Christmas Countdown: "Bibingka" and "Puto Bumbong"

There are 8 days remaining before Christmas and two kinds of native rice cake associated with the festivities will be presented: bibingka and puto bumbong.  Commonly sold outside the church during the Simbang Gabi masses, bibingka and puto bumbong can also be enjoyed with a warm glass of coffee, chocolate or salabat (ginger tea).

Bibingka is prepared by mixing rice flour, coconut milk (or water), and eggs. A clay container lined with a lined with a piece of banana leaf is placed over preheated coals. The mixture is then poured into the hot container, which is covered with a small sheet of galvanized iron. More preheated coals are placed atop the sheet, effectively cooking the bibingka on two sides.

A bibingka vendor preparing the rice cakes

 The finished product is then topped with butter/margarine, cheese, or grated coconut.

Puto bumbong is a rice cake that assumes the shape of the bumbong or bamboo tube in which it is steamed. It is made of purple pirurutong rice, and similar with the bibingka, served with grated coconut and brown sugar.