127
{
}
BARQUILLOS
This favorite Ilonggo
pasalubong
(
souvenir) has been around for centuries. “In fact,
the original makers of barquillos also used to make altar bread for the churches in
Iloilo during Spanish times,” explains Pauline Gorriceta-Banusing. “Making these
tuile-like wafers requires a lot of skill,” adds Tom Bascon. “Since the wafer is so
thin, it needs to be rolled by hand right away.” The basic ingredients of flour, sugar
and butter have hardly changed over the years but a few innovations have cropped
up. And the likes of
barquiron
(
barquillos filled with polvoron) and barquillos made
with carabao’s milk make for even merrier munching.
BAYE-BAYE
Made from toasted
pinipig
,
coconut
water and grated young coconut,
baye-
baye
was first prepared in Pavia, Iloilo,
a town known for its coconut produce.
Many aficionados of this sticky delicacy
find it difficult to describe. “It’s sweet,
soft and chewy, yet the texture also has
the grittiness of a macaroon,” ventures
Tom Bascon. “It’s super delicious,”
adds Pauline Gorriceta-Banusing,
“
whether eaten as a snack or dessert.”
And as Inez Vargas J. Gamboa puts it,
“
It might not look like much, but you’ll
be surprised by how yummy it is when
sink your teeth in.”
Cebu Pacific flies to Bacolod, Kalibo,
Caticlan, Iloilo and Roxas from across the
network.
One of the best ways to
eat barquillos iswith
scoops of ice cream.
Baye-bayewas traditionally
sold by the
manog libod
(
literally a personwho peddles)
whowould come in the
afternoons carrying her
treats in a bilao atop her head.
10
11
T A K E A B I T E
PHOTOS
JAPOI CEQUINA
Bong Bongs’ baye-baye and
barquillos (pictured below) make
great gifts (
Bacolod Public Plaza,
Under Backup 1, Bacolod City
)
