Palitaw

I would presume that the word Palitaw is derived from the Tagalog word "litaw" which means to show up. This is exactly what happens when you cook one. I love this pinoy merienda. To me it is a local rendition of the Chinese Tikoy. While tikoy is cooked by steaming (I'm guessing here), Palitaw is cooked by dropping glutinous rice balls (rather discs) in water and these discs float or make "litaw" when it is done. Palitaw is very easy to make especially that nowadays one can easily buy powdered malagkit or glutinous rice flour in the grocery. The recipe is simple.

You need:

• glutinous rice flour 
• water
• grated coconut - no exact amount
• some sugar mixed with roasted sesame seeds

The ratio is 2:1. For every 2 cups of malagkit rice you mix 1 cup of water until if forms a sticky dough. You can add more water but I tell you, it's gonna be difficult to handle. You may lessen the water to make the dough more manageable. You don't need a mixer to mix them if you're making a small batch. A spoon would do.

But wait. The procedure should actually start with boiling a half-full pot of water. Then as soon as it is boiling, get a spoonful of the sticky mixture, shape into a ball, flatten to a disc and start dropping them in the boiling water one by one. Do not overcrowd them. (And oh, I put a little vegetable oil on my palm as the dough tends to stick to my hands). As soon as the disc floats, scoop them out and drain them. Roll the finished Palitaw in your grated coconut then on the sugar-sesame mixture. Yuuuuum. Enjoy your palitaw.

This one has no grated coconut.