Tags: Food Preparation, Food Products
By Alexander Villafania
LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA – Coco sugar is a gem by any standards. For one, it’s more expensive; you can buy it at around P250 to P300 kilogram, at least three times more expensive than white or brown sugar.
But the benefits of coco sugar outweigh its price tag. It has a low glycemic index (GI) at 35, way below the 54 GI nutritionists consider as acceptable or safe. It’s actually safer for diabetics and hypoglycemic people.
While not as sweet as white sugar, coco sugar can still give enough of the sweetness per teaspoon. It can be used as alternative to white sugar for food and beverages that needs sweeteners.
In a recent forum organized by the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development (DoST-PCAAARD), a group of culinary arts students from Trace College Los Baños demonstrated recipes that use coco sugar.
These include chocolate chip cookies, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, beef in chili stick, barbecued spareribs. The student chefs developed the recipes with the help of DOST-PCAARRD.
Representatives from the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) and restaurant chain Red Ribbon also attended the presentation and gave their critique on the recipes.
Here are three of the coco sugar recipes that the students developed:
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
• 1 cup (2 sticks) (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup (150) grams coco sugar
• ¾ cup (160 grams) firmly packed coco sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 ¼ cups (295 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cups (270 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius) with rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the coco sugar and beat until fluffy (about 2 minutes)
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until incorporated, adding the chocolate chips and nuts (if using) about half way through mixing. If you find the dough very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (from 30 minutes to 2 hours).
4. For large cookies, use 2-teaspoon ice cream scoop or drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (35 grams) onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake about 10-14 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Cool completely on wire rack.
Makes about 4 dozen, 3-inch round cookies.
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:
• ¾ pound (340 grams) raw carrots (about 2 ½ cups finely grated)
• 2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 large eggs
• 1 ½ cups (300 grams) coco sugar
• 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable or canola oil (or other flavor-less oil)
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting:
• ¼ cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 cups (230 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted
• 1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Preparations:
1. Preheat oven t0 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius) and place rack in center of oven. Butter or spray two 9×2-inch (23×5 cm) cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with a circle of parchment paper.
2. Peel and finely grate the carrots
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking poweder, salt and ground cinnamon.
4. In the bowl of electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the eggs until frothy (about 1 minute). Gradually add the coco sugar and beat until the batter is thick and light colored (about 3-4 minutes). Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated. With a large rubber spatula fold in the grated carrots and chopped nuts. Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
5. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about 5-10 minutes invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove the pans and parchment paper, and then cool completely before frosting.
6. To assemble, place one cake layer onto your serving plate. Spread with about half the frosting. Gently place the other cake onto the frosting and spread the rest of the frosting over the top of the cake. Drizzle with coco sugar syrup.
Serves 10 to 12.
Beef in Chili Stick
Ingredients:
• ¼ kilogram ground beef
• 180 grams cheese
• 30 pieces Cayenne pepper (sili pang-sigang)
• 1 pack molo wrapper
• 1 glove of minced garlic
• 1 liter cooking oil
• 2 tablespoon coco sugar
• 2 pieces beef cubes
Preparations:
1. Sauté the ¼ kg ground beef, garlic, 1 tablespoon coco sugar until the beef turns browin in color and moisture absorved
2. Cut the Cayenne pepper and remove the seed inside
3. Stuff the cooked beef inside the chili, then put in the cheese strip
4. Wrap with the molo wrapper
5. Deep fry the chili until the molo wrapper turns golden brown
Get more information about Trace College Los Baños
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