Wanderlust

Some say that the stomach is the way to a man's heart - an old adage that cannot go wrong. But I say that the stomach is the way to know a place. You can tell what kind of people live in a place simply by their cuisine. In my visit to Nueva Ecija, dubbed as the Rice Granary of the Philippines, I again proved that travel is not just about sights and treks, but also food.

It so happened that I visited the rice province in time for Yuletide. Along with their colorful parols (lanterns) and evening mass, there are two delicacies that remind Novo Ecijanos of the season of Yule - bibingka and puto bumbong.

Bibingka is a soft and spongy large flat cake that is slightly charred on both surfaces and infused with the unique aroma of toasted banana leaves. The dough of Bibingka is made from macan or ground rice, mixed with milk and egg. The dough is then poured to a clay mold and baked with charcoal both in top and the bottom. It is then topped with cheese and salted egg to complete the array of flavors that will assail your tongue and stain your palate.

Meanwhile, the eponymous bumbong of the puto bumbong (puto means rice cake in Tagalof) is made from bamboo and serves as the mold for the violet puto made from (you guessed it right) rice. Rice commonly used for this puto is of the sticky variety, giving it a texture that contrasts with that of the spongy bibingka. Cooked by steam, and slathered with margarine, it is best enjoyed with large helpings of coconut shavings that add to the variety of flavors and textures, along with freshly brewed herbal tea, usually made from pandan, banaba and avocado leaves to warm the stomach.

The use of the main ingredient, rice, highlights the produce's significance in Novo Ecijano life. The herbs used for the tea are common Filipino herbal medicine too. And the reason for the sticky rice variety? For good fellowship in the family, a trait descriptive of the very essence of being a Filipino.