Hey Gourmet! Ensaymada

A lot of you might have been wondering why the sudden silence for the past few days. Well, it all began late last week when I came home feeling feverish. We initially thought it was just stress or lack of sleep. I quickly brushed the panic away and made sure I got more than 8 hours of sleep that night. Well, I woke up still feverish and this went on for days. It lasted for 6 whole days which brought my temperature up to the 39 degrees level and down to 37. I was chilling at some point and sweating so much after. CBC tests were done to rule out dengue which thankfully came out negative. It was a viral case but what made me so sad was the fact that it coincided with my much-awaited visit home. I've been planning for this trip for some time now as I was so excited to meet up with friends, spend a lot of time with family and to try the newest foodie places in Metro Manila. With my fever in the way, the only thing I bonded with during my trip was my bed. *sigh*

Well, as they say. If you can't go to food...let food come to you. One afternoon, I received two boxes filled with colorful ensaymadas from Judy of Hey Gourmet. My mom was the first to see it and initially thought that these were giant cupcakes. Well, can't blame her as we're used to seeing the regular kind of ensaymada with which is topped with sugar and cheese..nothing more.

Before I continue, let me give you some Ensaymada 101. Made with flour, eggs, sugar and butter, ensaymada apparently originated in Spain and has became a breakfast/merienda staple in the Philippines. I grew up having all sorts of ensaymadas from the ones with quezo de bola to the savory kind with ham and cheese. While I'm not a big fan of bread or buttery pastries, ensaymada remains to be one of my favorite afternoon choice most especially when paired with a steaming mug of hot chocolate. Ohh...the thought of it is making my mouth water.

Peering into the box, it took me a while to make out what some of the flavors were. I can see the regular cheese ensaymada and a couple with pork floss but I had to make use of her menu list to help me figure out what the others were. We tried the Household Favorite (Php. 60), Purple Yam (Php. 50) as well as the Creamy Floss (Php. 70). Following Judy's recommendation, I popped these into the oven to ensure that they come out warm and a bit toasty.

Finally, it was time to dig in. I just have to say... these are the fluffiest, yummiest ensaymadas that I've ever had! I love the Household Favorite as it was just so melt-in-your-mouth cheesy good! The Creamy Floss was also perfect and I will surely be ordering a box of this when I go home in a few months. As for the Purple Yam, Paul had this piece all to himself and said that it was very good!



We also enjoyed the Oreo Cheesecake (Php. 60) which made a perfect meal-ender dessert! Next time, I'm definitely ordering another box as I'm curious to try the Truffled Mushroom Ensaymada as well as the Speculoos kind.

Now, these babies make great Christmas gifts, don't you think? Beat the holiday rush and place your orders now!

Click here to view the menu and price list.

To order from Hey Gourmet: call them at 0922-8579151 and like them on Facebook too.