Dining in the Next Normal: The Ovens are Fired Up at Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries

From cherished heirloom recipes to a modern and lavish take on a popular Korean street food, a family kitchen fires up its ovens offering their selection of comforting home-baked bread and pastries in the new normal...

Fresh baked, delivered to your doorstep. The rise of home-based food businesses and food deliveries continue to define the new normal where dining at home becomes your regular routine in a prolonged quarantine. In homes all around the country, family kitchens come to life and in one kitchen in Quezon City, Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries shares a family recipe passed down from one generation to another with their traditional Pork Empanadas along with an indulgent spin on a Korean favorite with their Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart. With their unique and innovative specialty offerings, these home-based food businesses are likely here to stay long after the quarantine. The ovens are all fired up at Lola Ester's for the new normal...

Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries is one of the exciting stories out of the quarantine with their traditional Pork Empanadas (P 200 Box of Ten/P 500 Box of 25) and their version of the Korean street food sensation, the Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart (P 250 Pack of Two/P 500 Pack of Four). Both specialties offer unique flavor experiences, from comfortingly nostalgic to refreshingly contemporary, made with a warm homespun touch. The popularity of Korean pull apart buns is apparent on the net with its constant presence on your social media feed. One look at Lola Ester's Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart and you'll know why it's become quite the sensation...

The soft fresh baked buttery bun is loaded to the brim with a generous filling of cream cheese, intricately sliced like a blooming flower hence the name "pull apart." Lola Ester's adds their own inventive twist to the Korean street food staple with fresh herbs, nutty garlic and garlic butter along with silky smooth cream cheese on their pillow-soft brioche-like buns. Once you open a pack of Lola Ester's Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart, the vibrant colors and fragrant aroma of butter, herbs and garlic becomes a sensory feast in itself. Recently, Lola Ester posted record sales with their specialty Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart dispatching 752 buns in just one week. And that's no surprise at all...

Once delivered, the tasty pair of Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart buns by Lola Ester's are still warm tempting you to immediately dive right in. But Lola Ester's recommends popping these buns in your toaster for 45-60 seconds to gently warm it up so you can enjoy all the fresh notes at its flavorful peak. Baked fresh with orders accepted and delivered on Tuesdays and Fridays in the afternoon, you always get a fresh batch from Lola Ester's.

Fresh off the toaster, your kitchen is filled with the buttery and garlicky aroma of the Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart buns. Gently "pull apart" a slice and prepare for a savory burst of vibrant flavors. The contrasting soft texture of the buns with its delicately light crisp outer layer is enhanced by a decadent richness from the creamy cheese followed by a wide range of complex notes from the garlic, butter and herbs coming together in a seamless weave. Pull another slice, and the flavors get even more intense. Visually, the "pull-apart" presentation of the buns makes it both appealing and tempting as your own Instagram feed shows. But one bite really does validate why it's been so popular on social media. 

If you look beyond the social media presence and hype on these Korean inspired buns, there are certain qualities that make it special from the quality and freshness of the bun itself to the premium ingredients used and the masterful execution at Lola Ester's home kitchen. Lola Ester's bring it all together with each of their special made-to-order buns. But there's only one way to enjoy these Korean style buns, and that's fresh off the ovens. Lola Ester's ensures you get the freshest home-baked bread and pastries straight out of their ovens to your table by preparing small batches based on the daily orders for delivery on Tuesdays and Fridays of the week. All you have to do is complete the process by warming it up for no more than a minute in your toaster or oven. 

It's easy to understand why this Korean street food staple has become a sensation in social media. Locked down for months in a quarantine, a deep yearning for home-style, fresh-baked flavors straight out of a real family kitchen becomes a serious daily craving. And you get that with each pull apart from Lola Ester's. Comforting flavors with a homespun touch goes a long way in these uncertain times. Homebaked, mom-made, delivered fresh to your table, that's what keeps Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries top of mind in the blossoming home-based food business scene. But that's not all that Lola Ester's has to offer from their home kitchen...

Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries also offers comforting and nostalgic treats made from a family recipe handed down for generations led by their specialty Pork Empanadas. A holdover from the shared heritage with the Spanish colonial experience, the local empanada is deeply woven into our culinary mainstream with regional variations found around the country. Lola Ester's keeps their savory empanadas both simple and traditional, following a generations old recipe from the family matriarch. Packed in boxes of 10s and 25s, Lola Ester's Pork Empanadas makes for another excellent option to stock in your pantry in a prolonged quarantine.

Just like their herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart, opening a box of Lola Ester's Pork Emapanadas releases a fragrant, homey aroma. Intricately shaped by hand, not one empanada looks the same as the other giving it a rustic vibe but all deliver the same richness in savory flavors with each bite.  

And just like their other fresh baked offerings, these empanadas are best served after just a few minutes warming up in the oven or toaster. The local turnover derives its name from the Spanish verb "empanar" which loosely translates to "embreaded" or wrapped in bread. Most empanada purists look forward to the savory filling, but I also enjoy and appreciate bakers who give the same attention to the dough. Lola Ester's does exactly that with the thick yet soft dough, almost buttery to the taste with a velvety soft mouthfeel.  

These bite-sized empanadas pack some serious flavor, and the dough holds well with each bite without crumbling or falling apart. The dense texture keeps it together all the way to the last bite. And just like a home baker in the family kitchen, the dough is prepared meticulously for that perfect finish and texture.

Inside, the mildly sweet and savory filling with pork, potatoes and raisins weaves its own complex blend of flavors taking you back to childhood summers and simpler times long before the viral pandemic. When food takes you to another place or time triggering fond memories, you know it's special. Lola Ester's home-baked goodness takes you there once you open up a box delivered fresh to your doorstep.   

In addition to their Pork Empanadas and Korean street food-inspired Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart, Lola Ester's also offers homey Raisin Bread and Ube Keso Pandesal each prepared and baked fresh daily from their home kitchen.

Dining at home in the long days of the quarantine is always brightened up by simple yet hearty and comforting homemade flavors like Lola Ester's Pork Emapanada. The flavors of the finely minced pork filling are subtle, even delicate and nuanced, complementing the buttery richness of the dough for a perfectly balanced finish. Pork Empanadas and Herb Cream Cheese Pull Apart buns by Lola Ester's make dining at home in the prolonged quarantine such a smarter option with the continued threat of Covid 19.

 

The food service sector in the country and the rest of the world along with so many other industries are struggling in the new normal as home-based food businesses offer the lone bright spot bringing not only wholesome flavors but a comforting warmth of hope for both the palate and body. Let Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries share a piece of their home with you, all you have to do is call up the numbers listed below...

For more on Lola Ester's Homebaked Bread & Pastries, call 8911 6883, 8340 6559 and 0922 861 3830 for orders and inquiries. You can also visit their Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/lolaesters/ and their Instagram at @lolaesters for more updates.

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