Sol Vanzi

Kitchen updates and upgrades

The year has just started. It is the perfect time to check the kitchen for items that need replacing or upgrading.

Kitchen emergency: Surviving without a refrigerator

A major nightmare for any household is opening the refrigerator door and finding it dead. That means at least a week to find a repairman and get it fixed—if you're lucky. Sometimes it means replacing the fridge altogether, leaving the family without one for weeks while figuring out how to finance a replacement.

Purple and red ensaymada, nutty birthday cake

Across the country, thousands of bakers wake up in the middle of the night to work all day in front of a hot oven creating premium loaves, bread, cakes, and pastries. The majority of them hail from the town of Cuenca in Batangas.

Korean egg drop sandwich: Classic comfort and convenience

Food trends travel across the world following migrations and wars. A few recipes survive the move and become popular in their adopted countries, to the point where they are considered a natural part of the country's native culture. That’s the story of the egg drop sandwich, currently sweeping across Asia.

Gin in the kitchen

Hosting holiday dinners for newsmakers and journalist friends with varying wine preferences often left me with leftover wine for stews and marinades. No problem, I use a lot of wine in many recipes. It is hard liquor that I did not know what to do with, they sat forever in my small living room bar, waiting for the next bash.