Recipes
Armed with her ever reliable La Germania Bertazzoni oven, seasoned cook Ann Puno shares a few favourite recipes in time for the holidays
he way to a man’s heart is through the stomach, and true enough, for kitchen guru Ann Puno, cooking for family and friends is her language of love. “I bake and cook, and [love to] serve what I concoct to my family and friends. It is my passion,” she shares. Every year, Ann cooks up a feast for her husband’s birthday, as her special gift to him. “I enjoy every detail of it—from planning the menu to going to the market and preparing every dish, from appetiser down to dessert.”
The dessert diva, whose eponymous brand, Ann Puno’s Kitchen is popular among the country’s sweet tooths, did not formally attend a culinary school but was instead mentored by her grandmother—who was a great cook— and her 93-year-old mum, who cooks and bakes practically everything from scratch to this day. “It runs in our blood. I remember when I was a child, on Saturdays, I would wake up early to accompany my grandmother to the wet market in Kabankalan, Negros Occidental where I grew up. I was surrounded by family who love to cook, bake, and eat,” she recalls. And if there is one witness to her family’s culinary journey through the generations, it is the good-old La Germania oven that her grandmother has been using through the years. “Since I was a child, both my grandmother and mother used La Germania.”
Having studied in an exclusive all-girls school in Iloilo, she would observe the nuns working in the kitchen, but didn’t have the chance to actually cook or bake. When she moved to Manila, she nally had the opportunity to try baking using their family oven at home. She was a teenager then.
“I remember following my mom’s chocolate cake recipe. I got so excited that I mistakenly put a cup of baking powder instead of a teaspoon. The outcome was a ridiculously bitter but very good looking chocolate cake,” she laughs. She admits learning her lesson, which will forever be in her heart. “In baking, I learnt that you really have to be precise.”
For those who would like to start baking, Ann recommends investing in a good oven. For her, the key is even heat that does not fluctuate. “I keep my 50-year old white oven in our beach house in Calatagan and it is still working fine,” she says. In fact, Ann has two prized Bertazzoni La Germania ovens which she uses year-round, and, a third one which she puts out only during the busy holiday season. She raves about how easy it is to use and maintain. “Service is very important and Bertazzoni La Germania provides professional and reliable service all the time.” Above all, Ann is very happy with what she is able to produce using these ovens.
She continues experimenting with her family’s treasured recipes—from delectable desserts like carrot and pineapple upside down cake, to delightful savouries such as callos, pickled quail egg, and chicken relleno.
Ann promotes the use of local ingredients as much as possible but also tries to infuse familiar recipes with unique and ne ingredients from around the world.
One of her bestsellers is the Chocnut cake, which is very Filipino. During weekends in Calatagan, her neighbours often give her bananas, which she turns into luscious banana cakes. Also very popular is her signature pistachio cake, which is perfect for the holiday season.
Exclusively for this issue of Philippine Tatler Homes, Ann shares three of her favourite recipes, which are easily doable at home: oatmeal muf ns, white chocolate cake, and cashew cookies. “Start out with simple recipes and [as you go along] try to reinvent and be creative,” she muses.
“I only bake, cook, and sell [food that I am] con dent enough to serve to my family. I don’t skimp on ingredients. [Whatever I feed my family is also what I want to share with others]; and when I hear them say good things about my cooking, it makes my day.”