EASTER BRUNCH WEEK : Ube Coffee Cake
PREFACE
When I started my blog I knew I wanted to share my love of food, but to be honest, it’s taken a while to figure out exactly what that meant to me. It’s a broad niche with many facets and I wasn’t feeling particularly inspired to write or share, until now.
You see, I was so deadest on creating recipes that were likable and accessible, that I was completely neglecting my own personal narrative. I’m a first generation Filipino-American, born to immigrant parents in the beautiful melting pot of Los Angeles, California. My parents raised me on meals that integrated nose to tail cooking, dishes that were rich in flavors and stewed in tradition, and every other year they took my sister and I to the Philippines where we devoured regional dishes and digested the culture.
So, as I unapologetically shift my food section to integrate more of my heritage and culture I hope to introduce, re-introduce, even remix flavors I know, into meals that you’ll love!
Ube (phonetically pronounced for you millennials as, Ooo-Bae) is a sweet purple yam and a very common flavor in Filipino cuisine, more particularly - desserts. Subtle in flavor, ube encompasses the sweetness of a yam with a nutty finish similar to that of a chestnut. It’s rich purple hue adds a natural coloring to your dish making it the perfect muse for our Easter Brunch baked good!
I wanted to pay homage to this delicious Filipino staple, while incorporating it into a commonly known breakfast treat, coffee cake. I figured coffee cake was pretty basic, so I added a layer of cheesecake for a bit of tartness, texture, and calories-you’re welcome! But in doing so, it adds that bit of moisture that sometimes coffee cake lacks, and creates a decadent center that kicks the flavor profiles up a notch. It’s as if a regular coffee cake figured out how to contour and highlight; It was perfectly fine, but just needed that something extra! The obligatory streusel topping adds that bit of crunch, while the added unsweetened coconut flakes gives it a subtle tropical twist that compliments the ube perfectly!
You’ll see below that I made my own ube halaya or ube jam but you’re more than welcome to opt out of making it from scratch and purchase the jam from your local Asian market. It usually comes in a jar and is pre-sweetened, so you may need to adjust how much you add into the cake batter to refrain from making it too cloyingly sweet!
The recipe below breaks down each component of the cake just in case you wanted to substitute or omit any ingredients or flavors.
Happy Eating
UBE HALAYA / UBE JAM
PREP: 10 MINUTES | COOK: 30 MINUTES | YIELDS: 2 CUPS
3 Medium Sized Purple Yams
1 - 14oz Can of Condensed Milk
HOW TO:
Begin by boiling 6 cups of water
Wash + peel yams while water comes to a boil
Cut yams into quarters and toss into water. Check on yams every 5 minutes until you’re able to cleanly break one in half with a fork
Drain water and transfer yams to a blender
Slowly add in your can of condensed milk until your yams are a smooth consistency. The jam should be a bit denser than mashed potatoes. If you find that your jam seems a bit too thick, try adding a bit of the starchy boiling water or if you have extra on hand, a bit more condensed milk.
UBE CAKE
PREP: 15 MINUTES
2 Cups all-purpose flour
2 Teaspoons baking powder
½ Teaspoon of kosher salt
½ Cup of unsalted butter, Softened
½ Cup of white sugar
2 Large eggs
1 Cup of ube halaya (homemade or jarred)
½ Cup coconut milk (mix milk + cream thoroughly before measuring out ½ cup or shake can before opening)
HOW TO:
Mix all dry ingredients together, and slowly incorporate wet ingredients until everything is combined. Cake batter will be a bit firmer than a usual cake batter because of the starchy yams, but this is o-k!
Set aside and get working on your cheesecake layer. If omitting this, at least make the streusel topping, because it’s amazing and you’d do it if you knew what was good for you!
CHEESECAKE
PREP: 10 MINUTES
2 - 8oz bricks of Full Fat Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 Cup white sugar
2 Eggs
3 Tbsps. Unsweetened shredded coconut flakes
6 Tbsps. Unsalted Butter
HOW TO:
Combine all ingredients together and attempt to not lick the mixing bowl
STREUSEL TOPPING
PREP: 10 MINUTES
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1 Cup packed brown sugar
¼ Tsp. Kosher Salt
½ Cup Unsalted Butter, Melted
3 Tbsps. Unsweetened Shredded Coconut Flakes
HOW TO:
Combine all ingredients together with a fork. Do not over mix! You want those nice clumps of deliciousness. It’ll get a bit firmer once it’s all baked together.
COCONUT MILK GLAZE
1 Cup Confectioners Sugar
3 Tbsp. Coconut Milk
HOW TO:
Mix ingredients together + use fork to apply over cooled cake
COMBINING ALL THE LAYERS
PREP: 10 MINUTES | COOK: 45-50 MINUTES @ 350 DEGREES | YIELDS: (1) 9x13 BAKING PAN
HOW TO:
Use a 9x13 Pan that’s buttered and lightly floured.
First pour your Ube Cake Batter into the pan
Layer your Cheesecake mix in, and spread evenly over the ube cake layer
Sprinkle your streusel topping over cheesecake layer ensuring you cover everything evenly
Bake at 350 Degrees for 45-50 minutes
Let it sit and cool off before transferring to the fridge for at least 4 hours. This will let that cheesecake layer settle and get a bit firmer
For the finishing touch use a fork to drizzle your coconut milk glaze and let it set before serving!
Store for up to 7 days in the fridge, or devour it all yourself. I just provide the recipes, the rest is up to you!
