5+ Delicious Ube Dessert Ideas

About This Ube Halaya Recipe

October is Filipino-American month, and I’m excited to share something essential for Filipino desserts—this ube halaya recipe! Ube halaya is a Filipino jam made of ube. You can serve it plain as a dessert, or use it as an ingredient in other ube desserts and baked goods.

You can enjoy it as a sweet spread on toast, or use it for ube desserts like this ube babka, ube layer cake, ube cinnamon rolls, ube crinkle cookies, and more! Check out the post for a round-up of the best ube recipes on Hummingbird High.

@hummingbirdhigh ubae-by, baby #ube #filipino #filipinofood #bakingrecipe #bakingtiktok ♬ Oblivion – Grimes

What is ube?

Ube, pronounce ooh-beh, is a purple yam often used in Filipino and other Southeast Asian desserts. It has a beautiful, deep purple color and is almost exclusively used in dessert recipes, where it gives the sweets a wonderful earthy and almost nutty flavor.

Ube comes in many forms. You can buy it in its unprocessed, tuber form (however, this form is hard to find in the United States). You can also buy it processed and frozen, dried and powdered, in ube halaya jam form, or as an extract.

Is ube and taro the same?

Many people confuse ube with taro. Not only do they taste pretty similar, but taro also can come in a light lavender color (although it mostly comes in white). But they’re actually just completely different plants.

Although you can classify both ube and taro as tubers, taro is cultivated from the taro plant. Unlike ube, it’s not classified as a “yam”. In the Philippines, people use taro in savory cooking and reserve ube for sweets.

And finally, it’s important to note that both ube and taro are also different from the different varieties of purple sweet potatoes available. It’s confusing, I know!

What Is Ube Halaya?

Fun fact: it is actually really hard to buy fresh ube (that is, ube still in its tuber form). That’s because ube is really hard to process: it needs to be peeled, boiled for a long time, then grated and mashed into its signature texture. So typically, most ube is bought frozen or processed into a powder, extract, or jam. In the Philippines, the jam is called “ube halaya” and is typically what people mean when they say “ube” in recipes.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Here’s everything you need to make ube halaya for your baking recipes:

• frozen ube (also known as grated purple yam)
• granulated sugar
• ube extract
• kosher salt

And let’s talk about some key ingredients and where to find them:

Frozen Ube (Grated Purple Yam)

You need 1 (16-ounce) packet of frozen ube (grated purple yam) to make ube halaya.

Can I use fresh ube instead?

Yes, but you’ll need to roast the ube until fork-tender. After they’ve cooled, grate or rice them before using in the ube halaya recipe below.

Ube Extract

You need 1 teaspoon ube extract to make ube halaya.

What is ube extract?

Ube extract is similar to vanilla extract. However, instead of flavoring baked goods with vanilla, it flavors them with ube! Pretty cool, right? Most ube baked goods rely on ube extract for flavor. That’s because ube on its own is so subtle—you really need the extract to boost the flavor.

And in addition to giving baked goods ube flavor, the ube extract also helps color them. Most ube extract is dyed with purple food coloring. This food coloring in the extract helps enhance your baked good’s purple color.

In the United States, there’s only a handful of brands that make ube extract: McCormick and Butterfly. Both are great!

Where To Buy Ube Extract

Although most McCormick spices and extracts are available in most supermarkets, you need to go to a specialty Asian market to source the ube extract. Most Asian supermarkets have a baking aisle. In this aisle, you’ll find extracts for “Asian” flavors like coconut, durian, jasmine, and ube.

If you don’t have an Asian supermarket in your city, you can buy ube extract online on Amazon.

And if you live in my city of Portland, Oregon, get excited. You have a lot of options! Both McCormick and Butterfly ube extract is available at Fubonn and the H Mart on Belmont.

How To Make Ube Halaya For Baking

Here are the basic steps to make ube halaya from scratch:

1. Cook the ube with water, sugar, and salt. (Cook Time: 15 minutes)
2. Strain the ube halaya and add ube extract. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
3. Cool the ube halaya before using in an ube dessert recipe or storing for later use.

That’s it!

The Best Ube Dessert Recipes For Your Ube Halaya

Here are a list of my favorite ube baking recipes on Hummingbird High:

Now, it’s time to make your homemade ube halaya!