Puto

I don't have an authentic recipe for puto to share with you. What I am showing here is puto that I made to go with the dinuguan that I usually serve during the Filipino gatherings. Although I want some authentic recipes and actually found some online, I simply do not have the time to make it. Since I have been working and have less time now to cook and bake, I want a quick-fix, so I resort to the following:

Ingredients:
1 box classic white cake mix (I used Pillsbury)
egg whites, oil and water as directed on the package
(optional toppings: cheese or salted egg)

Procedure:
Prepare your steamer (will post about this later) and make sure the water level is low enough so it does not touch your puto, yet high enough not to get dried up before your puto is done.

From puto't dinuguan

Prepare wet ingredients in a bowl.

Mix the dry with the wet ingredients ONLY when your steamer's water is boiling briskly already.
Spoon the mix into muffin cups supported by silicone cups (or other small cups that fit in your steamer). (This is a good time to place slices of salted egg on top if using.)
If you have two layers of muffins, steam for 10 minutes then exchange the top with the bottom and steam for further 2 minutes.
Remove cover and let steam for further 2-3 minutes. (This is a good time to put cheese topping if using).

This is traditionally served with dinuguan.

A bonus surprise was that hubby and all the kids loved this puto! So, although this is not an authentic puto recipe, who cares? What matters is it gets eaten, especially by the family, right?

For those looking for puto molds, a good substitute would be the tartlet pan on the right, which are like shorter muffin tin cups without the ridges. As mentioned on amazon,com, "SPECS: Diameter 2 1/2", height 5/8", pack of 25 - Description: Made of tin-plate. "