Muffin Top

hello kitty meow-berry poptart
Originally uploaded by c(h)ristine.

I saw this at a grocery store while away at a writing retreat. What on earth…? I snapped a picture–and then my friends urged me to BUY some. “How could you not fancy a taste?” they asked. So I bought a box.

What do Hello Kitty Pop-Tarts made of “meow-berries” taste like? I took a bite. The answer: they taste like SUGAR. (I guess that’s what meow-berries are, sugar).

And now I am reading Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and I am more scared than ever of anything that has to do with sugar and corn (especially high fructose corn syrup). I keep thinking that one bite of pop-tart will be the DEATH of me!

bibingka
Originally uploaded by c(h)ristine.

I am initially attracted to different things for different reasons. Maybe a whiff of fragrance, or a particular color…and oftentimes, it’s a name. In fact, I started talking to my husband eleven years ago because I thought he had the coolest name (first AND last). Now I share the very cool surname with him.

So when I read about bibingka on Obachan’s blog, my first reaction was: WHAT A COOL NAME.

I don’t really know WHAT bibingka means, but doesn’t it just sound wonderful? Say it aloud! Five times! Bibingka, bibingka, bibingka, bibingka, bibingka!

My second reaction to bibingka was: I HAVE TO MAKE IT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Mochiko, coconut milk, sugar, butter–sounds like a fantastic combination of flavors and texture. “I’m going to make bibingka!” I said to Melanie, my friend and fellow contributor on this blog. Oh, and she happens to be Filipino–the blasphemy! A Korean chick making the bibingka! (just a joke, calm down). From Melanie I learned the longer name for this Filipino cake is “mochiko bibingka.”

Oh. Even better. “Mochiko bibingka, mochiko bibingka, mochiko bibingka!” What a happy sound.

So on my day off today, I gathered up the ingredients, rolled up my sleeves (not really, I’m wearing a tank top), started up my mixer, preheated the oven and baked away. What came out was something very mochi-like (spongy, sweet, smooth) but with flavors unlike any mochi I have ever tasted. What a fabulous intersection of texture and flavor.

(Update: and now that it has totally cooled down, it has taken on another dimension of goodness! The cake flattened down, become denser in a way that it is very similar to mochi–basically, if you pick up a piece of the cake it does not crumble. Also, the flavor has just a hint of the sweet rice flour along with the coconut and cream).

RECIPE (from Obachan’s link to JMom’s recipe)

INGREDIENTS:
1 Box Mochico Flour (16 oz. of sweet rice flour)
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup)
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 oz. sour cream
1 - 14 oz. can of Coconut Milk

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and butter a 9×13 glass dish or in this case, one 9×9 dish and a couple of pie pans lined with banana leaves.

Cream the butter, sugar, and eggs. Add remaining ingredients (I added the wet ingredients before the dry) and blend well. Pour into pans and bake at 350 degrees F for 40-50 minutes.