Martabak Manis is a common street food that can be easily found in the streets of Indonesia. If you were to ask my dad what his favourite dessert in the world was, his answer in a heartbeat would be Martabak Manis. Speaking of heavy influences, a similar pancake in Singapore and Malaysia exists in the name of Apam Balik / Ban Jian Kueh.
Every Mondays and Fridays of June and July we will be featuring some my favourite food bloggers for the first time here at Ang Sarap. These bloggers are exceptional and served as a big influence of what is Ang Sarap now, so please do visit and follow every one of them (if you haven’t yet) and I will assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
Hello folks! My name is Samantha, better known as Sammie, and I author Sweet Samsations. Amongst the many hobbies I have, such as photography, hot yoga and playing the piano, my biggest passion lies in baking! My kitchen is both a sanctuary and a playground for me where I can experiment with fusion dishes as well as attempt to replicate traditional ones.
Since I was little, I was exposed to a multitude of different Asian cuisines, from sweet to spicy (and everywhere in-between). This diverse range of “foodism” has expanded in Vancouver, where I can try every sort of food imaginable. My experience here with exotic foods has fostered a versatile and diverse palette for various cuisines, as well as a love to experiment with new dishes!
When I received Raymund’s email to do a guest blog posting, I was both thrilled and honoured! I’ve always been a fan of Filipino cuisine and Ang Sarap is my “go to” blog whenever I had a recipe in mind. I love how he explained the origin of each dish and then proceed tempt me with his wonderful photography and culinary skills! When I was asked to create a dish representative of my culture, I was torn between my two halves.
I’m of Southeast Asian descent – namely Singaporean and Indonesian. Although the food in both countries are largely similar and carry heavy influences which were sometimes based off one another, they also differ in many aspects. Like all other cuisines, each is unique and boasts their own signature dish.
After much contemplation, I settled on Martabak Manis (Coklat Keju), loosely translated to Sweet Indonesian Thick Pancake (Chocolate & Cheese). It is also known as Terang Bulan amongst the locals. Martabak Manis is a common street food that can be easily found in the streets of Indonesia. If you were to ask my dad what his favourite dessert in the world was, his answer in a heartbeat would be Martabak Manis. Speaking of heavy influences, a similar pancake in Singapore and Malaysia exists in the name of Apam Balik / Ban Jian Kueh.
The sweet filling sandwiched between this pancake traditionally consists of condensed milk, chocolate, cheese, fruits and crushed peanuts. Lately however, the increase in modern bakeries gave rise to a variety of fusion flavours, including Blackforest and Tiramisu Martabaks! mmmm! Possible blog posting idea!
The texture of a good Martabak Manis has to to be soft and chewy with its distinct honeycomb texture visible.
It also needs to be evenly browned at the bottom. Undoubtedly, this is easier made with a special martabak pan but a non-stick teflon works just as well! Without further ado, please enjoy my very own martabak recipe. Ahhh, and yes since I’m staying true to tradition, this will not be one of those “diet recipes”…
In a small bowl, mix yeast with warm coconut milk and let it sit for 10 minutes or until bubbles form.
In a large bowl, sift sugar, salt and bread flour.
Mix in coconut milk mixture and allow to rise for 1-2 hours in a warm place. You should be able to see a lot of holes forming on the top.
Beat eggs with melted margarine. (make sure the margarine is not hot so it does not cook the eggs)
To the egg mixture, add baking soda dissolved in water and mix well.
Combine egg mixture with coconut milk mixture, beating for about 30 seconds on medium / low speed until well blended.
Preheat the skillet or griddle with LOW HEAT. Grease the pan and sides with a little margarine. Pour the batter, cover and cook until you can see bubbles start to form. This will take approximately 10-15 minutes or until top is full of holes. Ensure that your heat is LOW so that the skin doesn’t burn. The level of the batter should not exceed half the height of the skillet.
Spread margarine on top and finally sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese, chocolate and sweetened condensed milk. Remove from the pan and fold it in half immediately like the shape of a semicircle. This will prevent the cake from cracking.
Spread the outer surface with margarine to keep the cake moist. Best served warm!
Notes
Heavily modified from Ny Prudianti Tedjokusuma – 525 Kumpulan Resep Mak Nyusss!
I won’t deny the fact that this is probably the most irritating pancake to make! And you can tell why it requires such a bigger time commitment than your usual Sunday brunch pancakes… Yes, it’s the yeast! Rarely do locals attempt to make this when they can easily purchase it even in the wee hours in the morning. However, to many Indonesians overseas, this is a childhood favourite, akin to donuts! Imagine immigrating to a foreign country with no donuts! I bet I’d be making a lot of my own! 🙂
I’d also like to point out that although most Martabak recipes online recommend all-purpose flour, bread flour gave it a much “chewier” texture that was more similar to the ones sold on the street. I hope you enjoyed my Martabak recipe! Thanks for having me at Ang Sarap! And I’m sure we all know what this blog name means! In Bahasa Indonesian we would say “Sedap Sekali!”
Hi Sammie! Nice to meet you – these pancakes are exactly what I need at the moment. Although chocolate and cheese? Never heard of that combo. Must try (bananas and ketchup sound weird too but taste good).
Hi Martyna! Nice to meet you too! Yes!! Chocolate and cheese is actually a very delicious combination! You won’t even taste the saltiness of the cheese! We love adding lots of cheese to sweet Asian desserts like this (and also the Cassava Cake)! The chocolate will overpower it and you won’t even taste the “savouriness” of the cheese. But it will add so much flavour! Do try it! 🙂 As for banana and ketchup… mmm.. haven’t heard of that combination yet! haha.. But I’m sure I’d be able to find some interesting recipes online for that!
This looks fantastic Sammie! If they sold these as street food around here I’d be in so much trouble. 🙂 And I love hot yoga too! Raymund – another great guest post!
Thank you Kristy!! haha.. Yes! They are so tempting especially when street foods in Asia are very affordable! 🙂 I do Bikram’s! It’s my favourite. I wonder if you’re doing the same one too! haha..
Thanks Tessa! Actually the brand I recommended “Ceres” is the milk chocolate sprinkles you are referring to! Those are my favourite!! Unfortunately I only get to stock up whenever I go to Indonesia! haha..
I like the idea of sweet or savory fillings- today we had a “build your own crepe” party at work and had different ideas for the fillings- nutella, fruit, peanut butter, chocolate chips, etc. delicious!
Raymund – Thanks for introducing us to Sammie! Sammie – nice to meet you! I can’t wait to head over to your blog and check out your sweet sensations. The ones your sharing here are fabulous!
Yup!! That’s the Malaysian variation! They’re definitely similar! I believe they even use the same type of pans! But Martabak Manis is usually a little thicker and I believe Apam Balik filling consists of mostly peanuts… right? hahaha.. But yes very delicious too!!
hahaa.. Yeah! I guess you could omit the cheddar if you don’t fancy the combination! In Indonesia you get to customize the fillings however you love it! It’s like being in Starbucks where you give the barista your requests. The most popular ones though is cheddar + chocolate + condensed milk or peanuts + chocolate + condensed milk. 🙂
Whoo whoo Sammie is here. So happy to see her post, with this delicious treat! I’d never had the choco & cheese combination in my life. I assume chocolate is strong that we can barely taste cheese? Not sure but curious!
I am new to Sam’s blog but I totally agree with Raymund, she has an amazing collection of mouth watering treats I love your Martabak Manis Sam..they are really tempting
Mukang masarap yan pre ha….
Hi Sammie! Nice to meet you – these pancakes are exactly what I need at the moment. Although chocolate and cheese? Never heard of that combo. Must try (bananas and ketchup sound weird too but taste good).
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Hi Martyna! Nice to meet you too! Yes!! Chocolate and cheese is actually a very delicious combination! You won’t even taste the saltiness of the cheese! We love adding lots of cheese to sweet Asian desserts like this (and also the Cassava Cake)! The chocolate will overpower it and you won’t even taste the “savouriness” of the cheese. But it will add so much flavour! Do try it! 🙂 As for banana and ketchup… mmm.. haven’t heard of that combination yet! haha.. But I’m sure I’d be able to find some interesting recipes online for that!
Just a note on this one, in the Philippines we even have banana ketchup’s which we use in sweet style spaghetti.
🙂
Beautiful!!!
These pancakes are perfect to put my day on right track!!!
Nice meeting you Sam, and once again wonderful guest post Raymund!!
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Hi Reem. Thank you so much! Nice meeting you too! I’m glad you liked them! I could honestly have these every day! haha..
This looks fantastic Sammie! If they sold these as street food around here I’d be in so much trouble. 🙂 And I love hot yoga too! Raymund – another great guest post!
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Thank you Kristy!! haha.. Yes! They are so tempting especially when street foods in Asia are very affordable! 🙂 I do Bikram’s! It’s my favourite. I wonder if you’re doing the same one too! haha..
Looks delicious! This would be perfect with milk chocolate sprinkles :).
★★★★★
Thanks Tessa! Actually the brand I recommended “Ceres” is the milk chocolate sprinkles you are referring to! Those are my favourite!! Unfortunately I only get to stock up whenever I go to Indonesia! haha..
I like the idea of sweet or savory fillings- today we had a “build your own crepe” party at work and had different ideas for the fillings- nutella, fruit, peanut butter, chocolate chips, etc. delicious!
★★★★★
Thanks Meri! Oh yummy!! All your description of the fillings is just starting to make my mouth water… haha..
Raymund – Thanks for introducing us to Sammie! Sammie – nice to meet you! I can’t wait to head over to your blog and check out your sweet sensations. The ones your sharing here are fabulous!
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Hi!! Nice to meet you too!! I’m glad you enjoyed this one!! 🙂 Will definitely check out your blog as well!
It looks like Malaysia’s “Apam Balik” ^_^
Yup!! That’s the Malaysian variation! They’re definitely similar! I believe they even use the same type of pans! But Martabak Manis is usually a little thicker and I believe Apam Balik filling consists of mostly peanuts… right? hahaha.. But yes very delicious too!!
Hi Sammie. U r pretty ^_^
Yeap…you are right! Grounded peanuts, sweet corn and sugar. I usually asked for extra peanuts and corns =)
I thought that looked like my kind of treat until I read the cheddar with chocolate! But I’m up for trying anything :o)
hahaa.. Yeah! I guess you could omit the cheddar if you don’t fancy the combination! In Indonesia you get to customize the fillings however you love it! It’s like being in Starbucks where you give the barista your requests. The most popular ones though is cheddar + chocolate + condensed milk or peanuts + chocolate + condensed milk. 🙂
Awesome guest post by Sammie..love her blog, and love these pancakes!
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Thanks Lisa!! You’re the sweetest!
Whoo whoo Sammie is here. So happy to see her post, with this delicious treat! I’d never had the choco & cheese combination in my life. I assume chocolate is strong that we can barely taste cheese? Not sure but curious!
Pretty much!! Yeah, you mostly taste the chocolate but the cheese just gives it a different texture! 😀
I am new to Sam’s blog but I totally agree with Raymund, she has an amazing collection of mouth watering treats
I love your Martabak Manis Sam..they are really tempting
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Thanks Sawsan!! I’m totally in love with your blog too!! Glad to discover another amazing food blogger!!
I have never tried something like this but I am totally in! These look incredible. I love Sammie’s blog! 🙂
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Thanks so much Geni!!! Love visiting your beautiful blog too!
Hopped over from Sammie’s blog. Love her blog and this pancake with the soft and chewy texture sounds really delightful.
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Thanks Norma!!
Oh, I was wondering if Sammie was from Indonesia. I grew up eating this. LOVE martabak. Thanks for the recipe Sammie 🙂
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hehe.. I’m only half Indonesian. But I do have an Indo last name! 😀 You are welcome Yudith my dear! Hope you like it!