Sunday Merienda

Back when I was growing up, merienda time on weekends was always a bonding opportunity for us as a family during those weekends everyone was home.  I didn’t really take to going out during the weekends until the latter years before I moved to New York, but even when I was younger, merienda was a special production, even if it was only hotcakes, or pan de sal and condensed milk.

I remember my younger sister and brother egging me on to make the hotcakes with the excuse that it tasted better when I made it.  Yeah right! LOL  Yet I would always relent.

Lunch was good — and everyone is resting.  I chose to take this quiet time to whip up some Banana bread which has a half hour to go before I test its doneness.  I used to be able to pull this off even with just an oven toaster — it should come out even better with my new oven. 

I’d love to bake more if only I had the time, and if it wasn’t so time consuming.  Last weekend, I made some coconut macaroons to give to Kristina who had gifted me with a starbucks mug from her native Hamburg, in addition to the Germany country mug.  Wow!  I just couldn’t make do with a simple thank you.

So it’s banana bread for merienda this afternoon.  It should be cool and ready to eat with some freshly brewed coffee later when the house wakes up from its afternoon nap.

Brrrrrrr…..

I have been struggling with posts over the weekend.. I tried writing at least three which disappeared or never went beyond two paragraphs.  I thought I’d try again.

It’s been a very cold past few days in New York.  Yesterday, we braved the strong winds to find some dinner plates and we ended up in Broadway Mall in Hicksville where they have an IKEA, Macy’s and Target all in one place.  We have several dinner plate sets which all serve 4, except for some blue plates we had bought from Crate & Barrel a few years back.  With our dining room painted a sage green, Alan and I decided we would go with Apple Green for this set.  It was available in separate pieces, so with a table seating six, I got a dozen of the dinner plate, and 6 of the rest.  I even got to buy some bakeware in the same color.

Now I can go and buy other platters in the same shade of green.  I am planning to take a trip to this kitchenware store downtown one of these days and check out a few. 

Meanwhile, we’re trying to enjoy what’s left of the weekend.  The sunny day outside is rather deceiving, but the reality of the cold day hits you the minute you open a window or a door. 

My mom’s cooking up some Paksiw na Pata and Alan and I had a late breakfast of pancakes at 10AM, so we’re having a late lunch. 

I like days like this when I can just chill in the house.  I have some tidying up to do in the bedroom, so that’s my project of the day.  I only have 4 scrapbook layouts to piece together, so I’ve been working on piecing together the brochures and other flyers from the trip. 

Time to get going..