Kutsinta - Pandan flavoured

I always loved kutsinta. In the Philippines, these delicacies were being sold with puto. They're favourite merienda/snack during mid-mornings or mid-afternoons. A person is roaming the streets with bilao on her head and shouting putoooooooo kutsintaaaaa. They are very tasty and they're very handy to buy as well because they're basically being sold on your doorstep. I wonder if they are still being sold that way? Those were the good old days.

Whenever there's some kutsinta at a party, I always attack them first. I was told they're very easy to cook, but I have always dreaded cooking/baking them. That was until I visited my friend Jing in Melbourne. She showed me how to cook them, and her recipe is the best I have tasted. So, I'm happy to share (with her permission, of course) it with you. And she very kindly gave me the moulds as well. Good to have a friend like Jing.

The only thing I have changed is using pandan essence, instead of the usual anato/achuete water. I cooked some with anato water, but my family and I prefer the pandan flavoured kutsinta. This recipe gave me the idea to cook pandan flavoured kutsinta.


Ingredients:

3 ½ cups water
¾ cup white sugar
1 cup plain flour
1 cup tapioca flour
½ tbsp lye water
1 tsp of pandan essence or Achuete/annatto water (mix 1 tsp of achuete powder to 4 tbsp of water)
Grated fresh coconut or Desiccated coconut


Directions:

1. Bring water and sugar to a gentle simmer until sugar dissolves. Let cool.
2. Add to flour, mix thoroughly.
3. Add lye water and mix well.
4. Add the achuete water or the pandan essence if you are using that.
5. Fill moulds ¾ full with the mixture.
6. Steam for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
7. Cool before removing from the moulds. Run a knife on the side of the moulds to remove them. Make sure that they are very very cold before you remove them from the mould. I was very excited to try some, and ended up ruining it, but still very tasty.
8. Serve with grated coconut.