Otap Recipe - Filipino Pastries

Otap is one of several popular pastries in the Philippines. This effortful, yet easy homemade otap recipe is a great idea for those who enjoy gifting food. They are reminiscent of French palmiers. As a child, I remember eating these mindlessly, taking bite after bite, and quickly devouring its little bits. My favorite part is collecting the remaining sugary crumbs and sliding them into my mouth using the wrapper! Go here to see the step-by-step instructions with tips.

What is Otap

Otap or utap in Cebu is a famous cookie (sometimes considered a biscuit) wrapped in white parchment paper and usually sold packed in boxes. It is a popular type of pasalubong (travel gift) among Filipinos who travel domestically for vacation. Just like pandesal or Kababayan bread, you wouldn't buy Otap as an individual item. In Cebu, a popular destination for local vacationers, a heaving box filled with otap is on the shortlist for gifts to bring back home. 

Otap is similar to the French pastry, palmiers. One of the key differences between otap and palmiers is the ingredients used in laminating the puff pastry base. Otap uses vegetable shortening and yeast, whereas most typical puff pastry only includes butter between its layers. Also,the shape of French palmiers resembles a heart, but the otap shape is oval after the dough gets rolled and cut into pieces like cinnamon rolls that get flattened with a rolling pin.

Otap Ingredients

Otap ingredients include milk, yeast, sugar, salt, egg yolk, vegetable shortening, butter, and flour. Then, butter, vegetable shortening, and flour are combined to spread across the dough. The mentioned ingredients are rich and indulgent, so I suggest making these when a party is coming up, and you want to send people home with some treats to drink with their coffee the next day!

Otap Recipe Step-by-Step

There are three main steps to making this pastry. The first step is making the activator with milk, sugar, and dry yeast. Mix them together in a bowl until light and bubbly.

While the yeast is bubbling in the milk, add sugar, salt, egg, shortening, and flour, then whisk together.

When the yeast is ready, pour it into the bowl of flour and use an electric mixer with dough hooks to knead the dough. This step can take about five minutes. 

Tip I suggest doing the windowpane test to check the gluten formation. Take a piece of dough and stretch it out between your hands. If the dough doesn't rip and you can see through the thinnest part of the dough, then it's ready for the proofing stage.

Set the dough aside and let it rise for one hour or until it has doubled in size. 

Tip If you don't see your dough size increasing, you can make a humid environment to help the yeast work harder. Put a mug of water in a microwave for one minute. Then place the bowl filled with dough next to the hot water in the microwave. Do not microwave it! The hot water will continue steaming the microwave, creating a humid environment that encourages yeast to be more active. After half an hour, check on your dough, and you should see a change in size!

Make the Filling

While the dough rises, make the filling by mixing butter, shortening, and flour. Whisk them together until you create a thick paste and set the bowl aside. Before shaping the dough, this is also a good time to preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F).

Shaping Otap

When the dough size has expanded, place it on a flat surface sprinkled with flour. Roll it out to a rectangle the same way you would for cinnamon rolls. Take the bowl of filling and spread it across the dough. 

Roll it up from the long side and pinch the edges to close the log. Slice the log into pieces about a half-inch thick. If you want a smaller and thinner otap, slice thinner pieces.

Use a rolling pin to flatten the sliced pieces. You should see the circular layers you made from rolling the dough. 

In another bowl, pour some sugar. Tip I encourage you to add some other seasonings to this homemade otap recipe as it pleases you! Feel free to add cinnamon, nutmeg, etc., to the bowl of sugar before you place the pieces in it. Roll the flattened pieces into the sugar until both the front and back are covered with sugar.

Place the otap pieces on a lined baking sheet and bake them in the preheated oven for about fifteen minutes. You can tell the pieces have completed baking when they are light golden brown. Do not overbake them because you will end up with stiff and bitter pucks of dough.

Pull the baking sheet out of the oven and cool completely. 

How to Enjoy Otap

If you haven't caught on by now, Filipinos love eating sweet pastries with a cup of coffee. Homemade otap is not an exception! Coffee with sweet, slightly flaky otap is a great way to start the morning. If it's your first time trying out this recipe, I would like to let you know that there is a specific way to eat otap. Make sure you have one hand cupped under your chin to catch the sugary crumbs that break off as you bite into one. It can be a messy treat, but it's part of the experience!