Autumn in New York

Bow Bridge, Central Park

Last week we went to New York city to see some gorgeous fall colors. We were not disappointed. Central Park was at its loveliest with wonderful hues of red, brown, orange yellow and some stubborn green (hanging on to the very last day!) all over. The weather was glorious as well and the temperature was perfect. If you are thinking of visiting New York city one day, come during the fall season when the colors are at their peak. You will definitely have a wonderful time! Enjoy this photo journey in NYC - Central Park and beyond.

Best Banana Pecan Cake

I love baking with Bananas. The fact that I have many recipes here that use bananas is proof of how much I love this amazing fruit. It just adds so much flavor and moisture to any baked good. I love seeing the brown speckles in a banana bread. I often buy bananas just so I can make banana bread! Yes, I am truly bananas over bananas!

Green Mango Smoothie

When it comes to tropical fruits - the Mango reigns supreme in the Philippines. I grew up with mango trees in our backyard. I have memories of my grandma smoking the mango tree. She would rake the dried leaves and twigs in our backyard into a pile under the mango tree and light a small fire - the purpose is to get the smoke up into the tree. Some say it's because the smoke drive the bugs away from the precious fruits that they love to nibble on. I don't know if this is scientifically true but that tree has always given us bag loads of mangoes. 

Ricotta Meatballs in Creamy White Wine Sauce

Today I felt like a contestant in that popular show from the Food Network - Chopped. I had some left-over ingredients which needed to be used up but they seemed to be an odd assortment. Initially, I felt like it would be weird to merge them in one dish, much like in Chopped (though perhaps not as extreme) where contestants are supposed to come with a yummy dish using a medley of ingredients which you don't normally put together. That was my challenge for the day - how to use in one dish a few pieces of sun-dried tomatoes, a little wine, two types of cheeses and ground beef.

Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Beef Stew

Fall is the time to make delicious comfort food that will help us cope with freezing cold winter nights. I often experiment on different types and flavors of beef stew so all throughout the season we don't get tired of the same old, same old recipe. This time, I fancied something with a bit of an Asian kick. For convenience I used the slow cooker so it's just a matter of dumping all the ingredients in and then it's ready when we are.