Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Bess' Dessert: Tibuk tibuk

She is a pharmacist who has been running their family owned Pharmacy and the oldest hospital in town, but for me she has always been the culinary doyen as long as I can remember.  Tita Bess is the mother of my brother in law.  I have been wanting to feature her for my guest post Wednesdays (although I have shared some of her recipes in this blog).  And I was thrilled when she invited me over to her house one afternoon during my recent trip back home.

It was an afternoon filled with fun and great company.  Those invited included my sister in law Arlene, who is a caterer extraordinaire, my niece, Ayi, a young food enthusiast, and my old friend, Mia  (Tita Bess' daughter who is a dedicated wife and mother of two sons).  Cooking has always been close to our hearts and we were all so comfortable being in the kitchen.

Tita Bess was going to share with us how to make tibuk-tibuk, a Kapampangan specialty.  She is the expert to go to as her family's roots hail from Pampanga.  She could make tibuk-tibuk from memory but that afternoon she handed us (yes we took home our own copies) a cookbook of her aunt Africa Valdes Reynoso, The Reynoso Flair.

Tibuk-tibuk is a delicate creamy dessert and I would dare say that it is the panna cotta of the Philippines.  Okay it may not be as refined as what the Italians have but it has the same smooth and velvety texture, and it lends to a decadent, creamy delightful dessert.

When we got there, all the ingredients were already prepared.  So let's begin:


Tibuk Tibuk
(This recipe was adapted from The Reynoso Flair cookbook)
1 1/2 c rice flour
1/2 c latik (coconut milk reduction sprinkles)
3 whole coconut (grated)
250 ml full cream milk
1 cup sugar

1 lemon (rind)
4 pandan leaves
2 tbps oil from the coconut reduction


Procedure
For the Latik: (I've shown this process in a previous post, but here are the steps again)
Grate one coconut. Add one cup of water and squeeze. Pour the coconut milk in a thick sauce pan. Let it boil and continue to stir until most of the liquid has been reduced.  The milk will begin to change its color to slight brown. Don't overcook, set aside for garnish.


Pour 2 1/2 cups of hot water over the 3 grated coconuts.  Squeeze until it yields 3 cups of the first extraction. (In Tagalog that's called kakang gata).  Set aside on a bowl.  Pour another 3 cups of hot water on the grated coconut and squeeze the second extraction.


Place in a saucepan 1 1/2 rice flour and pandan leaves.


Add the second coconut milk extraction a little by little  while continuously stirring with a wire whisk.


When the mixture thickens, add 3 cups of the first extraction.  You must add it slowly to avoid forming lumps.   When quite thick, add milk and sugar. Continue stirring (about 15 minutes) until thick.
Remove pandan leaves.


Add the rinds into the thickened mixture.


 Pour the mixture into pans...


Sprinkle the latik


and I promise you that you will devour this dessert bite after bite... and you tell yourself it's the last bite but the sweet scent wafting under your nostril will seduce you to take another bite of this dreamy creation...


While I'm back to my home base, I still cherish that afternoon. Because in between stirring and cooking came the swapping of stories and reminiscing our childhood days that elicited laughter.  Lots of laughter.  Although separated by time and distance, we all share the common joys of cooking... and the memories forged that afternoon is as sweet as the dessert that we just made together.  Memories that will last a lifetime.

Thank you Tita Bess and Mia for having us at your house. Arlene and Ayi, thank you for joining us that afternoon.

xo,
Malou








26 comments:

  1. I saw your post on facebook and your teaser was right...it's definitely a keeper. i've been wanting to try making tibuk tibuk (what's right ba tibok tibok or with a u?)

    thanks as always malou. love ya!
    jenny

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jenny!
      I think you could either use o or u.. I'm not sure. Let's ask the Kapampangans? haha!
      But either or, it's delish!
      malou

      Delete
  2. It must have been a fun afternoon. I love it when the recipe is passed down to you. It makes it more meaningful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed it was! You're right passing the recipe down is like passing a legacy. It makes it more meaningful. Thank you for dropping by.
      Malou

      Delete
  3. It sounds like a perfect Recipe. I never had this amazing recipe in Restaurants in Hyderabad..Thanks for posting delicious recipe :)

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  4. This creamy confection just begs to be made. I am loving the flavors and the nuances. Different than panna cotta - richer and more toothsome.

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    Replies
    1. Claudia, I really hope you could make it. I want to know what you think... I mean as an Italian yourself. Thanks for keeping me company here Claudia. You are an awesome blogger foodie (albeit I am not a fan of this word) friend.
      malou

      Delete
  5. At first, I thought it's like maja...but I checked the ingredients and there's no corn.
    I think I've never had tibuk-tibuk before...but it sure looks good! Thanks for introducing me to this Kapampangan treat, Malou!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Tina,
      It's been awhile since you visited and I'm glad this post took you here. It's very similar to maja (even the process) only this one is creamier and tastier. You must try it!
      malou

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    2. So true, Malou! Been very busy and I hardly had time to blog hop. But I'm slowly trying to get back to it. :)

      Delete
    3. Please correct me if I missed something here dear, I've read the procedure over and over again but did not see any cooking done apart from latik. Does the tibok tibok need no cooking just stirring the mixture as per your procedure and already done?

      Delete
  6. Oh I love this stuff but have never made it. Thanks for the great step by step - it looks delish.

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  7. I hope one of these days you;ll be able to try it. Worth all the process... :)
    Have a great day!
    malou

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  8. A labor of love!!!!! wow!!!!!
    Auntie Bessie D L?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will try to make tibuk tibuk again and use coconut milk in cans and will let you know. Otherwise let's look for a kabayo to make kayod haha!
      thanks for visiting!

      Delete
  9. Passing on the legacy in making this delicious dessert will give you the chance to share it to other people. Just like now. Latik is my favorite add on flavor. Thanks for sharing =)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love latik too. Im glad you know what Latik means. It's so hard to explain what it is... at first i described it as residue from coconut reduction but it didn't quite sound right haha. I felt like coconut milk reduction sprinkles fit it better? :)
      Thanks Raguel!

      Malou

      Delete
  10. Thanks for sharing Tita Bess with us and wonderful food.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi chaya, great to see you again. i should be seeing you soon,
      malou

      Delete
  11. I'm thrilled to get a recipe from Tita Bess. Those recipes are the best kind. It certainly looks like a lot of work but the results sound fantastic!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I actually have a shorter recipe but extracting fresh coconut is a lot better. It's just unfortunate that it's not available where Im based right now.
      thanks for dropping by.
      malou

      Delete
  12. Thanks so much for sharing this legacy of a dessert! It sounds delicious, all the more so because of where it came from.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am thrilled that you appreciate it. Im sure Tita Bess feels the same way too.

      Delete
  13. I think I never had tibuk-tibuk before. I will look for it when I hope I can taste one of this Kampangpangan recipes. Thanks for sharing this one! :)

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  14. This is the Kapampangan way of making tibuk-tibok as I remember it from my childhood. Just found this now. Must try it, so I've bookmarked this. Thanks for sharing a lovely memory, Malou. Hope all is well :-)

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  15. I thought tibok tibok used carabaos milk.. Can I use that instead of full cream milk..

    ReplyDelete

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