Budbud Kabog

Made from millet grains (not rice) and coconut gata, this is my favorite suman of all time.  There is nothing like it, and for me, no other suman compares.  This is made popular by the people from Dumaguete (Negros Oriental), where Kong Kong was born.  Every time some relatives come to Manila, the pasalubong of choice is budbud kabog.  You can find this on Saturday mornings at the Salcedo Village market, just ask for the stall operated by the people from Dumaguete (my last time there though was more a year ago, so I could be wrong).  You can freeze this and it will keep for up to three months, just steam and it is ready to serve.  Soft, distinctive flavor, and absolutely wonderful!

Sans Rival

Sans Rival may be the name of a delicious dessert made with butter and nuts, but it's also the name of a cozy bakeshop along the seaside in Dumaguete City owned by the Trinidad Teves-Sagarbarria.  Over the Christmas holidays, cousin Eddie found time to fly in Manila and drop off his gifts for us--some fruit cakes from Sans Rival bakeshop.  While others may find the fruit cake to be a worn-out Christmas present, we just happen to be a fruit cake family, and we absolutely love it!  I found the time to open the fruit cake this afternoon, and I wasn't disappointed.  Quite good for commercial fruit cake--plenty of almonds and raisins, a little fruit glace mixed in as well (no cherries on top, however, which could have made for a more colorful presentation).  I like the sweetness, it was just right; the consistency was firm and as I picked up the slices, the cake didn't crumble (which is a very important property of proper fruit cake).  On the negative side, I would have liked the cake to have been brushed with a little more wine/brandy/rhum or whatever it is that bakers brush when they age fruit cake.  That gentle whiff of alcohol (not too excess) is a crucial criteria that we judge quality fruit cake.  Overall, though, this was good stuff!

Sans Rival bakeshop has spawned the House of Silvanas, a bakeshop operating out of San Lorenzo Village Makati, and specializing in mini-Sans Rival cookies called Silvanas.  This in turn is owned by the Mary Ann Sagarbarria, the daughter-in-law of the owner of Sans Rival bakeshop.