Gorgeous grains of Malagkit Rice from Cagayan Valley, soaked overnight in water.

The recipe had simple ingredients and was simple enough to follow. But stirring for more than an hour was not really a very simple task.

My little sous-chef

 Good thing, I had some help courtesy of these little hands.

Semi-finished Biko (sans Latik)

 It was my first time to make Biko. I did not think it was perfect. I think it needed more stirring. It was not very cakey, a bit soggy, and wanting the flavor of banana leaves. But then, the texture of the rice had the kind of chewiness that I like, and the sweetness was just to my liking.

Latik, at last!

 The best part of the Biko for me is the Latik. This is not to be confused with the brown liquid kind (coconut cream + sugar + water, i think) that is found in the South of the Philippines. In the North, where I come from, it is made of pure coconut cream (kakang gata, I think). You have to boil it and let it form curdles like the ones in above pic. They are sooo good! Brings back so many childhood memories. Of course, it took me several attempts to be able to come up with this one.

Et voila, my Biko birthday cake for the hubs. I made it coz it’s his favorite. Believe it, or not.