In the early 1990s we were wowed by the Whammo’s brand of snack cakes. I believe this is the chocolate version of the American Twinkies. The price was a bit high but we did not care, the delectable chocolate fudge-filled mini cakes went down great and leaves us with a sweet feeling all over. With Whammo’s you can have your cake and you can take it with you anywhere and of course eat it too. Soon enough local companies picked up the beat and started coming out with their own version of the snack cakes. They are sweeter and cheaper and they come in interesting varieties.
Today Rebisco (the leading local biscuit maker) leads the pack in offering a wide range of pre-packed baked goods. Their products are a big hit with all markets. Mothers want them for their kids, teenagers gobble them up to keep energized, adults bring them to work for a little something during their coffee breaks and the elder set are totally sold to these sweet, soft and fluffy mini cakes for snacks or desserts.
These mini-cakes turn up in peculiar places as well. They are served at parties and conferences and they have replaced the biscuits served at wakes. The packaging fares well during all types of weather and can endure the highest temperatures in the country. They compact size makes them very easy to carry along. Packed in bulk they can stay in a cupboard or an office drawer for a long time.
My favorite snack cake brand is the Fudgee Barr, shaped after the Whammo’s and the Twinkies, this cake is great for satisfying pangs of hunger that get us at certain times of the day. The cake tastes really good and they are quite cheap at around PHP6.00 a pop. Flavors are chocolate, vanilla, mocha and milk, plus the popular local flavors of macapuno (soft coconut meat) and buko-pandan (coconut-pandan leaves) as well as the weird smelling durian (jackfruit) flavor. The cake is lined with pastry paper lining making it easy to handle as the mess is kept at a minimum. This snack definitely works for me.
Author: Monie Maunay
email: buddygallagher@gmail.com
