Who's In The Kitchen?

by Jen Ramirez

Our blog chronicles the experiences of homebakers within and around the Metro. While it starts with the three of us for now, we look forward to hearing from other city bakers out there.

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YUMI Castrillo is the ingenious creator of Piece of Cake, a home-based cupcake venture that’s taken the city by sweet surprise. Yumi is a master behind the mixing bowl. Taking what she’s learned from the experts, she stirs in her own innovations for that personalized touch. To Yumi, baking is half-science, half-art, and all fun! It was from this spirit that Baked In The City was born.For the produce of her kitchen, Yumi has found a very willing taste-tester in her husband, along with some fortunate urbanite friends (us!). As Mommy to a toddling princess, she’ll find kitchen-duty even more enjoyable when her daughter’s tiny but eager hands are ready to help-out. When she’s not wearing oven mitts, Yumi is a corporate lawyer. You can guess which one the sideline is.

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MICHELLE Yulo comes from a family of food enthusiasts, hailing from the Inasal Capital of Bacolod. Her kitchen skills were honed in the family kitchen while her appreciative taste buds were trained on the dinner table. Michelle’s always in search of the best food finds here in Manila and elsewhere. Her quest for great eats takes her to both the trendiest gourmet places and those secret holes-in-the-wall that locals swear by. Naturally, Michelle’s pursuit of good food extends to her kitchen. Her culinary preference leans more towards the savory kind, and she makes a mean Osso Buco! Recently however, she’s been experimenting on baked goods too, brought about by a much awaited Kitchen Aide gift. Baked in The City’s resident banking lawyer also loves to tinker around with her other toy, a digital camera. Michelle enjoys snapping away at her favorite subject -- FOOD!

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JEN Ramirez -- that would be me! I’m the neophyte referred to earlier; the tenderfoot who’d be lost without a recipe. I’m obsessed with exact measurements, don’t know how to ‘eyeball’ and own only the most basic of kitchen tools. I occasionally succumb to a box of ready-made cake mix too. =) Despite the failure to inherit my late mother’s majored-in-food-and-nutrition-and-went-to-finishing-school genes, I persist to find my way around an oven. Why? Because, I’m a work-at-home Mom with two adorable girls, and I want to share with them the pure bliss in whipping something up ourselves, then gobbling it all down after. My husband joins us in the eating part of course, plus I proudly share with the rest of the household (like with our real cook). So, who cares if I wasn’t born with a spatula in my hand! I thoroughly enjoy my novice attempts at the kitchen. It’s how I feed my family from the heart.