Fave dessert for 2012: Napoleones

'Tis the season to be jolly...and sugar-crazy. Yes, I've spent the holidays baking and snacking on sweets but I'm still craving for my favorite dessert (for 2012): the famed Napoleones of Bacolod.

This year I visited my lola's province Negros Occidental for the first time in my life. I spent the days by the beach or the family lot, watching chickens, ducks and goats, and of course munching on various local delicacies. While I had fun learning how coconut-based sweets and dried fish were made, it was the commercially-produced box of Napoleones (bought at the airport) that caught my heart.

Soft, sweet and crunchy all at the same time, I didn't mind the fact that the two pieces I ate probably exceeded the suggested daily sugar limit of 8 teaspoons.

Napoleones is a puff pastry with a flaky crust and layered with custard cream and glazed sugar. Interestingly, the ones we bought with the brand Merci had custard with jam-like consistency. Still, it tasted terrific. Maybe one of these days I'll attempt to bake home-made Napoleones.

While the best Napoleones are from Bacolod (land of sugar cane and therefore most things sweet), you'll find some pasalubong outlets in Manila offering the local delicacy.