Postscript: From pancit to Zumba

Before anything else I’d like to make an addendum to two of my recent articles; the first being last week’s piece "Move over Tae-Bo, here comes the Zumba." I was flooded with calls and text messages from friends, acquaintances, and friends of friends who wanted to know where I got my Zumba tape. As I said last week, the video was given to me by my flight attendant cousin-in-law Mavs. I asked her where she got it and she informed me that the video is available in one of those home TV shopping channels in the States. The Zumba tape is also available at Target.

If you’re interested, you can ask a friend or relative who lives in the US to get a copy for you. Better yet, why not hook up with one of your flight attendant friends who might be able to get a copy for you (thank God for them!). By the way, my Zumba tape has gone AWOL for two days now – kidnapped by friends who have brought it to Greenhills to have a tape-to-tape/tape-to-VCD copy made. Believe me, if I had the power to lend all of you my copy, I would.

At any rate, I’m pretty sure you’ll have fun with the moves once you do get hold of a copy of the Zumba. Don’t worry too much about making a fool of yourself (next to Beto and his dancing friends you most probably will initially look like one, unless of course you’re a skilled dancer) but what’s important is to just enjoy and dance away!

I would like to add something to the "Are you chicken?" article I wrote a couple of weeks back. I mentioned that Richard and his dad swear by Max’s Fried Chicken as having the best chicken sandwich filling there is. What I failed to mention was the stuff that they add on to the chicken to make it a great filling. Like I said, they both have this habit of buying Max’s Fried Chicken not to be eaten hot off the frying pan, but rather to be chopped up in chunks and prepared as a sandwich filling. I only mentioned that they add mayonnaise, which is obviously what most everyone would do. Richard however came across that particular article and he said that aside from mayo, he also throws in some pickle relish, freshly ground black pepper, and finely chopped celery. I guess the latter explains the refreshing bite. For those who are not particularly fond of chicken, tuna can be used as a substitute and it will taste just as good. Sorry for the delayed info folks – just goes to show I’m totally clueless in the kitchen department. I’ve long accepted the fact that I’m a better food consumer than I’ll ever be a cook. I will keep on trying to learn to cook though.

Anyway, since we are on the subject of food, glorious food (again!), I would like to share with you the best source of macaroons in this part of the country. I’ve never met the woman responsible for whipping up these heavenly delights but I’ve had more than my fair share of her sweet treat. I only know her as Mrs. V, which is what appears on the label of her boxed goodies. The macaroons that she makes are individually wrapped chubby discs, about an inch and a half in diameter that taste as sinful as they probably are. These melt-in-your-mouth goodies are highly recommended. Another wonderful surprise is the price. I told her daughter, Annette, that her mom (Mrs. V herself) should consider increasing the price of the macaroons but the former says the latter will not put a premium on all the love that goes into every batch. Ahhhhh, spoken like a real mommy… if only for that I eat them over and over and over again. You can order Mrs. V’s macaroons at tel. no. 807-0264.

Still on food – this restaurant called Sitio at Level 5 of The Podium has wonderful puto bumbong. I first tried and fell in love with the puto bumbong served with pandan-flavored tea at Café Laguna in Cebu and I’ve always felt that none ever came close to the ones I ate there until I tried the same goodies at Sitio. It was so good I almost finished two orders all by myself. That dessert, of course, merely capped a meal that included chicharon bulaklak, pancit palabok, sinigang na bangus belly, and dinuguan all of which were excellent. Delicious.

As an end note, I would like to remind you all to indulge and treat yourself from time to time. After all, what’s the Zumba for? As my favorite doctor says, "Eating is one of the most pleasurable physiological experiences man can ever have." Take care of yourself so you can indulge every once in a while.

Have a sweet week ahead…