Make the gulaman: In a rectangular-sized, deep container, soak the gulaman bars with water for 30 minutes. When gulaman bars have softened, pour the water in a medium-sized stockpot. Cover and bring the water to a boil. As water is boiling, tear off pieces of the gulaman and add to the stockpot. Stir till the gulaman dissolves completely. Add sugar to gulaman. Pour the cooked gulaman in a rectangle or square container. Refrigerate for at least 40 minutes. When the gulaman hardens, cut into cubes and set aside.

Make the syrup: combine the palm sugar discs (panocha), water and pandan leaves each tied in a knot in a medium-sized stockpot. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer. Stir and make sure the palm sugar is completely dissolved. The syrup will become thick and have a floral fragrance from the pandan. Turn off heat and set syrup aside.

Serve chilled.

Cook's Comments: I used frozen pandan leaves for this recipe. If fresh or frozen pandan are not available, I use liquid pandan flavoring to add to the syrup. If I cannot find panocha or palm sugar solid discs, I use regular palm sugar or brown sugar and the dessert is just as sweet and delightful. Sago are available in both small and large balls. They are either cooked and bottled or sold uncooked which you simply boil in water till the whites are fully gone and leaves a soft, gummy sago ball.

Ingredient notes: Panocha or the palm sugar discs are defined by the cookbook as raw, unrefined sugar that comes in granulated form or in molded cakes.

Kulinarya: A Guidebook to Philippine Cuisine (Expanded Second Edition, Anvil Publishing) This is one of the best Philippine cookbooks around that is a great resource for beginner home cooks or the formally-trained culinary expert.  The book, through the Asia Society brings together six of the Philippine's most prominent chefs: Glenda Barretto, Claude Tayag, Conrad Calalang, Margarita Fores, Myrna Segismundo, and Jessie Sincioco with full color photographs by Neal Oshima. The renowned chefs share their talents, passion and knowledge of Philippine cuisine to provide readers a better understanding and appreciation of the culture and country through a wide range of classic recipes. The second expanded edition follows the success of the Kulinarya Guidebook. This cookbook provides the necessary information for cooking methods and great practices for Filipino Cuisine. Kulinarya is available where most cookbooks are sold and at online sources (see my Amazon affiliate line up of products used for this recipe).

Disclosure: This cookbook was a gift from Tuttle Publishing. I was not paid to do a review or cook from it. But I will gladly recommend it as a resource for classic Filipino recipes.