April 17, 2011

Cebu Torta

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Cebu Torta
Cebu Torta


I'm so glad Kat and Lala, our Kulinarya Cooking Club hosts chose Decadence for April 2011 because I've been itching to make Cebu Torta for a few years now but never had the courage to make them...they're too darn rich for my own good. Reading the amount of egg yolks alone is enough to give me heart palpitations. Cebu torta as described on many websites sounds like the love child of this extra-rich Filipino ensaimada and leche flan...let's see...

large number of egg yolks ✓
loads of lard or butter ✓
tons of sugar ✓
sweetened condensed milk ✓

I made a very small batch following the traditional recipe, replacing tuba (coconut toddy) with sweet wine and a pinch of yeast; the torta was a bit acidic and not very good but still edible. It's probably my fault for adding yeast and letting it ferment longer than necessary. I baked a second torta adapting Market Manila's recipe which uses baking powder as leavening. I used buco juice in place of water and baked one half of the dough in large muffin pans at 350°F which produced dense cakes with a slight bump at the center. The other half of the dough was baked in small shallow tartlet molds in a hotter oven. They came out less dense, not fluffy, just a tad airier than the large ones. I love them both. These cakes are super rich, sweet, moist, and may be addicting (not good). Torta spells D-E-C-A-D-E-N-T and should be consumed only once a year, the best time perhaps is on Easter Sunday when we are allowed to indulge after weeks of temporarily giving up rich food for Lent.

Torta
adapted from Market Manila's Torta recipe

1 cup buco juice or water
1 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
8 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
12 egg yolks
8 ounces sweetened condensed milk
4 ounces whole milk
3 tablespoons olive oil
ensaimada molds, extra-large muffin pan, or tartlet molds
cupcake liners
  • In a small pan, heat juice and sugar until sugar dissolves; leave to cool to room temperature.
  • Line molds with paper liners, set aside.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F or 400°F.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
  • In the bowl of a standing mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter on medium-high until light and creamy. Add the egg yolks and beat until well-mixed. Add cooled syrup, both milk, and oil and beat well. Add flour mixture; beat on low until well incorporated. Fill molds 2/3 full and bake for 20 minutes at 350°F until tops are golden, or 12 minutes at 400°F until tops are golden brown.

Cebu Torta
a slight bump at the center if baked at 350°F


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KCC


Kulinarya was started by a group of Filipino foodies living in Sydney (Kath, Trisha, and Trissa), who are passionate about the Filipino culture and its colorful cuisine.

Each month we will showcase a new dish along with their family recipes. By sharing these recipes, we hope you find the same passion and love for Filipino Food as we do.

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But wait! There's more decadent Filipino fare to read here.

14 comments:

SKIP TO MALOU said...

I feel like I've missed something growing up since I haven't had any torta yet. Our torta in Tugue is very ssimilar to challah but not as decadent as this one. I want a piece now so I can make up from those days of growing up sans not having tasted torta haha.
Definitely screaming decadence. Great job oggi. CheersA
Malou

La said...

I've never had this that I remember. That's what happens when I inhale my food, no time to recognize then lol!

Great #KCC entry. I'm liking you early birds and your decadent posts. I'm anxiously awaiting what feast the group will have.

(I think this is the first time I'm commenting on your blog too.)

Yay to decadence and Filipino food :D

Cebu Properties said...

Wow, very delicious blog post. Cebuanos are really rich in food and delicacies. Will try your recipe.

adorasbox said...

I've never heard of this very decadent delight. I am very fond of all egg yolk with condensed milk sweets. This is certainly to my liking.

Wok with Ray said...

Hi Oggi,

I never had this yummy-looking treat before but I don't mind having one NOW! :) It looks so moist that it will melt in your mouth. This is a nice post Oggi.

Thanks,

Ray

Juliana said...

These little treats look awesome, specially with condensed milk in it...cannot go wrong :-) Have a great week ahead Oggi!

Reel and Grill said...

it's so gorgeous....i would like to try it one day....thanks

TaGa_Luto said...

Oggi! Thank you for this blog...i'm Cebuana so i'm so excited to try this torta. Looks so delicious;)

sheryl@crispywaffle said...

I have never had this before. I love the description (cross between ensaymada and leche flan), sounds right up my alley.

Unknown said...

I have never heard of that before. OMG this is going on my to-do. I'm so craving some now.

julius horfilla said...

our torta in samboan cebu,philippines.is one of the best torta.

Anonymous said...


Hello everybody

Im a Cebuana and I used to make this all the time when my kids are little. When I was growing up this torta is my favorite and so when Im sick Mama will always buy from the bakery (La Fortuna)in Cebu City. When I came here in US i borrowed a Filipino cook book from my Filipino friend and so I copied it and tried it.....boy, my two boys chowed it down, and when they started to get into the sports, they always requested me to bake the torta for treats at their games.....so now that I got two granddaughters, I am baking it for them ....Im proud to be a Cebuana.

Ptdancing said...

I tried baking this recipe this morning. It came out very delicious! But I want to know if this is really how a Torta of Cebu taste? I had Torta of Cebu when I was a little kid and I. Ant remember how it tasted. This is tasteless! Yes, definitely decadent!
Thanks for sharing this Oggi!

Oggi said...

Ptdancing,
You're welcome and I'm glad they came out delicious. I suggest you click the link to Market Manila's recipe. He knows what they taste like. These were adapted from his recipe written on the link.

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