Timeless Pinoy desserts that are sure to fill you with the holiday spirit

From a very young age, we’ve been taught to indulge our sweet tooth with our mother’s creamy leche flan, helpings of creamy fruit salad and ube, and the many more sugary treats that decorate the Noche Buena table. Our memories of the holidays are made sweeter because of these delectable desserts.

From our own childhoods, we share our favorite Pinoy Christmas desserts.

Cathedral Window

Also known as "Broken Glass,” the Cathedral Window resembles, well, windows lining the walls of churches, owing to the multi-colored gelatin embedded in its creamy, milky mold. Pieces of green, red, and yellow gelatin also stand for colors most associated with Christmas.

For a novice cook, it may be rather complicated to make, what with all the setting, cutting, pouring, and chilling of gelatin. For those who want to enjoy the Cathedral Window sans the trouble, you can simply buy from the many bakeshops at the mall. They taste as good as your mother’s cooking.

Leche Flan

Made with eggs, sugar, and milk, this deceptively simple yet rich dessert finds its revered place on the Pinoy holiday dessert table. Patient cooks line a llanera (an oval pan) with sugar, then carefully caramelize it over flames, before ladling in the leche flan mixture.

The pans are then lined up in a steamer and cooked until solid. Once done, the pans are upturned onto a serving plate, revealing the custard liberally coated with a sweet caramel sauce.

Fruit Salad

What is a happy gathering without this creamy, sweet dessert staple? This Filipino favourite is so simple to whip up. A can of condensed milk and all-purpose cream (for added creaminess) is poured over the fruits. No need for sugar, as the condensed milk is sweet enough. Some other cooks drop in some candied walnuts for that unexpected crunchy bite.

Buko Pandan Salad

A distant cousin of the fruit salad, Buko Pandan follows the same process, but with less ingredients. Strips of buko (meat of the young coconut) are mixed together with small blocks of gelatin flavored with pandan, usually sporting a green color.

Condensed milk is then added. While you can eat it as is, it\'s better if you have it with vanilla or ube (purple yam) ice cream. It’s absolutely yummy, and gives you quite a sugar rush.

Halayang Ube (Purple Yam Jam)

Making Halayang Ube requires much patience and a whole lot of love, because it is rather tedious to make, from the grating of the yam to the hours of stirring. But you’ll be assured of love in every bite!

Finely grated boiled ube is mixed in with melted butter, vanilla, evaporated milk, and condensed milk.

Then, this is placed in a pot and allowed to cook, while the designated stirrer takes great care in ensuring that the yam does not stick and burn.

READ: 5 easy Christmas recipes to try with the kids

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Written by

Kaydee Dela Buena

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