Pretzels galore and more at Auntie Anne's

If you're a big pretzel fan, there's probably nowhere else to go but Auntie Anne's.

From just a mere stand in a farmer's market in Pennsylvania, USA back in 1988, it has now become the world's largest soft pretzels chain.

Ilonggos are quite lucky to have been munching these delicious treats for almost a decade when Auntie Anne's opened its first branch outside Manila at SM City Iloilo in 2009.

And just a few months shy in the celebration of its 10th year anniversary, it has revealed a modern chic look!

A more inviting store front greets patrons with its popular white-yellow-blue logo accented with color toned woodworks reflecting the appetizing colors of its pretzels!

Seats were transferred at the back to give customers more privacy to enjoy their orders at the same time offering them a full view how pretzels are made.

They can see how each pretzel is hand shaped and transformed to a particular order whether a twist, stix, nuggets,etc before it is baked in the oven. It is then served within 30 minutes to maintain its freshness anid taste quality.

And in tune to the tech-savvy millenials, charging docks are also installed for convenience.

With this new look also comes new offerings and irrestible promotions

Take your pick from apple cinnamon cream cheese bites, cream cheese stix, and pepperoni nuggets, among others.

Don't forget their ultimate thirst quencher - old fashioned lemonade that comes in plain and strawberry variants.

But if you opt for a caffeine fix, ask for their cold or hot coffee exclusively brewed by Figaro.

Aside from these new pretzel flavors and variants, Auntie Anne’s Iloilo celebrates its comeback with a BUY ONE TAKE ONE promo on pretzels - all Mondays for the month of June starting today, June 3.

So take part in this awesome Pretzel Fest, Auntie Anne's Iloilo have prepared for its re-opening at the Upper Ground Level of SM City Iloilo.

Photo credits: Randomly Candid, Auntie Anne's FB, SM City Iloilo FB

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece pork broth cube (

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare.

Batwan

Ilonggos know batwan or batuan by heart as the fruit is almost endemic to the Western Visayas. Its scientific name is Garcinia binucao, derived from the Tagalog name for the fruit, binukaw. It is a large green fruit with large seeds and its a favorite souring ingredient in most Ilonggo dishes especially KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka and the Ilonggo-style paksiw known as "pinamalhan". It is characterized by a tamed sourness compared to tamarind and kamias . The fruit is sold by pieces or kilo in wet markets and even big grocery stores. Batwan is the preferred souring ingredients for the Ilonggo favorite- KBL. The photo shows boiled batwan with skin and without skin (right) A favorite riddle when we were young - "Among the many fruits in the forest, but one (batuan) is the best. What is it?"

A native (foods) welcome in Guimaras

Even after having breakfast less than an hour that time, we couldn't say no to this lot of native delciacies that welcomed us in Guimaras. First and foremost, Guimaras best known produce is their sweet mango famous almost worldwide. And it comes with it's best partner, ibos. This brown baye-baye variety is made from toasted rice thus giving it a more disctinct flavour compared to it's more "caucasian" cousin. I like the one wrapped in banana leaves compared with the one in plastic for it gives it a more native feel. So when you're in Guimaras, be sure to check out the markets for these native delicacies that can make your trip more gastronomically satisfying.

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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