Review: The Original Buko Pie

Whenever you go to Laguna, or maybe, think about buko pie, one would instantly think of Colette's. Yes. There is no doubt about it. Colette's have indeed dominated the buko pi-making-world. However, they may have a whole lot of stores in almost every province of Laguna, and one in Antipolo(that I know of), but it is the The Original (yes, that is the name) Buko Pie that made Los Baños famous.

I remember when my grandfather was still alive, we would go to Laguna and snob all other stands selling buko pie. We would, by instinct, fall in line just to get our hands on some of that delicious buko pie.


We were on our way to Liliw, Laguna to shop for shoes and slippers. We had to pass through a number of towns for us to get there. We came from Calamba, and next to that is Los Baños. On our way there, we already say the very very very very (no exaggeration) long line of people waiting for their turn to order some of the The Original Buko Pie. It was crazy! The police were diverting traffic because of cars parking on the road. Of course we wouldn't let this opportunity pass. The next day, my cousins went there early just to get a head start. They waited in line for 45 minutes to get to their turn. They were THAT FAMOUS.


Their fame really is well-deserved. Earlier that day, we had some slice of Colette's buko pie. Ugh. The crust was thick and hard. The pie cover was burnt and the coconut meat was, scant. Unfortunately, Colette's is now commercialized. Quality was disappointing.


We went home and immediately opened a box. We ordered two. We took a slice each and it was amazing! You can see layers and layers of tender coconut meat. The sweetness was balanced. The crust was flaky and perfect! You can have it warm or cold. Either way, it will still taste good. IT WAS INCOMPARABLE with the others. After I took a bite, I told my mom: "It tastes just like how it tasted more than a decade ago. It is delicious!" Yes. I haven't has this buko pie for more than 10 years, and still, after just one bite, memories start to pour in. Imagine me experiencing what Anton Ego of Ratatouille experienced after eating some of Remy's ratatouille. That is the exact way of how I felt. It was AMAZING. Our two boxes only lasted two days. Every slice was devoured.

If you get the chance to got to Los Baños, Laguna, do not let the opportunity pass. For P150 or just below USD4 a box, The Original Buko Pie is a must for pasalubong for yourself, family or friends. It will not disappoint! Make sure to buy an extra box, just in case.

MY RATING:

Orient-The Original Buko Pie Bakeshop
National Highway, Anos, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines

The Search for the Classic Brownie

Ever had that craving after eating something salty? The need to put something sweet inside your mouth to counter the taste of salt? I've had that... A LOT. Because of that, I thought of baking the classic brownie, the fudgy, chewy kind. It is no surprise that there are a lot of recipes in the internet whenever you google "brownies" or "best brownie recipe". Each person has their own recipes. I said to myself, why not share mine as well? For quite sometime, I have been searching and trying out recipes for the brownies however, there are times when it turned out to be cakey or dry. So I decided to stick to one recipe and tweak and adjust some of the ingredients to make the fudgiest, chewiest and chocolatiest brownie in the entire culinary and dessert-loving world!

For this blog, I will just show you how I made the dessert since I'm still in the Test Kitchen stage. I won't add any specific measurements when it comes to the ingredients.

STEP 1: Measure out your ingredients, both dry and wet. I think it's much more efficient when you measure out and prepare your ingredients than taking the ingredients one at a time in your pantry whenever you need one. It saves time.

(flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, butter, bittersweet chocolate, vanilla, eggs)

STEP 2: Melt the butter and chocolate together in a bowl over boiling water. Just like making a ganache.

STEP 3: Once melted, whisk in the sugar and vanilla.

STEP 4: Add the eggs, one at a time until fully incorporated.

STEP 5: Add in the flour just until there are no white particles seen in the batter.

STEP 6: In a foil-lined or parchment-lined 8x8 pan, pour in the batter and bake in a preheated 325°F oven for 30 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with wet crumbs. Overbaking will make the brownie dry, so be careful. Let it cool before cutting.

The brownie turned out really fudgy and chewy. It did not disappoint, however, it kind of lacked that sweetness to satisfy the sweet-tooth. Maybe because I used bittersweet chocolate instead of semi-sweet chocolate. Also, we have observed that it is better right after it comes out from the refridgerator when it is in its peak fudgy-ness and chewy-ness. I guess this recipe needs a bit more tweaking and fixing to make the best brownie. The search is still on for the fudgiest and chewiest brownie! Share your recipe or suggestions for the best brownie at the comment box below!

I doubled the recipe because my family and I will be bringing some to our Holy Week vacation in Laguna. We figured, why not share some of this to other people. Have a wonderful Holy Week!