by Tokay

Twenty years ago every warung kopi offered a selection of tasty little cakes, and almost every girl knew how to make them. Now even in the back country lanes, the warungs offer only plastic-wrapped bread rolls and mass-produced snacks, with nary a dusting of fresh coconut in sight. Bali's unique sweets may be in danger of extinction.

Long-time resident Janet Molloy was already a trained chef when she moved to Bali. Hanging out in the warungs 20 years ago, she took a deep interest in the colourful sweets that were offered with her glass of coffee. Seriously applying herself to the research, she learned to identify sumping, dumplings of rice flour steamed with grated pumpkin or banana, bantal, the little pillows of sticky rice with red beans inside and klepon, the dainty green balls rolled in freshly grated coconut that deliver an explosion of red palm syrup when bitten. Ewel, a tarry pudding, and bubur ijin were made from black sticky rice. Dadar was a small pancake and kue mangkok were the cupcakes with split tops used in offerings.

These typical Balinese cakes can still be found today in markets and supermarkets, but they are no longer to be seen in roadside warungs or even the baskets of wandering snack-ladies. Fewer of the young women can be bothered making them and some of the ingredients, like black sticky rice, have become rare and costly.

"Before baking powder was available, the Balinese women used fermented cassava for leavening. They still use the traditional pandan leaves to colour the cakes green and commercial food colouring for the pink," Janet notes. "It's amazing how many different varieties of cakes and sweets the Balinese created from just a few ingredients: mainly rice flour, coconut and red palm sugar. But they are nothing like as widely available as they used to be." Bubur ijin, for example, is rarely found on restaurant menus except at Murni's Warung and Batan Waru.

Until a decade ago, travelers to Ubud who fancied a bit of Western cake were out of luck if Murni's Warung and Casa Luna were sold out. Fast forward to Ubud's High Street in 2006 where the sweet tooth is spoiled for choice. Casa Luna and Bali Buddha offer home baking and the recently opened Café Moka has a tempting range of flirty French pastries. But the Queen of Cake, not just in Ubud but in the whole of Bali, has to be Kué.

Yvonne Day started Kué three years ago in a village north of Ubud and will soon be moving her bakery into town. Her simple, spotless kitchen produces cakes that would be dazzling in Paris or New York. "The philosophy is over the-top decadence," she grins. Yvonne uses only the best ingredients. "We make our own brandied cherries, puff pastry, fondants, fruit concentrates, frostings and cream cheese to ensure quality; chocolate is imported from Switzerland and Belgium." The result? Sinfully rich, exquisitely decorated confections that enchant the eye and alarm the waistline. Kué supplies about 30 hotels, restaurants and villas around Ubud and on the beach.

It's all about balance. Bali's traditional cakes are and Kué's confections are worlds apart. But they share the essential element of personal care and attention; every piece is meticulously created by women's hands.
So help keep both the old and new traditions alive by sampling dadar one
day and mocha tiramisu the next.

Think of it as having your cake and eating it too.