Cafe Maurice

It has been a long time since I talked to a room full of people in public and while I am still confident enough of my speaking skills, I still can’t help but have public speaking anxiety whenever I am made to deliver a talk. It’s a good thing my son is confident, he can now speak in school events without getting nervous and he practices on his own.

So I was tempted to buy a toaster and blender last Friday but decided to postpone it because I need office furniture for my work desk. Our printer is installed and my tablet is finally out in the open so I really need to squeeze in the purchase of our new CPU or else my laptop might die on me again. I barely let her sleep for more than 4 hrs a day and it functions more like a desktop computer with all cables plugged into her.

What am I going to do with a toaster and blender you ask?
Start my diet of course. Summer is the ultimate challenge test before June!

Did you notice there were a lot of entertainment centers brought in at famous restaurants last week just for the Pacquiao-Clottey fight? They knew that if they cannot get a live stream of the fight, they might as well close shop for the day because almost all people were going to be tuning in at the fight of Pacquiao. It meant more revenue for them because they charged additional expenses for pay per view. We went to a swimming-BBQ party that day while a family friend brought pay per view rights of the fight. It was my first time watching a full blown fight and while the fight was a bit boring because Clottey was always on defensive, I shouted out of alarm everytime Pacquiao gets hit. Good thing he still won!

We are a fan of convenience stores. Whenever we go out, I make it a point for us to stop at a 7-11 store near our place because I conveniently remember we need bread (we only eat Gardenia bread and our neighborhood is too simple to even have them stocked at stores, the bread supplied by the nearest bakery 45 minutes away gets moldy after 24 hours – PROMISE!). Our bread supply per week is around 100 bucks because the princess wants the soft pandesal every now and then (and french toast too!). I also pick up coffee in cans and some chips, again, not sold within our neighborhood. I can easily spend 500 bucks there. They recently hired another security guard and added security cameras because there have reported burglaries on the stores along that road and they are the only ones left not burglarized (yet). So whenever we go there past midnight, it is only the husband who goes in – we need to put the safety of our kids first.

So while I went and did some grocery shopping last Friday, I managed to pick up what seems to be a nice and easy cookbook for our househelp (she is the one who cooks in the house )) It is in our native language and what I like most about it is the ingredients are things we can get in the local market as well. It has appetizers, fish, veggies, chicken, pork and beef plus desserts too. I actually highlighted the recipes we will be including in our menu this week (fish, veggies and chicken as my kids are not fan of pork) while I was viewing an insurance quote I received by email. I will share here in my blog pictures and the recipe if it tastes good

Most viruses actually have direct transmission, for example, sneezing and holding hands without washing them. In restaurants, food handlers and staffer have strict instructions to “wash as they go” especially when they are in the bathroom. Most of them even have posters that have instructions on how to wash hands properly. That is why there are automatic hand dryers in their toilets as well as they do not need to touch anything inside the bathroom after they have washed their hands. This is actually a good practice to do at home too.

Do you want to know how to lose weight quickly? You can either use quick trim, one of the best weight loss supplements which has great feedback, or read this:

This is This Is Why You’re Fat: Where Dreams Become Heart Attacks and based from the reviews I have read, it will certainly make you think twice before you eat that burger. You can look at their site to look at the foods we usually eat (and I hope you won’t lose your appetite with all the food you will see).

Two of my friends are pregnant and they are both on their 7th month of pregnancy. I am very excited for them as babies are always huge blessings for the family. I also envy them because they can eat anything they want and still not gain so much! It must be in their genes. I remember when I was pregnant I wasn’t even advised to take a prenatal multivitamin because my weight gain per month was short of alarming already! With my first child, I craved a certain type of spaghetti and strawberries. With my second, Starbucks coffee (I was such a stubborn mom for caffeine), dried mangoes and siomai with lots and lots of chilli!

Coming from a family where baldness is a dominant trait, I am making sure I read up on this!

Hair loss affects up to 40% of women and half of men at some point in their lifetimes. Some causes of hair loss include:

• Heredity
• Stress
• Inadequate nutrition. This factor can be eliminated by incorporating plenty of foods that promote hair growth into your daily diet.
• High levels of DHT, a hair-loss contributing hormone. Green tea may help correct these problematic hormone imbalances; a low-fat diet may also be beneficial.

What are the top foods that promote hair growth?

• Protein: liver, brewer’s yeast, fish, eggs, beans, cottage cheese, yogurt, tofu.
• Iron: liver, whole grain cereals, dark green leafy vegetables, eggs, dates, raisins.
• B Vitamins: eggs, meat, poultry.
• Essential Fatty Acids: walnuts, canola oil, fish, soy.
• Vitamin E: avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil.
• Sulfur: meats, fish, nuts, legumes, vegetables (especially onions).

Of course there is an available hair loss treatment for men but what you can prevent is better than treating them!

Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions

Adapted from Marcela Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cooking

Another thing that blew my mind about this sauce: I, for one, am a grated parmesan junkie. I not only sprinkle it over my bowl of pasta, I like to have additional nearby, to apply a fresh coat to the layers of pasta that follow. So you can imagine my shock to find that I liked this dish even more without the parmesan. The flavor of the sauce is so delicate, fresh and sweet that it needed nothing at all.

Serves 4 as a main course; makes enough sauce to lightly coat most of a pound of spaghetti

28 ounces (800 grams) whole peeled tomatoes from a can (San Marzano, if you can find them)*
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
Salt to taste

Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan (it fit just right in a 3-quart) over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste (you might find, as I did, that your tomatoes came salted and that you didn’t need to add more) and keep warm while you prepare your pasta.

Serve with spaghetti, with or without grated parmesan cheese to pass.

* I liked this enough to make us more the next day, but I only had a can of tomato puree. It also worked well, despite having slightly less texture. You will need a little less simmering time as the tomatoes are already broken down.

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