My sisters-in-law and I have a favorite place to go to when we are looking for “comfort food”. Their dumplings have a homecooked goodness to it, and we especially love their beef noodles cooked in sesame oil!!! Their scallion pancake is a favorite too! Let these pictures explain why…

Did that make you hungry? Oops sorry! Just go to Su Zhou Dimsum along A. Mabini (corner Araullo Street) in Addition Hills, Mandaluyong to get you some of your own! Oh, and just to let you know, the food here is extremely cheap! Not exactly Binondo prices, but still a good deal for a good meal!

The Baghag and I enjoyed this super cheap and very filling beef noodle soup in a hole in the wall noodle place called Lan Zhou La Mien at Benavidez Street, Binondo!

The noodles were very tasty and had a bit of bounce to it, and I love that the vegetables used still had a crispness to it! The noodle stock was not the best according to The Baghag, but overall, this dish deserves a thumbs up! Why not, when it will only set you back P80 for a bowl!

By the way, we knew it was a real deal because the place was packed with mainlanders!

Hmmm, it’s not that cheap, but still a bargain! Tresorie is having a Cash Break Sale today! Because shortie, it’s their birthday! =)

It’s Php30,000 but well, a brand new one costs $1,250 at Barney’s and Bergdorf Goodman, so that’s still a “bargain” in a way…I think!

There’s plenty bags in store, like a Luella Gisele for Php17,000 and Prada bags for less than Php22,000!!! If you are into designer bags, do check out the sale. If you’re not the type to spend big bucks on bags, then there’s an Hermes twilly for Php6,500 (it’s a classic and will definitely keep you company for years and years), plus cash deals on bling from D!Luxe and clothing from 8 and a Half!

Tresorie is located at 2F Dona Consolacion Building, 122 Jupiter Street, Makati City.

(Photo credit: the baghag)

Ahh yes, another junk food post! Hahaha!

Ok, one of the many reasons why I love shopping at Costco apart from the abundant warehouse feel, is the fact that I get to eat a hotdog or a wide slice of pizza after shopping, depending on my mood. Yeah, kind of like treating a kid to Jollibee or McDonalds after behaving well while grocery shopping. Hahaha!

The last time I went there with my friend Paz, hotdogs were the order of the day! I think a hotdog with drink combo is $1.50. With everything on it - pickles, onions, mustart, ketchup and sauerkraut! Pretty good don’t you think?

My good friend Me-an recently had an operation and was back home to recuperate today. Since I was not able to visit her at the hospital, Dear Hubby and I went to their house to check up on her. Instead of bringing the usual flowers or pastries, I made pesto sauce for her from scratch. I knew it was her favorite so I thought this would be something she would enjoy. Easy for her to prepare too! She can just top it off pasta noodles, over baked potatoes or spread over a slice of french bread, and she’ll have a delicious home cooked meal in an instant!

Here’s my recipe should you feel the urge to eat pesto pasta! You can make it in 10 minutes tops with the help of a blender or food processor. Cheaper too than buying ready made pesto sauce!

2 cups fresh basil, packed
1/2 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese (if you are planning to freeze the pesto sauce, you can just add this to your dish separately)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
3 medium sized cloves of garlic
1/2 a lemon
salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Combine basil and nuts in a blender and pulse a couple of times
2. Add the garlic and pulse a few times more
3. Slowly add olive oil while the blender is on (using the “window”, keep the lid on of course)
4. Stop to scrape the sides with a spatula
5. Add cheese (if to be served immediately. If sauce will be placed in the freezer for future use, skip this step)
6. Squeeze out lemon juice and pulse (make sure to remove the seeds prior to pulsing)
7. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste

I normally freeze my pesto sauce in small containers so that I can only thaw enough for a meal.

Enjoy!

Back when I was in Manila, I used to do Bikram Yoga, and I just love how rejuvenated I would feel after each session. Yup, despite the fact that I sweated it out for 90 minutes.

These days, I’ve been very sickly and I realized, maybe it is time that I picked up again on my yoga habit. So I bought a pilates mat (because it has more cushion) and laid it out on our living room:

While I do yoga stretches on my own every so often, I’ve never done a full yoga session without an instructor. Armed with a yoga book, and a lighted candle, I found myself stretching it out and it feels like each and every kink in my limbs has been straightened out!

I think I’ll be doing this twice a day! Since it’s a very cost-efficient way to exercise anyway! =)

Look at what I found looking back at me from the sale rack! It was the last piece and was being sold for less than $7, or roughly less than Php300 at the current Philippine Peso:US Dollar exchange rate!

This shirt was actually in the kids’ section of Target, but I think being the petite girl that I am, it still would have fit me to a T!

Question is, would I look silly wearing it?

It was about -10°C in New York today!I’m not sure if that’s how it is in the Arctic, but it sure felt like that! I had to cover half of my face with my scarf and felt my eyes tearing up because of the cold wind as we pounded the sidewalks today.

I felt sorry for the little kids who had to be out today. But maybe it would be helpful if they kept their hands warm by wearing these Hello Kitty gloves (on sale at Target for less than $2 by the way!)

And then wearing these mittens over their gloves!

Now isn’t that as fun as eating chocolate smores by the campfire on a cold night?

Right in the heart of New York City, just on 5th Avenue and 47th Street is the L’Oreal Office and their Company Store!

If you want to save money on perfumes, and L’Oreal brands like Kerastase, Inneov, Skinceuticals, Kiehl’s and Shu Uemura, then this is the place to go to! The selection may not be that much, but hey, it’s still worth a visit as you never know what bargains await you! And we are talking of huge discounts here!

There’s a catch though! You would need a guest pass, or be accompanied by a L’Oreal employee to get your hands on these goodies

What I know of however, is that if you participate in a research study conducted by L’Oreal’s Consumer Expressions Research Center, you will definitely score a guest pass as one of the perks. Otherwise, seek employment with L’Oreal! Not only do they have the company store at their disposal, I hear they get $55 every two months to spend for purchases in the company store, among other benefits! Not bad, not bad at all!

Look at what I discovered at Marshall’s this weekend!

While Dear Hubby was in line to pay for his purchases, my friend Ivy and I were curious to see what was inside this cute little box with a handle!

We thought it was a cute trinket, or maybe stationery pads and stickers inside, so I had to open the box just to see!

And this is what we found…Tadaa!

A Hello Kitty watch with pink “leather” straps and a cute watch face for $12.99 only! Hey, not bad!!!