Food & Drink
Guam Kitchen: Baking island's famous Chamorro cookie Rosketti
By
Guam Visitors Bureau November 25, 2024
Army Lt. Col. (Ret.) Annette Merfalen
Guam Visitors Bureau November 25, 2024
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I won’t lie to you…you WILL need to have a tall glass of milk or water when you eat these starchy Chamorro cookies. It calls for an entire container of corn starch after all, but despite all that starch, this is a melt-in-your mouth cookie you won’t want to miss out on.
As a little girl, I remember going to rosaries just so that I can have some of these yummy cookies. I’d CAREFULLY (they crumble easily) wrap a couple of them in a napkin to bring home for later.
Nowadays, you’d expect to pay a good chunk of change to buy some readymade for you. I used to love receiving the occasional care package with a Crab Biscuit can inside. That was the telltale sign, the can, for it wasn’t biscuits inside, but Rosketti, carefully packed so as not to break any. But even if they did break, I didn’t dare throw any crumbs away! Oh no! I’d scoop those little bits up and eat them with a spoon, it was like gold to me!
But that was about oh, maybe 25 years ago. I’ve since learned to make these crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth delights myself.
Since I originally posted this several years ago, I’ve since learned a bit about the origin of the name of this cookie. This information is from the Guam Hispanic Heritage Facebook page:
“The ROSKAS of Guam. In many countries in the Hispanic world, on the Day of the Three Kings it is customary to serve a ring shaped sweet bread called ROSCA DE REYES. It is believed that in Guam, common Chamorro treats such as ROSKETI, BOÑELUS ROSKAS (commonly known as “yeast donuts”), and ROSKU shortbread were created as a simpler form of the traditional Spanish ROSCA. In Chamorro the word ROSKA refers to a ring or coil shape. ROSKETI and ROSKU are variants that carry the same meaning. The meaning and use of the word ROSKA seems to have been forgotten. And has resulted in ROSKETI being made other shapes in which they can’t truly be called ROSKETI.”
Additionally, the owner of the Facebook page suggested that a more historically accurate name for what I have pictured below is “monedas” which means “coins.”
Well, whatever you choose to call it, it’ll be delicious regardless.
Give my recipe a try, but have that glass of milk handy. Enjoy!