It was during the visit of some 300 members of the Philippine Councilors last week that I got to discover this type of puto in my hometown. Usually, it's those sold 5's and wrapped in banana leaves which are also good, made in Brgy. Lanag as I was informed.
But a stall during the event had this mouthwatering display of native delicacies and among them are the visually enticing puto manapla. At first I though they were just imported from nearby towns until I was told that it was made in Brgy. (the name just escaped my mind). During regular days, a carinderia which sells native chicken binakol (which I'll be blogging about soon) carries these puto manapla, and is located beside the municipal hall.
Among the ways of determining an authentic "Manapla" puto as I was told, is the texture of the banan leaf it is wrapped in. It should be "sturdy" enough not to tear when the puto is unwrapped. And this one surely was. Nonetheless, it was the taste that really said it was a good puto manapla.
It was the ube variant that caught my attention first, of course the same with everybody else I assume, but I liked how the original one taste. It was just as heavenly as I can remember. It was also very filling aside from being a lot bigger than the usual puto manapla.
And it's just PhP8 each - a big puto with cheese on top that not only smells and looks good but also tastes good - very good! I'll be "hunting down" the maker of this puto very soon to find out how these are made!