Filipino cuisine is composed of the cuisines of more than a hundred distinct ethnolinguistic groups found throughout the Philippine archipelago. A majority of mainstream Filipino dishes that compose Filipino cuisine are from the food traditions of various ethnolinguistic groups and tribes of the archipelago, including the Ilocano, Pangasinan, Kapampangan, Tagalog, Bicolano, Visayan, Chavacano, and Maranao ethnolinguistic groups. The dishes associated with these groups evolved over the centuries from a largely indigenous base shared with maritime Southeast Asia with varied influences from Chinese, Spanish, and American cuisines, in line with the major waves of influence that had enriched the cultures of the archipelago, and adapted using indigenous ingredients to meet local preferences.
Halo-halo, also spelled haluhalo, Tagalog for "mixed", is a popular cold dessert in the Philippines made up of crushed ice, evaporated milk or coconut milk, and various ingredients including side dishes such as ube jam, sweetened kidney beans or garbanzo beans, coconut strips, sago, gulaman (agar), pinipig, boiled taro or soft yams in cubes, flan, slices or portions of fruit preserves and other root crop preserves. The dessert is topped with a scoop of ube ice cream. It is usually prepared in a tall clear glass and served with a long spoon. Halo-halo is considered to be the unofficial national dessert of the Philippines.
Buko pie, sometimes anglicized as coconut pie, is a traditional Filipino baked young coconut (malauhog) pie. It is considered a specialty in the city of Los Baños, Laguna located on the island of Luzon.
Kalamay is a sticky sweet delicacy that is popular in many regions of the Philippines. It is made of coconut milk, brown sugar, and ground glutinous rice. It can also be flavored with margarine, peanut butter, or vanilla. Kalamay can be eaten alone; but is usually used as a sweetener for a number of Filipino desserts and beverages. It is related to the Chamorro dessert called Kalamai.
Brazo de Mercedes is a traditional Filipino meringue roll with a custard filling typically dusted with powdered sugar. It is a type of pianono.
Maja blanca is a Filipino dessert with a gelatin-like consistency made primarily from coconut milk. Also known as coconut pudding, it is usually served during fiestas and during the holidays, especially Christmas.
Ube halaya or halayang ube is a Philippine dessert made from boiled and mashed purple yam. Ube halaya is the main base in ube/purple yam flavored-pastries and ube ice cream. It can also be incorporated in other desserts such as halo-halo. It is also commonly anglicized as ube jam, or called by its original native name, nilupak na ube.
Crema de fruta is a traditional Filipino fruitcake made with layers of sponge cake, sweet custard or whipped cream, gelatin or gulaman (agar), and various preserved or fresh fruits, including mangoes, pineapples, cherries, and strawberries. It is usually served during the Christmas season. It has multiple variations, ranging from changes in the fruits used to the addition of ingredients like jam, sago, condensed milk, and others.
Mango float or crema de mangga is a Filipino icebox cake dessert made with layers of ladyfingers (broas) or graham crackers, whipped cream, condensed milk, and ripe carabao mangoes. It is chilled for a few hours before serving, though it can also be frozen to give it an ice cream-like consistency. It is a modern variant of the traditional Filipino crema de fruta cake. It is also known by various other names like mango refrigerator cake, mango graham float, mango royale, and mango icebox cake, among others. Crema de mangga is another version that additionally uses custard and gulaman (agar) or gelatin, as in the original crema de fruta.
Cassava cake is a traditional Filipino moist cake made from grated cassava, coconut milk, and condensed milk with a custard layer on top. It is a very popular dish in the Philippines, where it is commonly eaten for merienda. It is also served during gatherings and special occasions.
Samalamig, also known as palamig, is a collective term for various Filipino sweet chilled beverages that usually include jelly-like ingredients. They come in various flavors, and are commonly sold by street vendors as refreshments. Typical ingredients of the drinks include gulaman (agar), sago pearls, kaong, tapioca pearls, nata de coco, and coconut. They are usually anglicized as pearl coolers or pearl and jelly coolers.
Minatamis na saging is a Filipino dessert made with chopped saba bananas cooked in a sweet syrup (arnibal) made with muscovado sugar and water. Some recipes also add a little bit of salt and pandan leaf or vanilla extract. Other ingredients can also be added like sweet potato, sago, or other fruits like jackfruit. It can be eaten on its own or added as an ingredient to other desserts. Adding the dessert over milk and shaved ice also results in another dessert known as saba con yelo.
Ube cake is a traditional Filipino chiffon cake or sponge cake made with ube halaya. It is distinctively vividly purple in color, like most dishes made with ube in the Philippines.
Ice buko, also known as buko ice candy or coconut popsicle, is a Filipino frozen dessert made from condensed milk, young coconut (buko) strips, and coconut water. It is basically a frozen version of the buko salad. They can be sold on popsicle sticks or in plastic bags as ice candy. They commonly include other ingredients like peanuts, pinipig, macapuno, pandan leaf extracts, various fruits, or sweetened mung beans. They are popular desserts during the summer and are commonly sold by sari-sari stores and sorbeteros.
Lamaw, also known as buko lamaw, is a Filipino dessert or beverage made from scraped young coconut meat (buko) in coconut water with milk and sugar, and saltines or biscuits. Variations can add ingredients like peanuts, graham crackers, or orange-flavored softdrinks. Ice cubes are also commonly added to chill the dessert. It is usually made from freshly gathered coconuts, and is commonly served within the coconut shell itself. It originates from the Visayas and Visayan areas of Mindanao and is a traditional merienda for farmers working in the fields in rural areas.
Iskrambol, also known as ice scramble, is a Filipino frozen dessert made from shaved ice with banana extract and evaporated milk with sugar It is then topped with a variety of ingredients including powdered milk, marshmallows, strawberry syrup, chocolate syrup, pinipig, tapioca pearls, and sprinkles, among others. The regular banana extract flavored dessert is characteristically dyed pink while other flavors may be dyed accordingly.
Nilupak is a class of traditional Filipino delicacies made from mashed or pounded starchy foods mixed with coconut milk and sugar. They are molded into various shapes and traditionally served on banana leaves with toppings of grated young coconut (buko), various nuts, cheese, butter, or margarine. It is also known as nilusak, linusak, niyubak, linupak, or lubi-lubi, among many other names, in the various languages of the Philippines. It is also known as minukmok in Quezon.
Buko pandan cake, also known as pandan macapuno cake or coconut pandan cake, is a Filipino chiffon or sponge cake (mamón) flavored with extracts from boiled pandan leaves and frosted with cream with young coconut strips and/or macapuno as toppings or fillings. It is a cake version of the traditional Filipino pairing of buko pandan. It is similar to the pandan cakes in other parts of Southeast Asia, but differ in that it is not served plain. It is always frosted with cream and coconut.
Ube ice cream is a Filipino ice cream flavor prepared using ube as the main ingredient. This ice cream is often used in making the dessert halo-halo.
Avocado and milk in ice is a traditional Filipino dessert or beverage made from avocado in milk and sugar. It is preferably eaten cold. Ice are added, or it is partly frozen before consumption. The milk can also be excluded, mixing avocados directly with sugar. The avocados can also be mashed or puréed, which is usually called avocado milkshake or avocado smoothie. Sliced dessert bananas are sometimes added.
