Royal Bibingka

Royal Bibingka (or Bibingka Royale or Rice Cake) is traditionally made of course with rice flour, baked in pans lined with wilted banana leaves on a clay stove. This recipe yield two 9" layers so I baked the first bibingka in a pie plate lined with wax paper and the other lined with banana leaves. I liked the first one better but the rest of the family preferred the latter. It had a rich smoky flavor and taste that's authentic to the dish.

Ingredients
3 eggs
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. all purpose flour (or rice flour)
1 1/2 c. coconut milk

toppings
grated cheese
sugar
grated coconut
salted eggs - for the culinary adventurous only

Procedure
Beat eggs until light & creamy, add sugar gradually, then coconut milk and milk, beating well. Sift flour & baking powder together and fold into the mixture. Pour batter into 2 - 9" cake pans that have been lined with wax paper. Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes.

Brush with margarine and sprinkle with sugar and cheese. You may also served this with fresh grated coconut or sliced salted eggs.

I made this with evaporated milk too, replacing half a cup of the coconut milk with equal amount of evaporated milk and it resulted to a much denser, richer cake. The next time I'll make this I'll difinitely try it with salted duck eggs.

Maja con Maiz

This dish can also be made without the corn and it's called Maja Blanca - very similar to the Hawaiians' Haupia except for the amount of cornstarch. My trusted ratio is 1:1:4, cornstarch, sugar and liquids. The liquids traditionally used were coconut milk and water but adding cow's milk makes it even richer.


Ingredients
1 c. cornstarch
1 c. sugar
2 c. coconut milk
1 c. evaporated milk
1 c. water
1 425 g. can of cream-style corn

Procedure
Mix together the liquids, sugar, and cornstarch in a pot. Make sure there's no lumps before adding the corn. Set over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly (dont stop! it will thicken in a blink of an eye) until thick and the whisk or spoon you are using will start to leave tracks and you can see the bottom of the pan (about 10-15 minutes). The mixture will have then have a lovely sheen and creaminess. Make sure to stir in all direction so you wont it.

Pour into the cake pan or baking dish, top with crushed peanuts (optional) cool and set in the refrigerator to cool further. Cut and served.

The creamed corn can be replaced with a lot of things for variations. Most common variation here in the Philippines is Maja con Calabasa - just add one and a half cups of mashed squash. I use evaporated milk because it's readily available in store and not quite as expensive as fresh whole milk.

Pizza

Pizza! We made pizza in class a few weeks ago and although I didn't get to spin the crust like they do in TV it turned out great nonetheless. Made it again a few days later letting the crust developed overnight in the ref and it was even better. It was a square one however and again, I didn't get to spin it. :)


Ingredients
2 tsp. instant yeast
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 c. lukewarm water
1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
3-3 1/2 c. APF

Procedure
Dissolve sugar and salt in water, add oil. Mix yeast with flour in another bowl, make a well in the center and add liquid mixture, stirring to make a soft sought. Cover and the leave for 10 minutes.

Lightly knead in an oiled surface for about 3 minutes, left it to rest for 5 minutes and knead again for another 3 minutes. Let it proof in an oiled bowl for an hour to an hour and a half.

Cut the dough in half, roll each half into a circle, cover and leave for 10 minutes. Roll each ball into desired thickness and shape and place onto oiled-and-cornmeal-sprinkled baking tray. Brush surface with a little oil, prick and top with desired toppings. Bake in 400F preheated oven for 15-20 minutes depending on thickness.

I grated the cheese on top of the dough hence the mess. And it's cheddar, the only widely available cheese here in the Philippines and it didn't really melt. Also, I didn't have a pizza stone so even though I suspect it would turn out much better if baked with one I wouldn't really know.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

This is my favorite cake to bake whenever we have to decorate or try on a new frosting recipe in class mostly because it's relatively cheap to make - being egg and dairy free - and it also holds it's shape well. The taste of course had a lot of difference compared to chocolate cakes made with eggs and milk but it's still delicious.


Ingredients
3 c. all purpose flour
2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. natural cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. vegetable oil
2 tbsp. white vinegar
2 c. hot water

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350F and lightly greased a 9x13 pan. Sift together dry ingredients into a bowl. Make a well in the center, dump in all wet ingredients and stir until smooth. Bake at 350F for 35 minutes. Remove from oven, cool and frost with your favorite frosting.

Just remember that hot frosting and sugar flower icing do not go well together. And oh, store the cake in room temperature. Refrigerating dries it too much.

Banana Cake

Banana cake was first cake we ever made in class, right after sugar cookies and chocolate brownies and this has became the recipe we reach for everytime we harvest banana from our backyard. It called for butter instead of oil so it's not greasy at all and it is light enough to qualify as a cake and not a quick bread. Love it!

Ingredients
1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 c. pastry flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. sour milk
3/4 c. mashed green banana
1/2 c. chopped nuts
1 tbsp. vanilla

Procedure

Cream butter, add sugar gradually then the egss one at a time. Sift dry ingredients together and add it alternately to the butter mixture with the wet ingredients. Mix in the banana and nuts.

Pour batter into a greased 8x12 pan and bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes or until done.

Sour milk is not usually sold in any store in the Philippines and we had to made ours by combining 1/4 cup of evaporated milk, 1/4 cup of water and 1 1/2 tsp. calamansi juice and leting it stand for a few minutes just until the milk curdled a bit.