Bibbikan

There are a few recipes that are only passed on through family. Google “Bibbikan” for five to ten completely different recipes posted by individuals who are of varied ethnic or religious backgrounds. Bibbikan knows no religious or ethnic limitations. Like almost all Sri Lankan food it is made and enjoyed by all.

Bibbikan is a rich fruit cake served mainly during the Sinhalese and Tamil New Year, but also for Christmas, Easter, End of Ramadan, and any occasion that involves families gathering together to share a meal.

Bibbikan stores well when kept moderately cool with or without a fridge. The cake would be made at least a week ahead of the occasion to maximize the flavor imbued by the spices. In the run up to any holiday this cake along with other Sri Lankan sweets would be stockpiled in anticipation of all the relatives, neighbors, and visitors.

My earliest memory of this delectable treat is from driving South on Galle Road in Sri Lanka towards Galle and stopping at Monis Bakery near Kalutara to pick up a selection of sweets and pastries. My favorite were the commercially produced Bibbikan made in small molds and sold by the bag. The closest I ever found to a Western version of these would be Kellog’s Ginger flavored Elevenses sold in the UK & Ireland. What I didn’t know back then was that ginger is not the what that makes a Bibbikan.

I was older and only a little wiser when I first sampled real Bibbikan made by my grandmother on my father’s side. Thereafter the taste would haunt me. One day a year ago, my aunt sent me a collection of photocopies taken of the recipes my grandmother had cherished. Enclosed within that package was the hand written details of how to make her most cherished Bibbikan.

Refrigeration came to Sri Lanka as to most parts of the world sometime in my grandmother’s lifetime (1930s-40s). Until then, many foods were made to last. The best way was to make a fruit cake consisting of preserved-by-virtue-of-being-dried fruit. Local ingredients would have been favored. Many recipes have since been modernized with the addition of more sugar and more flour. During that early period, flour and sugar would have been rationed commodities in Sri Lanka, a British Colony during World War II.

Dates, Coconut & Kithul Treacle

Dates are native to many warm climates.Through the ages they have been universally deemed a superfood. Consumption of dates is recommended to the young, elderly, and pregnant. While high in fiber and nutrients, the natural sweetness of dates also contribute to make it a good source of energy.

Early colonial plantations and estates in the low lands of Sri Lanka cultivated coconut for local and export use. Coconut was in ample supply and a great source of nutrition and fiber. True Bibbikan aficionados will value the extremely white and moist flesh of a young coconut over the more dry and brittle flesh that you find closer to the shell. Both the age of the coconut and where you are scraping the fresh flesh matter. The next best thing for those of us not living next to coconut trees is to buy frozen grated coconut.

Coconut milk is derived from squeezing the milk from freshly grated coconut. I fudge the quantity here but a can will do.

Finally Kithul treacle is a Sri Lankan staple. We eat it with a thick yogurt made from Water Buffalo milk the way most people eat honey with Greek yogurt. The caramel taste is full bodied and unique. Coconut sugar, widely available in the West, is a poor substitute. Sugar is a worse substitute. The best alternative if you’re lucky is the dark brown molded Palm sugar/juggary sold in Thai or Indonesian sections of the supermarket.

More ingredients

I mentioned ginger earlier. This features predominantly in many recipes; however, I discovered through my grandmother’s original recipe that what many people may think is ginger in Bibbikan is actually Cardamom. In her recipe, ginger is absent.

My recipe calls for raisins/Sultanas, candied peel, and Cashews. Pumpkin Preserves (Puhul Dosi / Melon Candy) is winter melon preserved in sugar, popular in Sri Lanka but more commonly found in East Asian cuisine.

For spices: Cardamom, Vanilla, and Lime zest. To date, I know of no other recipe that has that spice combo.

Methods

This is where the recipe gets complex. Its a slow and potentially grueling recipe except when you have modern day conveniences at hand!

If you can purchase pre-chopped dates at a Bulk Barn or similar store, you are in it for the win. I bought a 1kg (2lb) bag of Yupik brand pitted dates that were wonderfully fresh and soft but spent about an hour chopping them into sufficiently small pieces. I only needed half for the recipe. Lemon peel thankfully comes pre-processed.

Once upon a time I had a food processor. Unfortunately, this recipe killed it.

Imagine the amount of work on a rural estate to make a large quantity of Bibbikan. Today I gravitate to making a large quantity of fruitcake for 3 important reasons:

• It can be a pain to prep the ingredients
• It keeps well
• It goes fast

Pol Pani

IMHO: Gift of the Gods to Sri Lankans next to Seeni Sambol (a story for another day). Once all of the ingredients have been obtained, its important to slow cook the grated coconut with the Kithul treacle to make what Sri Lankans call Pol Pani. This slow step ensures the coconut has absorbed the treacle. Pol Pani is the basis for many other Sri Lankan treats. We will spoon some of it into a ball of milk rice, we batter coat it and fry, we also roll it as a filler for crepes. I often add the dry spices to the Pol Pani for the slow cook.

Now all of the ingredients can be combined. The recipe makes enough to fill a full sized cake tray lined with parchment. Through a bit of trial and error I found success baking at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.

These days I make the Bibbikan for my father who remembers. Every older family friend will comment on their memory of Bibbikan. Some like it sweeter, some use semolina, some prefer more or less of something (never ginger). I am happy to continue a tradition by preserving a copy of my grandmother’s taste.

The long act of preparing and making Bibikkun gives me time to reflect on my grandmother and to remember her kindness and her cooking.