Wise Woman herbal supplements from OVitaminPro.com are often highly recommended by alternative health experts nationwide. These supplements contain ingredients that are selected from healthy plants grown through sustainable methods. You want a product like this when you are choosing your supplements because a poor quality supplement could actually do more harm than good.

You may find that the lesser quality supplements don’t seem to do much for you as far as your health is concerned. In fact, you might even feel worse than you did before due to the toxic chemicals that might have been used while the herbs were growing. With a high quality supplement, you may begin to feel better right away. Chances are good that you will continue to feel better and better with each day that you continue to take your supplements.

Maki and Sushi are two of the most popular Japanese food. For some, a Japanese meal will not be complete without at least one Maki or Sushi dish. Some people may have even tried every Maki dish in the Japanese restaurants already. For those who would like to explore other Maki possibilities can try out the Kashi Maki desserts from My Pink Wasabi

My Pink Wasabi is a pastry shop that offer Japanese novelty cakes called Kashi Maki. These are sweet hand-rolled cakes that look like a maki sushi. We spied upon their kiosk at a food bazaar in Trinoma Mall few months ago, and we couldn’t help but stop and try out some of their cakes. There were 9 flavors available: the white matcha, oolong berry, midnight mint, choco locco, coconut dream, café mocha, cookie kiss, marula and nutella sesame. We bought a box of 9 for P280, and got one of each flavor to find out if it is worth the splurge. The hand rolled cakes tasted good and offered an interesting mix of flavors. It may taste a bit bland for those who have a sweet tooth but they can be great for tea parties. Our Kashi Maki picks include the midnight mint, marula and oolong berry.

The Kashi Maki cakes are packaged in nice looking pastry box that resembles Japanese Bento boxes. Each box comes with a pair of steel chopsticks which adds another touch of Japan in it. If one would only consider the taste and the size of the cakes, the Kashi Maki can be perceived as expensive. Each cake would cost around P31 and just as big as the bite-sized Maki in Japanese Restaurants. But it you factor in the unique qualities of these cakes and their elegant packaging, you’ll realize that you got a value for money purchase here. Those who are looking for a great novelty gift for people they want to impress can check out these great looking cakes.

Part of the Filipino culture is the habit of buying “pasalubong” or home coming treats whenever we go out of town, even if the out-of-town destination is merely a two to three hour drive from the city. Most of our provinces have made their own brand of special and unique pasalubong treats that their visitors can bring home. Some of the top of mind treats are the Biscocho, Butterscotch Squares and Barquillos from Iloilo, Cashew Treats from Palawan, and Strawberry, Ube Halaya and Peanut Brittle from Baguio. In Tagaytay, Rowena’s Cafe is our favorite stop-over for yummy pasalubong treats.

This lovely pasalubong shop made a name for themselves because of the yummy and affordable buko tarts that they offer. The tarts are made of crumby crust and a sweet filling with some fruit bits at the center. Aside from the buko flavor, patrons can also enjoy mango, blueberry, apple, pineapple, and ube tart flavors. Unlike other tarts that are either too sweet or bland, these tarts have just the right amount of sweetness to complement the natural flavors of the fruit.  These tarts can merit an A-grade rating for a pasalubong treat but I wouldn’t pit it against pastries from specialty shops like Conti’s and Mom & Tina’s just yet.

Rowena’s Café also features other native delicacies and snacks that can be enjoyed during the ride home or brought back family and friends. Their product selection isn’t as varied as the guitar pickups from musicians friend, but the store visitors will definitely find some treats that they’ll enjoy. Our personal picks include the Lengua de Gatos cookies, Tamarind Candies, and Caramelized Otap. These products can captivate buyers to come back for more not just because of their flavors and freshness, but also they offer good value for money products that everyone can enjoy.  

The country’s leading convenience store 7-Eleven recently launched a hot campaign for this summer season, the 7-Election Gulp Poll.  With the national elections coming up in a few weeks, the 7-Election is a great way to remind people about their responsibility to choose the future leaders of the country.

My only concern when I entered the 7-Eleven store was to pick the perfect beverage to cool me down from the high temperatures outside, but the Gulp section offered more than just refreshment options. The available 7-Eleven Gulp cups represent the political parties and candidates for the coming May 13 Senatorial elections. Customers are given the right to vote and put their bets at the top of the 7-Election polls by choosing the cup that bears the name of their favored candidates. I wasn’t just given an option to choose my refreshments but also an opportunity to show my support for my Senatorial bets.

There are 3 cups to choose from, the yellow Team PNoy cup for the administration candidates, orange UNA cup for opposition candidates, and a white one for Independent candidates. Every Gulp you take is equivalent to a vote for the political party that you are supporting. Those who would like to place votes for individual Senatorial Candidates may do so without any purchase required. All they have to do is visit www.7-Election.com.ph and cast their votes through their facebook or twitter accounts. You may also check out the list of the forerunners on the same site before or after placing your votes. The campaign runs until May 6, 2013 and the results will be published at 7-Election website on May 7, 2013.

This is merely a promotional activity for 7-Eleven, which means that the survey is unofficial and unscientific. However, it is interesting to note that the previous Gulp Poll results are quite close to the actual Presidential race results last 2010. It may not be official but choosing a cup and placing a vote in the poll can be your tools to ponder on the candidates that you will choose and support for the Senatorial race. Those who haven’t exercised their right to vote for the 7-Election Gulp Polls still have a few more days to Gulp away and vote.

The beach, riverside, parks and groves are ideal places for a picnic with the whole family. One unconventional venue for these activities is the memorial park. However, those who still want to celebrate special occasions with their dearly departed opt to have their picnics in these sacred resting places.

Just like a regular picnic, home makers need to prepare equipment like tents for covering, sturdy and easy to clean picnic mats similar to the yoga mats found in www.yogaaccessories.com, portable coolers, paper towels, fans, and the picnic fare. When it comes to the recreational picnic activities, park visitors may want to limit them to the not so rowdy ones. After all these are no ordinary parks, it’s a solemn place that you share with other people who lost their loved ones too.

Retail establishments often get celebrity endorsers to promote their products. Krispy Kreme’s recent choice is an international celebrity that the young and old couldn’t resist – Mickey Mouse. This charming mouse got us to make an unscheduled stop at the Krispy Kreme Gateway Mall branch simply because my niece and her mom spied upon their Mickey Mouse Doughnuts signage from the car window.

We’ve always been fond of Krispy Kreme so there were no objections in making the stop. However, everybody wants to pick their own Mickey Mouse doughnut so we all ended up going inside the store. We were tempted to buy one of each Mickey doughnut flavors but since we were also watching our waistlines we decided on getting one flavor each. Our picks included the Chocolate Iced Kreme Filled, Nuttela, Peanut Butter & Kreme, and Vanilla Candy Sprinkle.  We also got the same flavors for everybody else in the house.

Except for the Mickey Mouse shape of the doughnut they were still the same Krispy Kreme doughnuts that we have come to love. But the kids loved them more, and were asking for more, simply because it is Mickey!

Easter egg hunting is one the activities that we loved to do when we were kids. Now that we have our own, we are trying to continue the tradition at least until the little ones get tired of it. Early in the morning, the adults would boil a whole tray of eggs that the kids will decorate together after breakfast.

We would set up their work table with egg holders and paint brush for each child, non-toxic water color, pens and crayons, and an egg tray for drying the decorated eggs. Old newspapers and magazines, except their Lolo’s favorite cigar magazine, are used to cover the table. Some extra pages are left on the side in case the kids decide to make a huge mess.

After decorating the eggs, we would wait until all the kids are napping before hiding the eggs in our designated hunt area. When everybody is awake (and the sun isn’t so hot anymore), the hunt will start. This year, we added some plastic eggs with goodies inside to add excitement to the hunt.

Once all the eggs are found and the winners awarded, we trooped back into the house and ate the eggs that they found. The kids would usually get one egg each and the rest will be made into an egg sandwich filling.

Bringing home some Goldilocks products for the family is a great way to make an ordinary day feel special. It is not just the baked goodies that get people trooping to this well loved bakeshop, their pinoy dishes and desserts are also worth craving for. Plus, the delightful refreshments  like the classic sago’t gulaman, mais con yelo, and halo halo which are favorite coolers year round. This summer, Goldilocks has a new refreshing drink that is perfect for everyday treats. Read on to know more about this latest summer cooler.

A SWEET WAY TO BEAT THE HEAT

The temperature continues to rise midway into the summer, and Filipinos are well known to look for new, satisfying ways to cool down. This usually involves trips to the beach, hanging out by the poolside, or even an impromptu shower with a garden hose. Indeed, these activities are made perfect by having a cool and frosty Goldilocks Thirst Quencher in your hand.

Warm bodies have been flocking to the country’s number one bakeshop for countless summers, thanks to its signature Halo-Halo and Mais Con Hielo, zesty Mango Sago, invigorating Pandan Jelly, and inimitable Sago’t Gulaman.

This year, Goldilocks is adding Ube Nata to its line of refreshing drinks. A delightfully revitalizing mix of luscious of Ube, Gulaman, and Nata bits, Goldilocks’ Ube Nata Thirst Quencher will keep the hottest person cool on a warm summer day. Chill-out at the Goldilocks outlet nearest you, or call 888-1-999 Go-Delivery for orders

Our meals are usually limited to fish and chicken dishes due to my husband’s dietary restrictions.  While the most common fish dishes consist of fried or steamed local fish, our fish dishes are certainly not confined to these standard viands.  I am no expert in buying and cleaning fresh fish.  Our fish comes from the freezer section of the local grocery store.  Frozen Cream Dory and boneless Milkfish are staples in our freezer.  And today, we’re serving up one of my daughter’s favorites – Peppered Cream Dory with Honey Mustard Sauce served with Homemade Potato Chips and Caramelized Onions. 

There’s really nothing complicated about preparing this dish.  My niece learned how to prepare this dish all by herself when she was 9.   I normally prepare the sides first so I can use the same pan for the entire meal.  Here’s how to cook this dish:

Sides:

• Wash and scrub your potatoes and then slice into thin rounds.  Soak in water. 
• Peel onions and slice into thin rounds. 
• Drizzle a little bit of oil on your prepared pan and caramelize onions.
• Drain potato slices and pat dry with paper towels.
• Use the same pan to brown and crisp your potato chips.
• Set aside caramelized onions and potato chips.

Fish:

• Prepare a bowl with a mixture of flour and black pepper (1 cup flour to 2 teaspoons black pepper) and another bowl with two beaten eggs.
• Slice your Cream Dory into pieces about 3 to 4 inches in length.  Bread your fish pieces by coating with flour, dipping into the eggs, and then coating with flour again.
• Pan-fry breaded fish pieces until golden brown.  Set aside cooked fish until ready to serve.

Sauce:

• Prepare honey mustard sauce by deglazing the same pan with a cup of water, half a cup of honey, and four tablespoons of prepared mustard. 
• Add about a teaspoon of salt and whisk sauce until mustard is diluted.
• Simmer until thickened or reduced.  Taste and adjust flavors if you want the sauce to be sweeter of a little saltier.

To serve, pile breaded fish onto a serving platter, drizzle with a little honey mustard sauce, garnish with some caramelized onions and potato chips.  Serve the rest of the onions and potato chips as well as the sauce in separate serving dishes.

It was a food trip that was planned a week ahead and we were filled with anticipation as our date neared.  Since we were fans of Japanese food, our excitement did not wane – Katsu Café  Banawe Branch was a new restaurant that we were willing to brave the city traffic for. 

Once inside, we were oblivious to the busy street and the scorching summer heat outside.  The interiors of Katsu Café is minimalist with a long wall of what looked like finished bamboo slats opposite a brick lined wall.  The only highlight or accents were the Katsu Café wall sign near the door, the painted iron bottled drinks display set against the brick wall, and the framed photo of the sesame seed bowl that they serve with their signature Katsu sauce.   It was a quiet place for a nice relaxing lunch. 

Seeing that most of the dishes in their menu had a base of deep fried panko crusted meat would make you worry that the dishes would somehow all taste the same.   This cannot be farther from the truth.  Our foodie group of five each ordered something different from the menu.  Each one definitely had its own unique flavor that complemented the katsu base.  While we were waiting for our order, the server gave us a small ceramic bowl with sesame seeds.  We were supposed to turn the sesame seeds into powder by pushing them with the wooden pestle against the ridged insides of the bowl.  The sesame seed powder is supposed to add another layer of flavor to their signature Katsu sauce.

We started with the Kani Salad which we all shared.  The salad was refreshing and the shredded crabsticks and mayo dressing were not at all sparse.  Tita Lala found the dressing to be a little too much.  But, it was fine for me since I love mayo.  It seems Ally was of the same opinion since she asked to finish off whatever was left in the salad bowl. 

Our orders of  Tori Katsu Curry Rice for Tita Lala, Gyudon for me, Torikatsudon for Tito Doc, Salmon Katsuretsu set for Ally, and Ebi Tempura for Sophie came almost at the same time.   The meals all came with miso soup.  We could not say anything bad about the soup.  It was just the right salty-tart combination that went down smoothly, interrupted only by the silky tofu and the strips of kelp.  We had bites of all the dishes we ordered and each dish got our thumbs up! 

The Tori Katsu Curry had just the right curry flavor without the pungent smell you get from Mediterranean or Middle Eastern restaurants.  The serving was hefty – a little too hefty perhaps for Tita Lala who had some rice left over at the end of her meal.

The Gyudon was an even mix of beef and rice.  It was topped with raw egg, which I has a little hesitant about at first.  I quickly tossed the meat and egg with the steaming hot rice to cook the egg.  The beef slices were tender and the sauce had the perfect balance of sweet and salty.

Tito Doc’s Torikatsudon was also delicious with the tender strips of torikatsu topped with egg (slightly more cooked than mine).  Despite the sauce that was poured on it, the torikatsu was crispy on the outside and moist on the inside.

The biggest plate of all was the Salmon Katsuretsu Set.  It was served on a rectangular platter/tray, with the salmon katsu resting on a small metal rack and with a cabbage slaw on one side.  The salmon katsu pieces were thick and tasty.  Ally thought it was a tad dry on the inside, but it went well with the sauce.

Sophie finished off her plate of Tempura – and that’s enough of a compliment.  You can tell that they were freshly cooked because of the crispy coating.  Unlike in other restaurants, Katsu Café’s tempura will give you a piece of the prawn inside even on your first bite. 

I am the “Sally-” (of the film “When Harry Met Sally”) type of diner.  I would ask for different types of sauces and condiments with which to flavour my food.  This time around, I did not ask for anything special and on-the-side.  There was no need to.  The food was perfectly flavored as it is and any other “requests” would have tampered with the already deliciously tasty fare that Katsu Café has to offer.  On the price front, Katsu Café really does give you value for your money.  For all the food that we had plus two bottled drinks, our bill did not even reach a thousand pesos.  Needless to say, we loved our food trip to Katsu Café and would come back again to try out their other menu offerings.   The word “katsu” in Japanese means to win or be victorious.  In our foodie list, Katsu Café is definitely a winner!