Kesong puti
The fresh white cheese of the Philippines, made from carabao milk and wrapped in banana leaf.
Also: kesong puti, white cheese, kesong Laguna
Kesong puti means white cheese in Tagalog. It is a soft, moist, slightly salty fresh cheese made from the milk of the carabao, the water buffalo of the Philippines, or from cow or goat milk. The milk is set with vinegar, citrus juice or rennet, and the curd is drained, salted and pressed into small rounds that are traditionally wrapped in banana leaf. Towns in Laguna, especially Santa Cruz, and in Bulacan and Cebu are famous for it, and it is sold by street vendors at dawn. It is eaten at breakfast with pandesal, the soft bread rolls, and with hot coffee. It keeps only a few days.