Random buys

In all probability, every homemaker sometimes indulges in random buying with regard to food, especially when she sees something good for the family and when there are a few pesos left in the wallet after all necessities have been purchased. We all carry a list of “must buys” for the week (we presume), and after going through this, we might find more items to buy with whatever money is left.

So here are some random buys we did when we had some spare cash.  Entering the main door of the Festival Mall, there are little stalls, basically tables, where food stuff is sold. Among these are baked products from the Baguio Country club. That day when we dropped by, the goods were just being unloaded, which meant they were freshly baked. We  got a loaf of raisin bread, which has been a good breakfast alternative to bread, sausages or sinangag, longaniza and tocino. We spread each slice with butter, toast it with cream cheese, or put jam on it. Great! The lady behind the table was also encouraging us to get the banana loaf, giving bite size samples to taste.

The suman – sold during weekends at the Alabang Town Center’s (ATC) activity center – goes for P35 per saklob (a pair of two halves tied together) with the accompanying coco jam. While each pair costs P35, three of those will cost you P100. This is ideal for breakfast as well as merienda (afternoon snack). The ube hopia of Illustrado, available at their stand-alone kiosk on the street level (Madrigal entrance) of ATC, sells at P20 per. We get this all the time, because we cannot resist anything with ube in it. If you buy from this store, you are allowed to sit on one of the chairs set up with a table, to rest  your tired feet.

At S & R, always watch out for their regular sale of baked products. The tube cakes in different flavors are very good buys, normally offered on buy 1-take-1 promo. Higher flour cost must have motivated the bakers to limit the offer to the smaller (thinner) version. They are not as rich as those found in other shops because they are devoid of any icing, which we welcome very much. They also have one of the softest brownies in town, but these are more expensive.

While we refrain from pork products, one day we could not resist buying Lapid’s chicharon. They have increased their prices – the bilog (round without meat) at P80 per bag and the pack with meat for P280 a bag. There is no detail on their weight, so we reckon  each bag was less than 500 gms.

Monde’s Belgian waffles and mamon are available in various supermarkets. The former has become smaller since we started buying them. But each piece is sufficient to satiate a merienda craving. Take this with coffee, chocolate or tea.

We are a coffee drinker – brewed, strong, preferably. But one day, yes with more than P100 still to spend, we chanced upon Blended Coffee – canned or in plastic bottles, weighing between 240 and 250 ml. We got two initially and we were hooked! They are not as robust as the brewed type, they are blended with different flavors, but good enough as a cool beverage for merienda. Kopiko, an Indonesian brand, has 3-in-1 packets have captured recently the taste of our friends. They also have the canned blend that they call 78 C. Korea’s OKF with the tag “Don’t worry, be happy,” surely made us delighted finding it. We got the bottled premium carmello macchiato. The former costs P18 per, the latter P29. They are best cooled.  Get your caffeine fix with these. 

So continue browsing around, you might find some food stuff you and your family will enjoy.

Have a Blessed Sunday, you all.

E-mail me at [email protected].