With most people still affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, many have put their entrepreneurial skills to good use and established their own business, using social media as a way to sell their products and gain more customers. Food businesses, in particular, have been popular, as they can be made from the comforts of one’s home and easily sold to neighbors, friends, and potential customers online.
But it can be challenging to start a food business, especially when you still don’t know which recipes to use and food to sell. Fortunately, award-winning celebrity chef Sau Del Rosario has a couple of recipes that you can use to help start your quarantine business. He takes two popular Filipino dessert recipes, leche flan, and pastillas, and elevates them to another level.
Creme Caramel Leche Flan
- To begin, you need 12 pieces of egg yolk, combine, and stir them in a large bowl and combine it with 1 can of condensed milk and use a whisk to mix them together. Del Rosario says that even though it is an easy recipe to make, you still have to be mindful of the measurements.
- Then, you will take 1 can of evaporated milk, 3/4 cup of granulated sugar, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and mix the ingredients. Use a strainer to mix the ingredients well.
- To make the caramelized sugar, place 1 cup of white sugar in a frying pan and cook it over a fire. Make sure to use fine sugar to have an even caramelization. The sugar has to have an amber color and you need to roll the pan while cooking to create a distinct color.
- Afterward, prepare a mold that can be any shape – oblong, square, or round. Transfer the caramelized sugar into the mold and spread it evenly on the container. Wait for the sugar to crystallize and then transfer the egg mixture or custard into the mold.
- Prepare a pan with water and then put the mold with the custard inside and cover it with foil. For your food business, you can smaller containers to create more and meet the demands of your customers.
- Put the pan in the oven for 1 1/2 hours and heat it at 120-150 degrees.
- After leaving the pan in the oven, you need to take it out of the container. Be careful when loosening the sides so that they do not stick to the container.
- Turn the mold upside down and serve your leche flan on a plate. You can be creative with how you present your leche flan, like adding mango slices or strawberry slices when serving it to your family, friends, or customers. This also makes your products look good when you’re taking pictures of them and promoting your online business on social media sites like Facebook.
Sweet Pastillas
- To start the recipe, you place 3 cups of powdered milk in a bowl and add 1/2 can of condensed milk, and mix it well in a bowl.
- Then, you divide the mixture into smaller pieces, round them into form, and place them on plates.
- Then, add one tablespoon of the flavor of your choice. You can add flavors to each piece depending on your preference, like lemon, strawberry, or pandan. Make sure to mix the ingredients well with the flavor on the plate.
- Next, you place white sugar in a pan. Roll the pastillas mixture in the pan of sugar. Roll it once more after mixing it with the sugar to make sure that it is more flavorful.
- Then, place the pastillas in a beautiful container like a bottle or jar. Having different flavors of the pastillas like ube, pandan, lemon, and classic creates different colors and makes your recipe more sumptuous.
- You can add more sugar in the bottle or jar and be creative with the packaging, like adding ribbons and other designs or using beautiful containers.
- The good thing about having pastillas as your food business is that you don’t need a refrigerator to store them and they can be kept at room temperature. The longer it is stored, the more delicious it gets because it is not perishable, unlike other desserts.
As a final reminder, Del Rosario adds that the presentation of your food is essential, as you are not only selling your dishes but also your creativity. When selling your recipes, make sure that you take your cost into account to make sure that you will make a profit. Now that you’ve learned these easy-to-cook recipes, you’re ready to start your own food business!
For more cooking tips, you can watch Quaranchef, a show hosted by Del Rosario, or visit Plus Network on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
