On a mission to bring back a taste of her childhood, Centennial College culinary professor Richell Castillo and her fiancé Jethro Pellazar got baking.
Ulamkits' Panaderia is a home bakery known for soft and tasty Filipino breads -- pan de sal, ube-mada and the cheesy, fluffy buns that first catapulted their journey for them: ensaymada.
After losing their restaurant jobs during COVID-19 lockdowns, Castillo and Pellazar turned to selling ready to heat ulam kits, translated to main dishes, where they aimed to create traditional Filipino meals anyone could cook in their own homes. They did this in the hopes that those eating their food would be able to receive it with as much love and comfort as the people making it carried; however, amongst all the savoury dishes like chicken adobo and bistek Tagalog, Castillo felt something was missing. She felt as though she fell short in her delivery of the childhood nostalgia and joy that Filipino dishes bring to her -- so she started baking.
"I grew up in the Philippines and our weekly treat was a trip to a tiny bakery in our hometown. I remember the smell that would kick me in the face as soon as we entered and the mess of sugar and grated cheese that ensaymada left all over my face and clothes."
With memories of the fluffiest breads and sweetest treats in mind, Castillo decided to shift the business' focus to being a panaderia, a bakery instead. After going through multiple taste tests with friends and family, trying to accurately recreate the flavours and textures of the dough she grew up so fond of, Castillo was rewarded with a batch of ensaymadas that tasted incredibly familiar.
"The day I knew we had done it was when I took a bite and it shot me right back to my childhood. It gave me so much comfort and joy. I knew it was something that I had to share not only to the Filipino community but to everyone else."
The passion and excitement Castillo and Pellazar put into their bread was quickly noticed and shared by those in their online communities, allowing them to continuously sell out weekly after their launch last June.
"The first week, I remember we sold ten dozen. The numbers started growing, more people knew about it and more people were ordering. It was a hit; we were only offering ensaymadas at one point. Our ube-madas are definitely the crowd favourite." Castillo jokes, "Ube will go extinct soon because of the amount of ube purée and extract we go through on a weekly basis!"
Ube-madas, short for ube ensaymadas differentiates themselves from the classic ensaymadas, through the use of this tuberous root vegetable from the Philippines. Ube, also referred to as purple yam, is well-known for its vibrant purple hue and sweet and slightly nutty vanilla flavour. Both buttery rolls have a perfect balance of sweet and savoury, with the pillowy dough being coated in a thick blanket of ube buttercream and layers of cheese.
Classic ensaymadas, on the other hand, are just as soft, buttery and creamy minus the addition of ube. It's recommended that both rolls be heated up prior to enjoying, for the most texture and flavour variety, resulting in a crispy top layer that melts in your mouth.
Ulamkits' Panaderia also offers pan del sal, which are Filipino bread rolls that aren't as sweet or topped with cheese as ensaymadas are, but they are just as airy and buttery.
In the future, Castillo aims to open a shop where she and Pellazar can fully execute their vision and serve more Filipino breads, kakanin (sweets made of glutinous rice and coconut milk) and desserts.
Valuing nostalgia, Castillo wants to open a shop that will make customers feel at home. To her, the perfect shop would have "A big communal table where everyone can enjoy their food and sit together. Like many Filipino households, food is the key to bringing people together."
Even though they've yet to expand into a physical storefront location, Castillo and Pellazar are still able to do just that through their oven at home -- bring people together over the joy of good food and the nostalgia of sweet childhood memories one ensaymada at a time.
Order your ensaymadas, ube-madas and pan de sal by sending Ulamkits' Panaderia a message on Instagram and be sure to follow them to lose yourself in mouth-watering images of everything they're baking.
