Birthdays and other special occasions are when Jane gets to best show off her baking skills, with cakes and other sweet treats for family and loved ones. Pictured are Jane and her son during a birthday celebration (left) and her son and husband blowing out a candle on a birthday cake.
Avid Home
Baker Brings
Some Healthy
Balance To
Weekends With
Jump Rope
Contributed by The Heritage Hotel Manila Account Manager Ms Jane Reyes.
Jane is an avid home baker and during the pandemic, has also picked up jump rope to bring some healthy balance to her weekends. She shares with Hi Life about her passions.
My interest in baking started about seven years ago in 2014 when I bought an oven and KitchenAid mixer. I first started with easier items like cupcakes and cookies, and started experimenting from there.
At The Heritage Hotel Manila, I also had an opportunity to do a cross training with the kitchen department, and I joined the Pastry team for a while. It further sparked my interest in baking, and from there I went on to attend several baking classes during the weekends, taking basic to more advanced courses and learning a variety of different recipes.
A decadent chocolate cake Jane baked for her son’s birthday.
It was an investment in terms of time and money, but it’s been very fulfilling! For example, nowadays, instead of buying cakes during special occasions, I can bake something special for my loved ones.
As a home baker I have many favourite recipes, but I am especially proud of my ube pandesal, a take on the classic Filipino dinner roll with purple yam and cheese, and ube macapuno cake, a popular flavour combination in the Philippines with yam and coconut.
Some other favourite recipes are banana bread, chocolate chip cookies, carrot cake with cream cheese, mocha cake and ube mcapuno cake. These are my go-tos whenever I have a craving for something sweet, and I usually bake during the weekend.
During the pandemic, a friend sparked an interest in her in jump rope, which is now part of Jane’s weekend routine alongside baking.
During the pandemic, to counter all the baking and sweet treats, I also started to gain an interest in jump rope after being inspired by a friend. I also usually practice during weekends and follow tutorials on TikTok and Instagram. Some jump rope tricks I’ve learnt include the running man, criss cross jumping and switch crosses.
It might be a very different interest but helps me maintain a balance between staying active and indulging in baking and eating all the delicious treats! 
