How to Make Maja Blanca

Maja blanca is a Filipino dessert similar to a custard or pudding. It uses coconut milk and corn kernels as its primary flavorings. The exact ingredients typically differ among Filipino cooks who tend to put their own spins on it, so the dessert is actually more of a technique than an exact recipe. Even though it sounds exotic, it requires few culinary skills and little experience. Once you learn the basic maja blanca technique, you can experiment by adding different flavors.

Things You'll Need

• 8 cups coconut milk
• Large pot
• Strainer
• Large bowl
• 1/4 cup sweet corn kernels
• 1 cup rice flour or cornmeal
• 1 cup milk or water
• 1/4 cup white granulated sugar (optional)
• 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish
• Nonstick cooking spray

Instructions

1. Pour 2 cups coconut milk into a large pot. Set your stove to "high" and heat the coconut milk until it starts to boil. Let the coconut milk boil until it turns lightly brown and its oil separates from the rest of the mixture.

2. Position a strainer into a large bowl and pour the coconut milk into the strainer to separate the oil from the browned part (known as latik). Discard the oil and keep the latik to use as a topping for the maja blanca.

3. Add the remaining 6 cups coconut milk into the large pot, then stir in 1/4 cup sweet corn kernels, 1 cup rice flour or cornmeal (rice flour is more traditional, but cornmeal is easier to find) and 1 cup milk or water. Add 1/4 cup white granulated sugar if you use water so the maja blanca isn't bland.

4. Set your stove to "medium high" and stir the mixture. Continue to heat and stir the maja blanca about 10 minutes or until it condenses and becomes creamy like a pudding.

5. Spray a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray, then transfer the hot maja blanca into the dish. Wait until the maja blanca cools and slightly hardens (five to 10 minutes). Cover the top of the dessert with the latik you set aside, then serve the maja blanca while warm.

Tips & Warnings

• You can buy coconut milk in cans in the international foods section of your grocery store or crack open a fresh coconut and drain it out.

• Use three to four envelopes of unflavored gelatin instead of flour or cornmeal to thicken the dessert.

• Do not let the maja blanca cook unsupervised without stirring or else the bottom will burn.

References

• Kuman Filipino Food Guide: Maja Blanca
• Chicago Sun Times: Maja Blanca Recipe