Bibingka

I was actually planning to make another batch of Chocolate Chip Cookies but when I saw a blog post about a stall selling Bibingka, I suddenly felt like eating one! But since I don't know where to get one nearby, I thought of making one instead.  Good thing that the ingredients are handy. I'm not a fan of salted eggs so I'm opting that out and besides, I don't know where to find that here. :P I'm thinking loading it with cheese!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rice flour
• 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup sugar, more for sprinkling on top of the cakes
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/3 cup butter, melted, and more for brushing banana leaves and cakes
• 4 pieces banana leaves cut into 8-inch circles
• 1 salted egg, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons grated coconut (optional)
• 2 tablespoons grated Edam cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees F.
2. Combine rice flour, glutinous rice flour, baking powder, and sugar in a bowl. Add eggs, coconut milk, and butter. Beat by hand until just blended. Do not overbeat the batter.
3. Line ramekins with banana leaves and brush the leaves with butter.
4. Pour the rice batter equally into ramekins. Bake for 20 minutes. Lay slices of cheese on top and set the cakes on the top rack of the oven. Bake until the cake is cooked through, 10 minutes more. 
5. Once cooked, take the cakes out of the oven and brush the top with butter. Serve the cakes warm. Brush the cakes with butter and sprinkle with muscovado sugar.

Cooking notes:
1. For the rice and glutinous rice flour, I recommend using the Thai brand commonly found in most Asian grocery stores.
2. Use either tart pans or ramekins lined with banana leaves cut into circles. The cakes baked in 6-inch pans more closely resemble the traditional ones. The cakes baked in 4-inch ramekins are thicker and take longer to bake.
3. Instead of a sliced salted egg, the cakes can be topped with slices of Edam or Gouda cheese.
4. When using frozen grated coconut let the grated coconut thaw then place the thawed coconut on paper towels to soak up the extra moisture. Place them on a baking tray and lightly toast them for about a few minutes with the broiler turned on low. Use grated coconut and NOT grated young coconut.

Source: Jun Belen's Blog