FEATURED PRODUCTS: Filipino Kakanin (Rice Cakes)

Kakanin or rice cakes are inseparable from any Filipino occasion. Heck, it is unimaginable. It is impossible to go to any birthday party and not find at least one or two varieties of sweet and decadent kakanin. Ours is a culinary culture of extremes. If it is not that sweet, then that rice cake is bland and needs to be rolled on white sugar or sprinkled with dried coconut. Filipinos’ love affair with sweet-on-sweets goes way back before Spanish colonization. Rice cakes were already part of the native diet. It was also offered as a gift to visitors or to please the deities. The king of Palawan sent rice cakes intricately wrapped in banana leaves as a gift to the Spaniards. Antonio Pigafetta described the kakanin they received resembled sugar loaves and tarts.

Back then, making a kakanin is time-consuming because one had to follow traditional procedures and ingredients. Today, wide varieties of kakanin can be sticky, buttery, tender, fluffy, dense, and sweeter due to the addition of modern ingredients while keeping the original spirit of the recipe. Besides, Filipino groceries (hint: My Tindahan) carry brands of kakanin ready-mix that can be easily prepared in a modern kitchen. Below is a rundown of popular kakanin available in ready-mix packaging at My Tindahan:

BIBINGKA

Bibingka reigns the streets of the Philippines when Christmas comes around. One cannot ignore the tantalizing aroma coming off clay pots lined with banana leaf where the bibingka is steamed. One can feel the Filipino Christmas spirit as stalls serve freshly baked bibingka to hungry churchgoers after mass in the late afternoon. Bibingka is a tender, fluffy rice cake with butter and melted cheese baked onto the top. It is round in shape and slightly charred on top and bottom due to the way it is traditionally cooked, but without the burned taste and only ever giving it a subtle sweetness and fresh aroma from the banana leaf. 

GINATAANG BILO-BILO

Ginataang bilo-bilo is a refreshing and decadent bowl of dessert filled with generous amounts of sago (edible starch from sago palms), cuts of plantain and sweet potato, and strips of jackfruit swimming in rich coconut milk. The main characters are the balls of glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk, hence the term “ginataan” meaning cooked in coconut milk. This dessert is called bilo-bilo because—surprise, surprise—the main ingredients are round shape. Ginataang bilo-bilo is often prepared on Christmas or New Year because Filipinos have the superstition that anything round shape on the dining table will bring prosperity. Beyond the holidays, it is a favorite merienda and summer cooler that can satiate and comfort the soul.

KUTSINTA

Kutsinta will always get everybody’s attention due to its bright orange hue. Unlike the kakanin mentioned here so far, kutsinta is a jelly-like sticky rice cake that uses very few ingredients. This sweet Filipino delicacy is made of glutinous rice flour, brown sugar, lye water, and annatto extract to give it the yellowish coloring. Some theory suggests that this kakanin is named after the pre-colonial kitchen tool used to mold it. Kutsinta does not taste satisfyingly sweet on its own, so it is always topped with grated (dried) coconut meat. Kutsinta is a sought-after kakanin during birthdays and holidays. 

PUTO

No, Filipinos do not mean to offend their Latino brothers on the other side of the planet. When Filipinos ask around for puto, they mean the most beloved native kakanin of all time. Puto is a mini, muffin-like steamed white rice cake topped with cheddar cheese or salted egg. Filipinos find puto enjoyable when paired with viands, especially dinuguan (Filipino Pork and Blood Stew) and La Paz Batchoy noodles in Negros Island and Iloilo, perhaps to achieve the sweet and salty combination. Puto could be the hardest to make since many factors such as room temperature and cooking conditions need to be considered. Fortunately, My Tindahan got you covered with steamed white rice cake ready mix available on the shelf. 

SAPIN-SAPIN

This one right here is the most delightful to sink the teeth in for the neat and vibrant arrangement of marigold, purple, and white layers on top of the other. Sapin-sapin is a sticky rice delicacy that means “layer after layer.” Sapin-sapin has its character coming from the meticulous layering method to keep the colors and taste separate. One gets different shades of sweetness from each layer as a result. The white layer is based on coconut, the purple layer on ube (purple yam), and the gold layer on jackfruit. The glutinous rice holds the flavor together, then traditionally sprinkled with a layer of latik or toasted coconut curd on top. 

MAJA BLANCA

Maja blanca, meaning “white delicacy,” is as elegantly basic as a Filipino kakanin could get. It is the cousin of the thick and creamy manjar blanco or dulce de leche which is popular Christmas treat in Spanish-speaking countries. Maja blanca is a gorgeously simple, silvery-white coconut pudding with corn kernels inside. The smooth and tender interior is made of corn or rice flour, sugar or condensed milk to taste creamier, and coconut milk. Maja blanca is a delightfully rich and refreshing kakanin that is preferred as a light dessert during big celebrations.