budget :)

Give your paper plates a new look!

I love the idea of making DIY projects! It is very affordable and practical. It brings out the creativity that I didn't think I have and most of all, it is very earth friendly because you Reuse, Reduce and Recycle.
I found these lovely cupcake/cake boxes at http://www.shakentogetherlife.com
 and I thought they would be perfect for the homemade pastries I make. Not only will I be able to have the flexibility to customize according to my client's specifications, it will also cut some production cost on the packaging. 
So, to do this you need the following:

paper plates                             
anything square (to outline the base of your basket)
ribbons, paper twines, etc.                      
non-toxic or edible glue          
a pair of art scissors
cutter                                       
pencil 
ruler

First, trace the outline of your square on your paper plate using anything square shaped you can find at home. Second, using a ruler extend the lines of your square all the way to the edge of the paper plate. Third, using a cutter, cut on the extended lines to create flaps but be careful not to cut on you square. Fourth, fold the flaps to create a box and glue each sides. Fifth, decorate the box with a ribbon, paper twine or with anything you have available at home for embellishment. Voila! You now have a lovely basket for your cookies, cupcakes, cakes, fruits, candies and the list goes on! Turn your ordinary paper plate into something else and nourish the creativity in you. Enjoy!

 

The Shawarma Started It!

Crazy (but it will surely work :b) thought while at the vegetable & fruit section in the grocery yesterday:

"I want to own a vegetable and fruit farm and I would grow all the vegetables and fruits that are expensive to buy!"

I ate Shawarma after and I was so disappointed at how the size of it shrunk and wondered:
"Is there still a food chain where the price remains quite the same but the quality and quantity also stays the same?"

Mushroom Burger in Tagaytay came up and yup, it's true --The price is the same, the quality is better than ever, the quantity is never smaller. I ate there years ago with my friends and went back years after with my family and it is still the Mushroom Burger that gives you your money's worth.

Then I thought about Whopper Jr. and how it used to fill my stomach to the point that I can't walk straight anymore...and the Classic Burger and how I would usually have it for lunch back in college and remain happy tummy until dinner time... what happened to them?

I guess this is what really happens during cost cutting -- everything is cut down even the patrons.

Anyway, this is just a thought from a foodie mommy like me waking up at 4 in the morning wondering about what to cook for breakfast and a little bit getting frustrated with how far my PHP 1000 food budget takes my shopping cart.

Good Morning! Happy Sunday!