The Governor-General’s legacy

An American Governor-General, Leonard Wood, headed the Philippine

Government when I was born in 1924. This was a period of profound social and economic changes amidst a climate of American control and constant lobbying for independence. The educated section of the population grew following the promotion of English language education by the administration. Free trade with the US led to dependence on the American market and colonialism.

Manuel L. Quezon became President of the Philippine Commonwealth and moved to Malacañang Palace when I turned 11 years old. An invitation to Malacañang then was as valued as it is now. "With the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898, 11 American governor-generals succeeded 112 Spaniards who had reigned as royal representatives in the Philippines. For close to 400 years, the governor-general’s table represented the epitome of western cuisine and culture on the archipelago. It was the inspiration for countless recipes, lost forever, and a social etiquette that evolved singular to the hospitable, festival-loving Philippine people." So goes the Prologue of "The Governor-General’s Kitchen: Philippine Culinary Vignettes and Period Recipes, 1521 to 1935" by Felice Prudente Sta. Maria, a former Philippine STAR Sunday opinion-page columnist from 1989 to 1996. It is a splendid collection of rare and tempting tidbits.

Sta. Maria, still-camera in hand, joined me in my fiesta research during the late 1970s and early 1980s. While I was observing and interviewing parishioners about their religious customs, Felice was tracking down rice-cake makers. I was not surprised in 1984 when she gleefully showed a three-generation old recipe from the Mateo family of Morong to make a processional Cordero ng Dios (Lamb of God) for Holy Thursday that uses 100 pieces of white camote, 150 pieces of white potato and 1,000 eggs.

"The Governor-General lives like a King, and his grand receptions are the glory of Manila", so boasted an American journalist for Pearson Publishing Company in a sneak preview on Philippine life way, way back in 1898. Sta. Maria’s fascinating book captures the glory and grandeur from the time of the Spanish Royal Representatives to the era of the American Governor-Generals. It is, to me, an idiosyncratic way of recounting Philippine history as it was woven by the various influences cast by foreign rule. History is brought to life in a creative, practical way, making it a very interesting reading material even to the most averse to history as a subject.

"The Governor-General’s Kitchen" is a subchapter in the 320-page book that includes such rare historical data as an interview with Asing, Jose Rizal’s cook in Hong Kong in 1892; old recipes like lechon sauce from 1790, tamales from 1834 and sansrival from 1932 in their original Spanish, Tagalog and English. First time reproductions of actual menu cards used at the Malolos Ratification dinner in 1898 (from Museo de Oro), the crowning of Our Lady of La Naval in 1907, and many others from family collections are exciting revelations and enlightening collections. These vignettes from the past arouse from the readers’ minds similar vignettes akin to history as it impacted on their own lives.

The book is presented magnificently and features on the undercover a unique handicraft design from a rare collection of pastillas wrappers of the prominent Viola family from San Miguel de Mayumo in Bulacan, where my late wife Irene, came from. It is a must-have for all who enjoy cooking, eating and conversing about food. Sta. Maria’s book is a culinary legacy.