Kitchen Diary: My Interpretation of Tupig

I have been craving for tupig or tinupig. Since my stomach is still very sensitive, I make sure my meals or snacks are all prepared at home. So I made it a mission to research the recipe for tupig and if I can use the oven instead of charcoal. I'm not sure if there's an English translation for tupig but all I know is that, my sister and I are loyal fans of this snack being sold on the streets of Baguio City. They're usually sold at street vendor stands, rain or shine, you'll see a seller fanning her charcoal stove, carefully roasting and checking if the tupigs have achieved their golden brown color. The aromatic scent of a roasted, closed to burnt, Banana leaf means there's a tinupig nearby or just around the corner. It's best to eat them warm and darn right sticky to your hands.

Breakfast Menu: Coffee and Tupig

I had to base my tupig recipe on two websites: Filipino Style Recipe and Ilokano's Best. Please check both sites and find which one works for you.

Below is my tweaked version based on these two recipes.

Ingredients: Coconut Cream, Butter, Brown Sugar, Glutinous Rice Flour and shredded Young Coconut

Tinupig

Ingredients:

1 pack of glutinous rice flour

1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar (depends on how sweet you want it)

1 pack of shredded young coconuts
1 stick of unsalted butter (soft)

1 can of coconut cream (see my note regarding adding this whole can)

Banana leaves for wrapping

Procedure:

- take your Banana leaves and pass them over a flame or grill to make them pliable or softer (doing this makes them easier to work with especially when it's time to wrap the tupig mixture); the Banana leaves should get shiny and softer

- preheat oven at 375 degrees

- do this in particular order: mix softened butter, sugar, shredded coconut and glutinous soft (don't worry if they're not mixing well that's what the Coconut Cream is for)

- slowly add coconut milk BUT make sure not to make the mixture runny or it will be hard to wrap, sticky is the consistency you should look for

- when mixture consistency is achieved, pour 1/4 cup of mixture on Banana leaves and roll 

- place on a cookie sheet, single layer and make sure they don't overlap to ensure cooking uniformity

- cook in oven for about 30-45 minutes (NOTE: Check tupigs at around 30 minutes and increase time if they're not done yet, I had to keep checking mine and cooked it for 50 minutes because I wanted my tupig to be golden brown and wanted the Banana leaf to be burnt a little bit.)

This is mixture consistency you're looking for - just enough Coconut Cream so that it's easier to wrap.

I love my tupig a little bit burnt so that it gives me just enough crunch but soft and chewy in the inside.

I hope you can start making your own tupig and let me know how it came out.

Tupig reminds me of a world gone and only accessible through the whiff of familiar memories and smells; a time when Baguio was still cold and clean. Sadly, I heard the Summer Capital isn't as cold as it used to be, and the fog is almost taken over by smog. Fortunately, I can make my own tupig and be reminded of the good things and savor once more a favorite snack from my childhood.

Kitchen Diary: Banana Bread

I'm crazy for Bananas!

I've made a chocolate chip banana muffin before and it was a hit with my husband. So this time, I decided to give Banana Bread a try. This recipe reminds me of our drive through Hana Highway in Maui. What is the connection between Hana Highway and Banana Bread? Well, if you've driven through Hana Highway, you'll notice all these signs from mom and pop shops offering Banana Bread. Every time we stop by a shop, the Banana Bread is gone - that's how delicious they are.

To be precise and exact for my banana bread - sugar, vegetable oil, eggs, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, sour cream, mashed bananas and of course - my recipe book.

I find it easier to bake when all my ingredients are ready and portioned.

My mixer finally left the basement.

My first banana bread and it filled the house with the most wonderful scent.

There's something rustic, historic and beautiful about this recipe. My gratitude to the person who made this recipe and passed it down to family, friends and now to me.

Gotta have thick slices.

These thick slices are great for french toast as well.

The bread was moist and delicious. It was perfect for our afternoon coffee and tea.

Since I made this Banana Bread, I've baked it twice already and the outcome is consistent. I did tweak it a bit and increased the Bananas and less nutmeg.

This recipe is a keeper.

Kitchen Diary: Chocolate And Apricot Squares

It's rainy and it's a perfect day to bake. Beautiful rainy days can be enhanced with the sweet smell of cake baking in my oven especially when it's chocolate.

I found this recipe from a book, Cook's Library Chocolate, bought from a yard sale. This book shows how to use chocolate, be it white, milk or semisweet, in different recipes. What I love about this book is that the recipes are well laid out and easy to understand. Each recipe is labeled from easy, moderate to challenging. Since I'm a beginner in baking, I'm starting with the easy ones.

Before I bake, I prepare all the portions and ingredients first - eggs, dried apricots, semisweet bars and butter. Not in the photo are flour, baking powder, and salt.

Preparing to melt the chocolate and butter.

This is my favorite part, the melting of chocolate and butter. The mixture infused a wonderful scent of chocolate throughout the house. I must do this often. It's better than scented candles.

Folding the flour mix into the chocolate and butter mix.

Chocolate and Apricot Square Cake

An afternoon with a good cup of Vanilla Latte and a small square of sweet indulgence. The best part is that I made it.

The cake was done at around 3 PM and it was the perfect time for an afternoon snack. Mom and Dad loved the cake. I did too. The recipe calls for white chocolate, but I substituted it with semisweet instead. I think that with white chocolate, the cake would be overwhelmingly sweet, but I am thinking of making the white chocolate version in the near future. At the moment, the semisweet came out just right.

This recipe serves 12.

From Cook's Library Chocolate: Chocolate and Apricot Squares

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
6 oz white chocolate, chopped (substitute with milk or semi-sweet)
4 eggs
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup no-soak dried apricots, chopped

1. grease a 9-inch square cake pan and line base with baking parchment
2. melt butter and chocolate, stir frequently until mixture is smooth and glossy, cool slightly before mixing
3. beat the eggs and sugar into the butter and chocolate mixture
4. fold in flour, baking powder, salt and chopped apricots
5. pour batter into the pan and bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes
6. when cake is completely cold, turn it out and slice into squares or bars