Bake It Fun In The Philippines! URC Flourish Pilipinas Baking Academy and Bake-off Competition

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Calling all baking enthusiasts! Join the URC Flourish Pilipinas Bake-off Competition. Simply submit your recipe in the Recipe Contest tab at their Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/URC-Flourish-Pilipinas/295110023949303

This is the tie-up with the Department of Tourism (DOT) to promote "bread" and "tourism."

URC Flourish Pilipinas Baking Academy and Bake-off Competition

Mechanics:

This competition is open to all eligible Filipino Citizens who are 18 years of age as of January 2013 who meet the requirements stated herein. All employees and relatives up to the second degree of affinity and consanguinity of URC Flour, its subsidiaries, affiliates, agencies and sponsors are automatically disqualified from entering this contest.

There will be three awards in two categories:

PROFESSIONAL CATEGORIES

FOR OWNERS AND EMPLOYEES OF BAKERIES and BAKESHOPS, INDEPENDENT BAKERS, BAKING INSTRUCTORS AND PROFESSIONALS

1. GLOBE AWARD – This category is open for all recipes using hard flour (URC’s Globe or Blend 100 Flour).

2. SAMPAGUITA AWARD – This category is for all recipes using soft flour (URC’s Sampaguita Soft Flour).

NON- PROFESSIONAL CATEGORY

FOR STUDENTS ENROLLED IN CULINARY, BAKING, FOOD TECHNOLOGY AND HOTEL AND RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT COURSES:

1. DAISY AWARD – This category is for all recipes using cake flour (URC’s Daisy Cake Flour).

HOW TO JOIN THE CONTEST

All Contestants must fill out an entry form which can be accessed through the Recipe Contest tab in the URC Flour/Flourish Pilipinas Facebook page. It can also be downloaded from the URC Flour website.

All finalists must agree to participate in a bake-off in the following designated areas:

GMA Manila June 15

LUZON Baguio July 6

VISAYAS Cebu July 27

MINDANAO Davao August 10

Where applicable, URC Flour shall provide the transportation, food and accommodations of qualified finalists in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. URC Flour shall cover only the transportation, food and accommodations of a qualified finalist in a URC designated hotel.

JUDGING CRITERIA

All entries must meet the requirements of the Recipe category entered. Recipes not meeting contest criteria will be disqualified. Entries must be the original recipe of the entrant.

Judging will be done by a panel consisting of a representative of URC Flour Technical Group and two other food professionals designated by URC Flour using the criteria outlined below:

Taste                                                                                   -   20%

Appearance,creativity and plating                                      -   15%

Use of local and indigenous ingredients                              -   10%

Extent of use of URC flours in required category                -   30%

(Globe / Blend 100, Sampaguita, and Daisy)

Extent of use of eligible products                                        -   25%

(See list below for corresponding points

                                                                    TOTAL          -   100%

Eligible Products and Points Assigned (5 points each):

Bakewell Siliconized Paper, Saf Yeast, McCormick Flavors and Colors/ Suchero Sugar, Corman, Brim, and Tulip Chocolate

Judges will disqualify previously published recipes such as but not limited to those in cookbooks, magazines, from food companies, food blogs or recipe website and winners in cooking contests.

Contestants are required to certify on the information, or belief, that their recipes are their original creation and have not been published or publicized and have not won a cooking or baking contest. All submitted recipes automatically become the property of URC Flour.

Judges reserve the right to disqualify an entry that does not meet contest criteria. Decisions of the board of judges are final in all matters pertaining to this Contest.

Deadline of Submission of Entries:

Entries from GMA and Luzon April 30, 2013

Entries from Visayas, Mindanao May 31, 2013

All recipes/ entries must include a 4R (4” x 6”) color photograph of the finished product. All recipes/ entries must be submitted to the Flourish Pilipinas Facebook Page or emailed to Kayla Andrea at operations@dtc.com.ph. 

All recipes shall be screened and tested by the URC Technical Group which shall determine the finalists who will compete in each area. 

BAKE-OFF

For each area, there will be two (2) finalists for Globe Award, two (2) finalists for Sampaguita Award, and two (2) finalists for Daisy Award.

All finalists will be required to participate in the area-wide bake-off.

GMA Manila June 15

LUZON Baguio July 6

VISAYAS Cebu July 27

MINDANAO Davao August 10

ALL STUDENT FINALISTS must agree to demonstrate his/her recipe entry to the URC Technical Team in a separate session in his/her school or home prior to the actual Bake-Off.

Each student finalist will be given ONE THOUSAND PESOS (P1,000) to cover the cost of this demonstration.

SELECTION OF WINNERS

There will be one (1) winner per category in each area : Globe, Sampaguita, and Daisy.

Venue of the bake-off will be determined by URC Flour Division.

PRIZE STRUCTURE:

All twelve (12) winners i.e., three (3) winners per area will receive the following prizes:

Globe - P10,000 in cash, 1 Kitchen Aid K45 Mixer, Medal and Supply of Participating Products

Sampaguita - P10,000 in cash, 1 Kitchen Aid K45 Mixer, Medal and
Supply of Participating Products

Daisy - P10,000 in cash, 1 Kitchen Aid Hand Mixer, Medal and Supply of Participating Products

Companies and Schools represented by the winners shall also receive a trophy.

All recipes/ entries must be submitted to the Flourish Pilipinas Facebook Page or emailed to Kayla Andrea at operations@dtc.com.ph ON OR BEFORE April 30, 2013 (For Entries from GMA and Luzon) and ON OR BEFORE May 31, 2013 (For Visayas, Mindanao). For more information, contact Kayla at 02-892-5842 or visit the Flourish Pilipinas Facebook Page.

Bake It Fun In The Philippines!

#BakeItFunInThePhilippines 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/URC-Flourish-Pilipinas/295110023949303

Per FDA Permit # 0324 Series of 2013

The Bull Runner Dream Marathon : A dream run for moms

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Nursing mothers at The Bull Runner marathon not only ran— they expressed milk too!

Running a marathon—all 42 kilometers of it—is no easy feat, even for seasoned athletes. So it is especially remarkable to see moms who not only raced to the finish line, but also did some milk expression along the way.

This is precisely what happened at The Bull Runner Dream Marathon held last February 24 at Nuvali in Laguna. Participating moms, which included actress Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan, were provided two breastfeeding booths special pit stops by Philips Avent, the brand Number 1 recommended by moms. These pit stops housed the Philips Avent breast pump, and were the first of their kind in any marathon.

“Going for long hours without expressing milk to feed our infants can cause anxiety to us nursing moms. And this is true even during a run! It was a relief to know that Philips Avent was behind us mothers in this race,” Maricel reveals.

The Philips Avent Breastfeeding Booths were strategically placed in each half of the 42K run and it served as a venue for breastfeeding mothers like Maricel to comfortably express milk and still perform their motherly duties even in the heat of the race. Each pit stop was equipped with sterilizers, coolers, handy thermal bags, and comfortable chairs all in the privacy of this unique pit stop.

Calling her dream run “42@42,” Maricel trained long hours, rain or shine, all in the midst of wrapping up a movie shoot, being a hands-on mom, attending to various engagements, family gatherings and nursing her baby Solana. Nothing came between Maricel and finishing the 42K marathon.

Me-Ann Achacoso, Philips Avent’s Business Development Manager explains, “Philips Avent wanted to help Maricel realize her dream of completing the marathon because running 42K is no easy task, to say the least. It takes a lot of determination and hard work, and we are very proud of Maricel for reaching her goal.”

Achacoso concludes, “It’s our commitment at Philips Avent to support moms in whatever endeavor they undertake. Maricel and the other moms who ran the marathon proved that you can follow your dream while continuing to give the best care for your baby.”

Women's Wednesday of March Sale at SM Supermalls

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Great for women of all ages! March is women's month at all SM Supermalls. SM Supermall designed fabolously fun and great day for all women - pampering , shopping and special treats from participating stores at all SM Supermall on all Wednesday of March. 

SM Store and other retail shops has everything you need.

At Watsons, all women will instantly get 10-percent off on minimum P1,500 worth of purchase. It offers more than 1,000 brands ranging from medicines, cosmetics and fragrances to personal care items and general merchandise. 

At Ace Hardware,  ultimate one-stop-shop for the latest solutions for home improvement, you can get 5-percent discount on every P3,000 single receipt purchase on all regular priced items. It boasts of 40,000 home improvement solutions on its core product ranges which include paints and sundries, electrical and plumbing, hardware and power tools, building materials and outdoor merchandising. 

Our Home offers a wide variety of items - sofas, dining tables, curtains, picture frames. For a minimum P15,000 purchase on all furniture, lady shoppers will get 5-percent off. They can also avail of 10-percent discount on all accessories for a minimum purchase requirement of P5,000. 

A treat exclusive for women shoppers, with their SM Advantage Card, the SM Store will take 10-percent off for a minimum singe receipt purchase of P3,000.

The SM Store is a founding retail center where various brands of fashion, footwear, bags, accessories, toys, gadgets and other types of products can be found. 

At SM Supermarket and SM Hypermarket, women SM Advantage Card members will get double their SMAC points when they purchase on Wednesdays. 

And at SM Appliance Center, women will also get 10-percent off on selected home appliances. 

SM Advantage Card, the customer loyalty program of SM, rewards members with points every time they shop in SM Department Store, SM Supermarket, SM Hypermarket and other SM retail establishments inside and outside SM Supermalls. The points earned can be used to redeem practically anything sold in any of those stores. Aside from reward points, SM Advantage Card also offers numerous members-only privileges such as exclusive sales, discounts and freebies inside and outside SM Malls. 

Thanks for these information published in Philippine Daily Inquirer last March 8, 2013. 

Check out more updates on http://www.facebook.com/smsupermalls/app_179593762087303 and http://www.facebook.com/smsupermalls!

Go and join this shopping madness, enjoy the wonderful world of SM Supermalls on all Wednesdays of March 2013 ! 

Authentic Traditional Mediterranean Food at Chef Gusto's Pizza, Pasta and Plus

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Chef gusto pizza pasta plus serves authentic traditional Mediterranean food with Greek touch from  Greek Chef Panos Georgopoulos - the owner. 

Gladly, thanks to my friend Hershy who invited me to visit and dine at Chef Gusto's Restaurant with other friends. It is located at the ground floor of Concord Blvd. corner of Benavidez and Salcedo St.Legaspi Village, Makati City. Arriving at the classic restaurant and waiting for them, I was welcomed by Chef and the friendly staff served me freshly made breads with traditional dip, as their welcome dish for all their guests (they treat people as guests who comes in, not as visitors or customers).

Chef gusto's pizza and pasta plus is not an Italian or Greek or American restaurant. It had been borne last September 1st 2012, and is a partnership between Filipino and Greek friends.

Luckily and we really enjoyed having talks with Chef Panos. He shared to us that their restaurant preparing daily fresh unique delicious recipes, from the entire planet. Every single recipe is an individual "culinary trip" to every corner of our planet and presenting several delicious flavors. Delicious ingredients are imported from Australia, USA and Europe.

This authentic restaurant is the combination of his 16 years experience and a unique galley team with the most elegant cooks of the country!

Unique pizza (18 inch) & pasta, classic Greek menu, excellent grilled steaks and ribs, special selection of sea foods fresh crunchy salads, is some of delicious ingredients in Chef Gusto's menus. 

Village Salad

Mix green lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, bell peppers, black olives, feta cheese, served with lemon or balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Creamy Seafood Pasta

Shrimps, fish fillet, Mussels, calamari sauté with garlic and mix with creamy delicious white sauce

Tartufo Pasta

Mix of several type of fresh mushroom (bottom, porcini, truffles) sauté with garlic and parmesan cheese

Grilled Mediterranean Marinated Chicken

with Pilaf rice or fries

Traditional Gourmet Sausage

Special only for you, served with 3 different Dips and fries

Freshly made breads with traditional dip 

I love it and this is the best Pizza, Pasta and plus in Makati where I experienced the unique delicious dishes creating the best atmospheric feeling that evening.

With these selected desserts, chocolates and cakes served us with wine.  .  .  .

Chef Panos and filipina wife Ivy also told us that the are serving breakfast and regular menus everyday from 7 am to 10 pm, Monday to Saturday.

Chef Gusto's Pizza Pasta and Plus 

Located at: Concord Blvd, 200 Benavidez St. Corner Salcedo road Legaspi

Village San Lorenzo, Makati City

Reservation number: 4782941 Monday to Saturday 7 am to 10pm

Mob: +63 (0) 9175267891 / +63 (0) 9175267891 

Email : panosgeor2009@gmail.com

For more information please visit chefandrecipes.com & chefgustos.com

Singer/Songwriter Richard Poon joins Universal Records

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Shown in the picture are album producer Ito Rapadas, UR General Manager Kathleen Dy-Go, Richard Poon, and Erickson Raymundo, talent manager of Richard.

Filipino-Chinese singer/songwriter Richard Poon has released multi-platinum albums over the years, making him the country’s premiere Big Band Crooner. This 2013, Richard has decided to make a bold move – to return to pop and join Universal Records, the country’s largest independent record label.

Poon is an accomplished musician whose deep knowledge of music allows him to delve into a wide variety of other musical genres. He has gone on a successful career and is a well-known jazz singer. Richard sings regularly every Sunday at Philippines’ variety show ASAP 2013 with the powerhouse cast of ASAP Sessionistas 

In the elite roster of Universal Records of prime male singers, Richard joins Gary Valenciano, Ogie Alcasid, Christian Bautista, Noel Cabangon, Billy Crawford, JayR .

Watch out for Richard’s first album with Universal Records to be out in a few weeks.