Father John Barro’s Bibingkang Malagkit

The secret to making good bibingkang malagkit is using pure glutinous rice or sticky rice. Any mixture of regular rice will make the texture unbalanced and the taste uneven, leaving some parts with an undesirable crunch.

The second tip is using pure coconut cream, or the first extraction from the niyog or mature coconut. The first extraction is the juice that comes when you squeeze the meat and let it filter through a muslin cloth. The repetition of the first process with water added is the second extraction and is called coconut milk. Coconut cream gives an extra, melts-in-the-mouth flavor, giving this dessert a rich, creamy taste. Palm sugar or panocha with powdered cocoa gives a nice, brown color.

6 cups malagkit, washed and drained

8 cups water

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

3 cups canned/tetrapak coconut milk (second extraction)

1-1/2 cups panocha (tinaklob or palm sugar), grated

2 cups canned/tetrapak coconut cream (first extraction)

1/4 cup Ricoa cocoa

Cook the washed malagkit with eight cups of water in a rice cooker for 20 to 25 minutes.

Line a 15-inch bilao or round serving tray with banana leaves that have been previously softened over a low fire.

Mix the panocha and coconut cream over low fire until it begins to thicken.

Caramelize the sugar in a big wok. When brown, lower the fire and add the coconut milk. When the sugar has dissolved (the mixture will be oily), add the cooked rice. Mix with a long wooden spoon until it leaves the sides of the pan. Pour on to the prepared bilao. Press down with a rubber scraper to even out the mixture. Pour over the topping. Sift the cocoa on top.