MANILA, Philippines — Of all the Kakanins there are in the Philippines, Bibingka and Puto Bumbong are the ones closely associated with the Christmas season.
Images of Filipino Christmas traditions have it that families attend Simbang Gabi or Misa de Gallo in the wee hours of the morning, and when Mass is over and people start pouring out from Church, they stop by the stalls selling freshly cooked Bibingka and Puto Bumbong and have a bite before getting on their way home.
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While it is easy to simulate the cooking process for Bibingka in the house, for the bamboo tubes needed in cooking Buto Bumbong, you need to improvise by wrapping the puto bumbong “crumbs” in aluminum foil before cooking them.
Created by Chef Jackie Ang Po for Arla, this recipe should be a good guide on how to cook Puto Bumbong in a home kitchen.
Puto Bumbong
Ingredients:
For the Puto Bumbong:
1 cup (120 grams) malagkit flour (glutinous rice flour)
1/2 cup (60 grams) rice flour
1/2 cup (110 grams) water
2 tsps. (10 ml.) ube flavoring
For the topping:
Arla Butter
Shredded coconut
Muscovado sugar
Arla Cheddar Cheese
Procedure:
1. Prepare 5 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch pieces of aluminum foil.
2. Prepare the puto bumbong. Combine malagkit flour, rice flour, water, and ube flavoring. Mix until it resembles sand.
3. Make puto bumbong molds with aluminum foil. Put sand-like mixture into the foil and steam for 15 minutes.
4. Brush top with Arla Butter. Top with shredded coconut, Muscovado sugar and Arla Cheddar cheese.
RELATED: Recipe: Baby Bibingka for Christmas