We have a wide variety of sweet food made specially for all those who are sweet-toothed, in all levels of sweetness, ranging from mildly sweet to seriously sweet. This is one talent you can never take away from the Filipinos, the ability to create food that will satisfy you craving. When you find yourself craving for something sweet, sweet in just the right amount, filling at the same time, and just a little bit salty but mainly sweet, "Nilupak" will be perfect. Nilupak is a filipino food, prepared with either cassava, sweet potato and or banana, mixed together with some freshly grated coconut. A lot of people enjoy this particular food for dessert, snacks or even as breakfast. It has a very pleasant taste that will make you want to eat it all day,most of all, the texture is quite appealing, soft, sweet, a little bit crunchy because of the coconut and creamy. Making Nilupak is very easy, economical, and most of all fun to make. I would love to share my recipe with everyone to try at home.
The ingredients
Cassava 1 ½ -2 kilos enough to make 4 cups of cassava after boiled and mashed
1 kilo of banana enough to make 2 cups of banana when boiled and mashed banana(saba)
1 cup of grated coconut
1 cup of condensed milk
2 tablespoons of sugar
100g butter
Banana leaves cut into squares or circles.
Steps to take.
Step one
Peel rinse and boil the cassava at medium heat for 20 minutes, when it is cooked, drain the water and set the cassava aside to cool. Boil the banana with the peel for 10-15 minutes, drain the water and set aside to cool. Remove the banana skin after it cools.
Step two
Grate the boiled cassava in a bid bowl and mash it with your hands, when it has been mashed, set it aside. The same should be done to the banana, grate it and mash it up using your hands. It will be more hygienic to use plastic gloves. It is also recommended to use a clean cup to crush and mash up the cassava and the banana.
Step three
Measure 4 cups of the mashed cassava and 2 cups of the mashed banana, place them in a bowl and mash the together. Just as like kneading a dough, also mash it up using the sides of a small cup. It would take about 5-8 minutes for the ingredients to be distributed evenly and to get the blend.
Step four
Add in the grated coconut, using a wooden spoon, mix it up very well. Then add in 1 cup of condensed milk and sugar if you choose to make it very sweet ( you could use ¾ cup of milk depending on how sweet you want the nilupak) then add in ¼ cup of melted butter. Mix up all the ingredients together. When it is mixed properly mould it using a cup and a spatula. Mould it further with your hands and place it on the banana leave, top it up with some butter and enjoy.
I hope you enjoy my recipe. There will be more to come. Cheers!