Ube bars

Do Ube Bars remind you of the old days? Because for me, they actually do. They make me remember the times I see the delectable purplish treats sold by our local panaderya. I love eating them with my friends after playing some fun street games. Then, as I go home from school I remember biting into its chewy and soft goodness.

Ube Bars are baked bread dipped with ube syrup and tossed in desiccated coconut.

These Ube Bars are eye-catching. They are purple and sprinkled with desiccated coconut. So imagine the combined taste of ube and coconut, that’s what this treat is all about. It makes them enticing and yummy!

INGREDIENTS AND SUBSTITUTES

Water is as essential to this recipe as it is in our daily lives. It will make mixing the dry ingredients a lot better. We’ll also use it as the base of the ube dip that will be used later on.

Of course, sugar is a must. Since this delicacy is on the sweeter side, it needs sugar as its main source of sweetness.

I used All-Purpose Flour for this recipe. It is the most widely used variation for baked goods. There are also lots of alternatives that you can choose from if you have a certain preference.

How about some creamy and milky goodness? We will use powdered milk for that. There is no specific brand needed for this. Just use the one you trust the most.

Leave it to the baking powder to handle the chemical aspects of your baked goods. It serves as a leavening agent and is very important for several baking recipes.

Salt is just as important as sugar. But it doesn’t act as a flavoring for the goodies. All it does is to enhance the other flavors so they can blend well together.

Vegetable shortening works just like butter, but minus the flavor. You may substitute margarine or butter if that's the one available for you.

The recipe will require some ube jam as the main flavor. Yes, you don’t have to go buy some fresh ube from the market to use for the recipe. The rich taste will come from the jam. So feel free to pick your favorite brand to make the taste to your liking.

Ube flavoring that is added to water will be used as a dip. It will make it tastier and at the same time will help in keeping the desiccated coconut contact.

TIME TO WHIP SOME UBE BARS

Fist, you need to preheat the oven to 180°C. Then prepare your 9" square pan and line it with parchment paper.

Next, combine water and sugar in a small bowl or cup. Stir until the sugar is well dissolved. In a bigger bowl whisk the flour, powdered milk, baking powder, and salt. 

Combining the dry and wet ingredients. Pour the sugar water mixture then add the vegetable shortening and ube jam. Mix everything until well incorporated.

combine wet and dry ingredients

Transfer the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 20-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.

To prepare the syrup, combine water, sugar, and ube flavoring. Stir until sugar is well dissolved. Set aside.

cut the cake into rectangle bars

When the cake is ready, allow it to cool then cut into 2-inch rectangle bars. Dip each piece into the ube syrup and roll them in desiccated coconut.

HOW TO STORE

It is best to eat these ube bars as soon as possible. But if you want to store or freeze them, they must be wrapped properly using a plastic wrap. Then put the plastic-wrapped pastry in another resealable plastic bag. This will help the bars last for a week.

Xoxo

Gil