Monday, October 10, 2011

Vjandep Pastel of Camiguin Island



Pastel is the pasalubong for camiguin's visitors, much like every destination in the Philippines has one. (To Filipinos, bringing home something bought from a travel or vacation to family and friends is part of Filipino culture called pasalubong and is the reason why it's so easy to spot Filipinos in airports-- too much baggage mostly pasalubong stuff!)

From simple prayers, sometime in December of 1989, God answered Ella to bake her great grandmother's bread for a hobby, and that is PASTEL.

PASTEL is a Spanish term for CAKE. By our ingenuity in grammar, PASTEL has long been called in English, as a soft dough coffee bun whom the Spaniards has generously taught our ancestors and made PASTEL as part of a Camiguingnon's delicacy. This made PASTEL a common treat in the tables of the affluent Camiguingnon's of the time, especially during special gatherings and occasions, such as birthdays, weddings, fiestas, Christmas and the likes.

Eleanor Popera Jose, a true blooded Camiguingnon, was the first to commercialize PASTEL on January 8, 1990 from what was left of her husband's Christmas bonus, thus dated the beginnings of VjANDEP PASTEL (pronounced with silent "j", which stands for Virgilio Jose AND Eleanor Popera). The initial capital of P120.00 has yielded three dozens of the said buns which doubled the following day and onwards. It was just simply a hobby at first, until Ella saw a great potential in the product, thus, she continued producing PASTEL up to this date.

PASTEL originally has "yema" (custard) for its filling. But during the summers of 1990 to 1993, Ella learned from culinary and baking workshops the rudiments and techniques of baking. She then reformulated the PASTEL to what is now the pillar of coffee bun taste. Today, the VjANDEP PASTEL OF CAMIGUIN has 12 varieties of fillings to satisfy the fancy of your taste buds.

Pastel is available in cheese, langka, macapuno, mango, Pineapple and made-to-order durian, guava, strawberry, chocolate, and special yema

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