Puto (Steamed rice cake)

By popular demand, I am sharing our Puto recipe.

Ingredients:

1 lb + 4 tbsp rice flour
2 cups sugar
14 oz coconut milk
14 oz milk
14 oz water
3/4 tbsp yeast in 1 cup warm water
1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions:

Using a wire whisk, mix water with flour and sugar.
Add melted butter.
Add risen yeast.
Mix well until  bubbles appear.
Add the rest of the ingredients.
Let the mixture rise for 30-45 minutes (or until the mixture is heavy in consistency).

Pour the mixture into small steam cups. Arrange cups in one layer of steam pan.
Steam each batch for 10 minutes.
Let cool a bit before removing puto from the cups.

Serve warm.

Binangkal (Sesame Seed Balls)

I love Binangkal!

For those who are not familiar with this Filipino "bread," Binangkal  can be described as fried, sesame seed flour balls. It is popular in the Visayas and (some) Mindanao regions in the Philippines. If you haven't tried them, you should! They're a very tasty and filling snack.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup milk

Sesame seeds

Oil for deep frying

Directions:

Heat enough oil for deep frying. 

Mix the flour and baking powder

Add the brown sugar. 

Add the milk and mix well. You may have to add more flour or milk to get the right consistency. 

Form into balls and roll in sesame seeds.

Fry the binangkal until golden brown.

Let the binangkal cool before storing in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Banana Cue

Many happy memories of my childhood is tied with banana cue. I remember that many of us kids in the neighborhood would watch Nang (Manang) Sinta cook banana cue in her usual spot across from Divine Word College in Tagbilaran City, Philippines. I don't know what her secret is (because we all saw how she cooked it), but, to this day, I think she has the best banana cue I've ever tasted!

Well now, on to my foray into banana cue making....

Ingredients:

This recipe is so simple that all you really need is some bananas, brown sugar, and oil for deep frying. For the bananas, I use plantains or burros, whichever is available. Oh, and don't forget the sticks or skewers or cues (Just a side note here: the skewers resemble the cues used for pool or billiards, hence the name banana cue, or so I've heard).

Directions:

Heat the oil in a deep fry pan. To get that perfect caramelized coating on all your bananas, it is best to cook all of them at the same time, so use a big-enough pan.

Add the brown sugar (enough to coat the bananas you prepared).

Once the brown sugar starts to melt, add the bananas. If you see the sugar rise up to the surface of the oil, you know it's time to add the bananas. Keep stirring to evenly coat them.

Take the coated bananas out of the pan, making sure you remove the excess oil, and skewer them.

And lastly...though they look delicious fresh out of the pan, be careful, they're HOT! :)

Ginataan or Binignit recipe

If you haven't already noticed, I love dessert! More importantly, I love to cook dessert! :)

Today I made Ginataan, a rich, soup-like Filipino dessert. In my province, Bohol, we call this Binignit.  Ginataan technically refers to anything cooked with gata or coconut milk. So there are actually various dishes called ginataan. In this case, I prepared the dessert made with bananas, taro and yam.

Ingredients:

Bananas, cubed
Taro root (gabi), cubed
Sweet yam (kamote), cubed
Glutinous rice balls
Coconut milk
Brown sugar (or substitute with white sugar)

Directions:

Sorry, but if you notice, I didn't specify any measurements. Frankly, I just eyeballed everything.
First, boil some water and cook the taro and sweet yam (used the purple sweet yam for this recipe) in medium heat. Add the glutinous rice balls. When cooked, add the bananas, coconut milk and sugar. Voila! You're done! :)

Puto Maya (Glutinous Sweet Rice Dessert)

Puto Maya is an easy-to-make Filipino dessert made of sticky sweet rice and coconut milk. To me, this recipe brings back memories of early morning breakfast right after Simbang Gabi (dawn mass celebrated beginning December 16th).

 

Ingredients: 

2 cans Coconut milk

4 cups Sweet rice (white 

1 cup Sweet rice (red/black)

2 tbsp Ginger paste

Directions:

Mix all the ingredients in a pot or saucepan. You may add some sugar to taste or add a bit more ginger paste. Cook over medium heat on stove top. Be sure to occasionally stir the mixture to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to lowest setting. Let the rice cook through. May be served hot or cold.

Usually paired with steaming sikwate (cocoa drink) and topped with bukayo (shredded coconut cooked in brown sugar), puto maya is delicious pretty much any time of the day. Today, I just sprinkled a bit of sugar on top.

From my kitchen to yours

Just random dishes from my kitchen.

Kinilaw

(Fresh raw fish in vinegar and mayonnaise mixed with tomatoes and onions)

Caldeo

(Sauteed fish and green leafy pechay)

Siopao (Meat-stuffed Steamed Bun)

Yummmm!!! I just had 3 (!!!) of these delish buns. Although I didn't make these (my mom did), I will definitely learn how to make siopao soon. The secret's in the dough...

For this particular recipe, ground pork, Chinese sausage and boiled egg were used for the stuffing. 

Maja Blanca

Try this sweet, rich and easy-to-make Filipino dessert. When I made this, I really had no recipe to follow. So I kind of eyeballed everything.

Ingredients:

Cornstarch
Coconut cream/milk
White sugar
Cream of corn
Crushed peanut topping (optional)

Directions:

This is the easy part. Just mix all the ingredients together: cornstarch first (I used a one-lb pack), then the coconut milk (two 14-oz cans in this case), sugar (I'm afraid I didn't keep track of how much I added. I added a half cup at a time and tasted if it was sweet enough) and one can of cream of corn. I added a little bit of whole milk because I thought the mixture was too thick.

Simmer the mixture in low-medium heat, constantly stirring (And I really mean constantly stirring!). This is a good chance to give that arm a workout. haha.

Keep stirring until you reach the right consistency. You'll know you have the right consistency when you take a spoonful and it doesn't drip down.

Transfer the cooked mixture into a heat-proof container and let cool. Sprinkle the crushed peanuts on top, if you want. I like to eat it warm :).

Fresh-squeezed Orange Juice

Just had a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. It's so, so good!
What you see in the picture is juice from 2 bags of clementines. I didn't want them to go bad so I squeezed them...manually! No wonder my arm is aching. LOL!

 

Orange juice is not only great for drinks; It can be added to many recipes for that extra zest. If you know how to make chiffon cake, you can substitute the soda (7UP or Sprite) with orange juice instead to give it a light orangey taste. For marinades, substitute the lemon with orange juice for a sweeter, less tangy taste.

Lechon...yummm!!!

Anybody want some lechon?

I'm not posting a recipe this time but sharing this delicious crispy lechon (roasted suckling pig) picture. Sorry folks, it's for our eyes only though I'm also wishing for some of that crispy lechon skin right now.

For the uninitiated, here's a short history/description on lechon from Wikipedia.

Lechón is a pork dish in several regions of the world, most specifically Spain and its former colonial possessions throughout the world (like the Philippines). The word lechón originated from the Spanish term leche (milk); thus lechón refers to a suckling pig that is roasted.

In most regions, lechón is prepared throughout the year for any special occasion, during festivals, and the holidays. After seasoning, the pig is cooked by skewering the entire animal, entrails removed, on a large stick and cooking it in a pit filled with charcoal. The pig is placed over the charcoal, and the stick or rod it is attached to is turned in a rotisserie action.

I don't know about you, but I'm really craving some lechon now! :)

Black Sambo

 

This is a recipe that I've always loved. Black Sambo is a rich chocolate and cream dessert. And it's so easy to make, too! Try it yourself.

Ingredients

1st Layer (Cream layer):

1 cup water

2 sachets Knox gelatin

1 big condensed milk (about 14 oz)

1 big Nestle cream (about 14 oz)

2nd Layer (Chocolate layer):

1 cup water

2 sachets Knox gelatin

1 big evaporated milk (14 oz)

1 cup cocoa powder

1 cup refined sugar

Directions

You need a mold for this recipe. I used the tupperware Jel-Ring mold. 

1) Mix all the ingredients of the 1st or cream layer and cook over low fire. Pour into the mold.

 2) Mix all the ingredients of the 2nd  or chocolate layer and cook over low fire for about 5 minutes or until warm. Pour into the mold. Don't worry, the two layers won't mix together. The chocolate layer will automatically go into the bottom layer of the mold. 

3) Let cool (I usually refrigerate this overnight) and remove from mold. Serve with chocolate syrup.

 Here's another photo of the Black Sambo

A slice of the Black Sambo with chocolate syrup

Yum! :)

Cream Cheese Flan

I've always loved leche flan so, naturally, I had to learn how to make it. There are so many recipes out there (and I've tried quite a few of them), but this is the only one I really liked. Cream cheese is used in the recipe so it tastes very rich and creamy. Yum!

It's very easy to make, but taking the flan(s) out of the ramekins can be a little tricky. But with a little practice, you'll get the hang of it!

Ingredients:

12 oz cream cheese
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
14 oz condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla

For caramel: water and white sugar (amount would depend on how much syrup you want)

Directions:

Blend together ingredients.
In a saucepan, melt water and white sugar until caramelized.
Pour caramel into ramekins (about 6 of them) and add cream cheese mixture.
Line glass baking pan (must be large enough to hold all the ramekins) with a towel. Add water to bottom of pan, making sure the towel is soaked through.
Cover pan with aluminum foil.
Bake at 325F for 30 minutes to an hour.

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