Ube Dessert Competitor Profile - Tesa Meneses
Congratulations on your win at the Ube Dessert Competition! How does it feel to have your ube creation recognized at the Adobo Throwdown 3.0? I was very surprised and thrilled that my ube dessert took 2nd place. Its great feeling my that ube creation was recognized at this event.
What inspired you to enter the Ube Dessert Competition? Do you have a special connection to ube? My friends encouraged me to enter my ube dessert and since I always getting great feedback whenever I make anything with the ube. Ube has always been my favorite dessert and I tried making different kind of dessert other than ube haleya (jam), ube candy, ube cake with leche flan and ube cake. The Ube cheese macapuno trifle is one of my summer favorite desserts. The trifle is served cold , very light, refreshing and you can taste the ube haleya and macapuno in between layers o f cake.
Can you share the story behind your dessert recipe? What makes your ube dessert unique? I adopted the recipe from one of Texas tres leches cake recipe. This time I added ube haleya in the batter prior baking the cake
What challenges did you face while preparing your dessert for the competition, and how did you overcome them? As an amateur competitor, my struggle is how I will present the cake. To overcome, I watch a lot of dessert decorating and packaging and this allow me to get some ideas.
What was the most memorable part of your experience at the Adobo Throwdown? Competition and meeting new friends and exchanging ideas and information.
What advice would you give to future competitors in the Ube Dessert Competition? My advice is to be confident and positive
Who or what has influenced your baking or dessert-making journey the most? Growing up dessert is always part of our family gatherings; my grandma and I always like to try new recipes we see on the magazines and newspaper. Later on, I like creating new dessert recipe and let my family and friends try it.
Bonus Question: Do you use Mama Sita’s products in your cooking? If so, how have they influenced your adobo or other dishes? Yes, I used a lot of Mama Sita’s product which sinigang mix, Kerekare, Caldereta, barbecue marinade sauce, oyster sauce, achuete powder, etc. Each product I used is closed to home cook dishes I make without doing so much work or long hours of preparation. This makes my cooking easier and faster.