The Philippines offers a lot of variety of desserts to satisfy the sweet tooth. These desserts have a unique preparation and a lot of ingredients. These desserts are often made out of rice and coconuts.
Here is a list of 20 Filipino Desserts that are gaining popularity all over the world:
1 Halo-Halo
Halo-Halo is a famous dessert that easily pleases the crowd. It is a Tagalog word for ‘mix’ as it is a mélange of beans, crushed ice, sago pearls, nata de coco, sweet potato, jelly, coconut, sweetened saba banana, purple yam jam, evaporated milk, jackfruit, fried pinipig, leche flan, and ube ice cream. Sounds complex, but delicious.
2 Leche Flan
Leche Flan is a Philippines’ version of caramel pudding. Since many varieties are available all over the world, this version might not seem new to many. The richness and sweetness create silky heaven for the palate.
3 Kutsinta
Kutsinta is a dessert made from rice which justifies that people of the Philippines are crazy for rice. It is a sweet rice cake, but instead of being spongy and soft, it is rubbery and sticky. It tastes great when topped with grated coconut.
4 Turon
Turon is one such dish that every Filipino child will swear by as they have fond memories of this dessert. Slices of jackfruit and saba banana are rolled in brown sugar and wrapped in a spring roll wrapper. They are deep fried with more brown sugar to glaze the roll. It is also sold in street side as a snack in the middle of the day or for merienda.
5 Ube Halaya
Ube is one such flavor that is gaining popularity due to its vibrant hue. Ube is a purple yam which is a local flavour in the Philippines and is used for steamed rice cakes, cakes, pastries, and ice cream. The best way to use it is the Ube Halaya. It is a thick, creamy dessert which is a mixture of condensed milk, butter, ube, evaporated milk, sugar, and butter.
6 Suman
Suman is another sticky rice cake made by cooking the rice in coconut milk with salt and sugar, wrapping in banana leaves, and then steaming it. It can be served with sugar or with coconut caramel sauce made of brown sugar and coconut milk.
7 Ensaymada
Ensaymada is a sweet, buttery bread which originates from Spain, but has pleased the Filipino taste. It is a coiled dough brushed with butter and topped with grated cheese and sugar. Other variants include ube flavored one and another topped with a staple cheese of Philippines during Christmas.
8 Banana Cue
Banana Cue is a skewered treat sold as street food. It is made by coating bananas in brown sugar before frying them. They are then skewered for easy handling. Another variant is kamota cue where sweet potatoes are used. They are easily found in the streets of the country.
9 Taho
Taho is a three-ingredient snack made by mixing tofu, a syrup made of brown sugar and water called arnibal, and sago pearls. It is usually sold in the streets by vendors carrying two aluminium buckets with a yoke.
10 Puto
Puto is a sweet steamed rice cake often accompanied with dinuguan (pork blood stew). Apart from the original, this spongy snack comes in a variety of flavours from ube to pandan to cheese which makes a colourful display when it is sold.
11 Buko Pandan
BukoPandan is a five-ingredient dessert made with gelatin, cream, shredded coconut, screwpine leaves, and condensed milk. The end result is an aromatic, creamy dessert with chunks of flavoredgelatin.
12 Gulaman
Gulaman looks like an ordinary jelly from afar, but the ingredients are unique. It is made by agar or gulaman, which is a dried form of seaweed. They are many flavors of Gulaman, but many fruits are added to give a taste.
13 Ice Candy
Ice Candy reminds everyone of their childhood. The summer breeze with ice candy is something that we cherish even now. They are easy to make and can be prepared in any flavor you like. In the Philippines, it is made with chocolate or fruit juices. Since coconut is added to every dish here, coconut ice candy is also available here.
14 Maja Blanca
Maja Blanca is a delicious coconut pudding served during festivals and holidays. Apart from coconut milk, which is a primary ingredient, condensed milk and cornstarch are also included. Corn kernels are also added transforming the dish into Maja Blanca Maíz. The corn kernels give it a soft and juicy flavor while the topping of coconut cream makes it crunchy.
15 Mamon
Mamon is a chiffon sponge cake having ingredients like vanilla, baking powder, and all-purpose flour. Butter and grated cheese serve as garnishes. This tender, fluffy, and buttery sponge cake is often served with a cup of coffee.
16 Bibingka
Bibingka is a rice cake eaten in breakfast during Christmas season. The main ingredients are coconut milk and rice flour, served in a terra cotta pot lined with banana leaves. Bebinca is a popular dessert from Goa, but both the desserts are not related. The only similarity is coconut milk which is used in their preparation.
17 Sapin-Sapin
Sapin-Sapin is a layered dessert made with coconut and rice each having a separate ingredient as its flavouring. For example, the yellow or orange layer has jackfruit, the purple layer has ube or sweet potato while the white layer doesn’t have any flavoring. Toppings of coconut shavings are added as garnishes. Since it has a lot of ingredients, it tastes sweet and crunchy.
18 Pitsi-Pitsî
Pitsi-Pitsî is a jelly-like dessert made with sugar and grated cassava. When the mixture is steamed, it is coated with grated coconut to enhance the taste. It tastes best when it is eaten on the same day of its preparation.
19 Pastillas de leche
Pastillas de leche is a sweet milk candy that is served for dessert. It is prepared using Carabao’s (water buffalo) milk, and the necessary cooking is required.
20 Yema
Yema is a custard candy made from condensed milk and egg yolks. It is one of the easiest Filipino desserts that you can make, and the ingredients are also easily available. Yema balls are bell-shaped yema that are perfect for dessert.
