Espasol
Espasol is a Filipino rice cake from Laguna made with toasted glutinous rice flour cooked in sweetened coconut milk with toasted grated coconut. The dough is shaped into cylinders, dusted in toasted sweet rice flour, and sliced into pieces. Enjoy it as a snack, dessert, or pasalubong.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 1445kcal
Cost: $
Equipment
- 1 Large cooking pot Heavy-bottomed preferred to prevent scorching during the long cook time
- 1 Wooden spoon Sturdy enough to handle thick dough for 40 to 60 minutes of folding
- 1 Wide skillet or pan For toasting the rice flour and grated coconut separately
Ingredients
- 3 cups glutinous rice flour toasted
- 1/2 cups sweet rice flour toasted, for coating
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 cups coconut milk
- 1 1/2 cups grated coconut toasted
- 1 teaspoons vanilla essence
Instructions
- Pour the coconut milk into a cooking pot and bring it to a boil over medium heat.3 cups coconut milk
- Add the sugar and stir continuously for about 10 minutes, making sure it fully dissolves into the coconut milk.2 cups sugar
- Add the toasted grated coconut to the pot and continue cooking for 5 minutes while stirring.1 1/2 cups grated coconut
- Stir in the vanilla essence and the toasted glutinous rice flour. Cook while continuously folding the mixture for 40 minutes to 1 hour, or until it becomes very thick and pulls away from the sides of the pot.1 teaspoons vanilla essence, 3 cups glutinous rice flour
- Remove the mixture from the pot and allow it to cool slightly until it is easy to handle.
- Spread the toasted sweet rice flour on a flat surface.1/2 cups sweet rice flour
- Divide the mixture into portions and roll each one over the sweet rice flour to form a cylindrical shape.
- Slice according to your preferred size.
- Arrange on a serving plate or wrap individually in wax paper or banana leaves. Serve and enjoy.
Video
Notes
Toasting the flour – Place the glutinous rice flour in a wide, dry skillet over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until the color turns from white to pale gold, about 8 to 10 minutes. Toast the sweet rice flour separately using the same method. Do not use the same pan without cooling it first, or the sweet rice flour will burn.
Toasting the grated coconut – Use a clean dry pan over low heat and stir continuously until the coconut turns light brown, about 5 minutes. Fresh grated coconut toasts faster than desiccated, so watch it closely.
Scaling up – This recipe doubles well, but use a wider pot if you do. A narrow pot with double the mixture makes folding difficult and extends the cook time past an hour.
Gifting and presentation – Wrap individual pieces in Japanese paper or thin wax paper for a traditional pasalubong look. Tie both ends like a candy wrapper. The pieces hold their shape better when fully cooled before wrapping.
Coconut milk brand – Full-fat canned coconut milk from brands like Chaokoh or Thai Kitchen works well. Avoid lite or reduced-fat versions, as the lower fat content produces a drier, less pliable dough.
Nutrition
Calories: 1445kcal | Carbohydrates: 224g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 59g | Saturated Fat: 51g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 35mg | Potassium: 656mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 102g | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 7mg