In my opinion, mango ice cream complements the bread’s sweet and doughy taste. Chocolate would also work well, but it tends to steal the thunder away from the bread. I prefer the light and simple balance of mango ice cream and pandesal.

Have you tried filling a pandesal with ice cream? It’s so good! It’s especially yummy if it’s the “dirty ice cream” you use, bought directly from the streetside vendor.

As for other breads, I haven’t tried it on whole wheat bread or multi-grain, but it’s an experiment worth trying, right? Ice cream on white bread (aka “Tasty”) is also good. I prefer my pandesal though. When ice cream that’s sandwiched between two slices of white bread melts, it makes one big messy pool.

Have you tried ice cream pandesal? Tell us about it!

Deep Fried Oreos are your Oreos dipped in a pancake batter mix and then, well, deep-fried. I was surprised that they didn’t taste cloyingly sweet, nor were they greasy. It’s a pretty easy recipe. If you don’t have Oreos, any cookie will do. I think this recipe is best for chocolate cookies though.

In a bowl, mix together 1 egg, 1 cup of milk, 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil. When smooth, stir in a cup of pancake mix. Dip cookies one at a time into the batter (watch out for lumps!). Make sure that the coating is thick, then place in hot frying oil. Cook till golden brown. Drain on plate lined with paper towels.

It’s so gooooood. This is best eaten hot. The chocolate just seems to melt in your mouth. It’s like eating a hot sandwich with chocolate spread. Yum!

What you get are crispy little Quezo de Bola snacks. Once you bite into it, the trademark Quezo de Bola cheesy flavor just explodes in your mouth. Gah. It’s DELICIOUS. Thanks to my Tita Frances for introducing us to this tasty delight! She in turn learned this from Chef Waya of Kiss the Cook Cafe.

Good thing we still have a lot of Quezo de Bola left over from the holidays. This has become one of my favorite afternoon snacks!

The video was a bust (wrong settings my foot!) but the wontons were a success. Here’s a picture of the finished product! Salivate, salivate. They were really good. My cousin ate hers with vanilla ice cream, while I ate mine fresh off the fryer. Sinfully divine.

Here’s how she made her Nutella Wontons: Line a piece of molo wrapper with beaten egg. Drop a dollop of Nutella at the center. Fold the wrapper into a triangle. Fry in hot oil till golden brown. Arrange fried goodies on a platter, then sprinkled with powdered sugar. May be served with ice cream.

What we would do next time: I bit into a wonton and slid a small piece of banana inside. Yum! Next time, we’ll place a slice of banana on top of the Nutella dollop before folding the wrapper. We’ll also try crushed nuts or other diced fruits — strawberry perhaps? Then we’d serve it with whipped cream. Gaaah. I can feel my thighs getting bigger just thinking of the next Wonton session.

Melon cubes wrapped in Prosciutto — big flavors in small bites! My sister prepared this last weekend, much to the delight of the family. It was a refreshing and light afternoon snack. It’s quite simple to prepare. Just roll a thin strip of prosciutto around a melon cube, top with another melon cube and pierce with a toothpick. Done!

It’s hard to ignore a screaming sweet tooth after a delightful meal. Dessert doesn’t have to be sinful to be enjoyed! One can still satisfy that sweet craving and still make that angel on his shoulder happy. Here are ideas for a dozen healthy desserts.

1. Fruit Parfait. Layer yogurt and fresh fruits in a glass. Chill and serve. Fruits that work: Berries, bananas, pineapples, kiwi. Throw in some granola in between layers too. Mmm! Or if you’re like me, just throw everything into a glass and drop the layering.
2. Frozen Grapes. Just put a bunch of grapes in a freezer container, stick into the freezer and enjoy when frozen. They’re quite refreshing on a summer day! I also like draining out a can of fruit cocktail (not fond of the sweet syrup!), putting the contents in a freezer container then enjoying it frozen too.
3. Fresh Fruit Bowl. In a bowl, combine sliced bananas, berries, melons and watermelons scooped out with a melon baller, kiwi, pineapples, orange slices. Chill and serve.
4. Fruit Pops. In a blender, puree watermelon and strawberry. Pour liquid in popsicle trays and serve. Other fruit pop combinations that work: mango-orange, mango-melon, berries with other berries, pineapple-raspberry.
5. Soy Ice Cream. It doesn’t have as much calories and cholesterol as regular ice cream, but can be just as delicious!
6. Frozen Yogurt. It has less fat and less calories than ice cream. But if you could opt to just stick a container of your regular yogurt in your freezer, why not? That’s what I do and it’s delicious too! Regular yogurt is much healthier than fro-yo, you know.
7. Dark Chocolate Bar. Break off a piece of that dark choco and indulge. Dark chocolate is said to have antioxidants and is good for the heart. Just enjoy in moderation.
8. Fried Bananas. On a hot pan, lay out sliced bananas and toast till they’re golden on one side. Then flip over. They’re naturally sweet and creamy!
9. Apples and Peanut Butter. Slice apples into wedges. Serve with a small amount of peanut butter. Yum!
10. Dark-chocolate covered fruit. Melt dark chocolate in the microwave or the fondue pot if you’re feeling fancy. Dip fresh fruit in such as strawberries and bananas.
11. Cottage cheese and fruit. If you’re not a fan of yogurt, how about cottage cheese and strawberries instead?
12. Sugar-free cakes and pastries. If you really must have cake, opt for the choice with fewer calories and fat.

Choose fruits first before anything else if you really must have dessert. They have lots of fiber and vitamins. The fresher, the better. Enjoy!

My sister’s cookies are calling out to me again. There’s a bunch of bananas hanging in the kitchen too. I think I know which one to go for now.

I think.

Happy healthy dessert eating! Can you share other healthy dessert ideas?

Image credit: nkzs

It follows the same recipe as French Toast, only you cut up your bread into much smaller pieces before dipping them into the egg and milk mixture. Then the usual follows — fry them on both sides in a little butter till golden. While the toast is cooking, cut up some bananas. You can also opt to throw them into the pan with the toast. Then create little sandwiches by layering the bread, fruit and bread, then stick a toothpick through them. Voila! Bite-sized French Toast.

Pop the toast in your mouth and feel the healthy sweetness ooze! Honey or sugar was no longer called for because my bananas were very sweet, and they complemented the eggy, whole-wheat toast really well. My ultimate French Toast test was getting H to like it, and he enjoyed it a lot.

Sometimes an old recipe just needs a change in perspective for you to enjoy it more. Thanks to Chef Christopher Lee for the idea! My toast is nowhere close to his of course. I mean, take a look at his dish:

Christopher Lee’s French Toast with Caramelized Banana on a Stick and Maple Syrup Fluff
(Image Credit. Recipe.)

Yowza! And oh, if you look at my picture’s background, you’ll see two bowls — one full of sausages, the other one has pork & beans. They’re my French Toast partners, bite-sized or not. I didn’t have any bacon that day.

Anyone up for some homey Bite-Bized French Toast with bananas on toothpicks?

This entry is also part of the Make It From Scratch! Blog Carnival.

Kapag “comfort food” ang pinag-uusapan, agad-agad pumapasok sa isip natin ang masasabaw na pagkain, mga nakapagpapainit sa tiyan at damdamin. Sinigang na Baboy. Champorado. Nilagang Baka. Oh yeah. Ang tuyo ba na ulam ay pwede rin ba maging “comfort food”? Oo naman. Para sa akin, isa na rito ang Giniling na Karne ng Baka na may Itlog ng Pugo (Ground Beef with Quail Eggs).

Luto ito ng asawa ko. Laging masarap ang kanyang timpla sa karne. Alam ko ang mga sangkap ng potahe na ito, pero hindi ko makuha ang kanyang timpla. Mas masarap talaga magluto asawa ko sa akin!

Maaari niyo itong gawing masmakulay sa pamamagitan ng pagdagdag ng iba’t ibang gulay — sitaw, mais, karot, etc. Pero okay na ako sa ganitong luto — sibuyas, bawang, itlog ng pugo, bakang na-”marinade” sa toyo/liquid seasoning, asin, paminta. Simpleng-simple lang ang ulam na ito pero mayaman sa linamnam!

At kahit tuyo, napaiinit din niya ang aking tiyan at damdamin. “Comfort food” nga eh! Sana’y makapagluto ulit ang asawa ko nito. Nagutom ako sa pagtingin ulit sa litrato eh.

Ito ang aking kontribusyon sa Litratong Pinoy ngayong linggo. Ang tema ay: “Tuyo” (Dry).

French toast is super easy to prepare. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of milk. Stir in a teaspoon of sugar. Stir well. Dip a bread slice in the mixture, making sure it’s fully coated. In a heated pan, melt a small amount of butter and slide your bread in. Fry on both sides till golden. Repeat.

You can also mix in several drops of vanilla in the egg mix, or stir in cinnamon. They will both give your French toast wonderful flavor too. Or you can do without the sugar in the mixture and sprinkle your French toast with powdered sugar instead.

Bacon is still my favorite French toast partner, but I was in the mood for sausages that day. Grape jelly is a second favorite of mine, followed by Nutella.

You can use any type of bread. I usually use whole wheat slices but have recently found my favorite bread to make French toast with — multi-grain bread from Bizu. It makes for purrfect French toast. H doesn’t eat French toast, but he ate some slices heartily this breakfast. I think it was the bread that did it, as it was just the right kind of plump and toasty.

How do you enjoy your French toast?

Giniling na may pechay at sabaw (Ground meat with Chinese cabbage and soup) is one of my favorite comfort foods. It’s easy to make and always hits the spot.

Simply saute one chopped onion in hot oil till transparent. Saute garlic till softened. Add chopped tomato. Add your choice of ground meat (beef, pork or chicken) and saute till brown. Stir in 2 tablespoons of fish sauce. Pour in one cup of hot water (or broth, if you prefer). Simmer till the meat is cooked. Skim off the scum as you go along. Stir in the pechay’s chopped white stalks. Then mix in the chopped leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

I don’t really measure much when cooking, but appromixately I used 1/4 kilo of ground meat, one small white onion, two cloves of garlic, one small tomato, and two bundles of petchay (about 15-16 stalks). It serves 2-3 people with a hearty appetite.

This is best eaten in a deep bowl with cooked rice mixed into the broth. I love it that way. It always comforts me. And it’s perfect for this rainy Thursday!