Rex Alba highlights vibrant Filipino traditions in week three’s baking challenge on The Great American Recipe

The Great American Recipe season 4 aired its third episode, titled The Bakes Are High, on PBS on July 25, 2025. In this episode about baking, it allowed contestants to express their personal stories through bread-based dishes.

Rex Alba used this episode to highlight his Filipino culture - noting in the Philippines for example, some foods are reserved for fiestas.

“It’s a celebration to honor the patron saint of the town or city,” Rex said.

He was discussing Torta de Argao, the bread he created in the first round, which he served with Sikwate, a traditional Filipino hot chocolate. These dishes represented his culture and the tools and flavors he was comfortable with growing up.

In the episode, Rex also introduced the Batirol, the wooden whisk his grandmother used to make their hot chocolate.

The judges praised his dishes, and he ultimately performed well in both rounds, landing in the top contestants. The episode further showed the judges' positive reactions and Rex's bold flavor experiment during the second challenge.

Rex Alba highlights Filipino traditions with Torta de Argao and Sikwate in The Great American Recipe

 

 

 

 

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In the first round of the week’s baking challenge, Rex Alba made Torta de Argao, a festive bread from the Philippines, along with Sikwate, a traditional Filipino hot chocolate.

While preparing the dish in The Great American Recipe, Rex explained that Torta de Argao is usually made during fiesta season and is linked to religious celebrations.

He also shared personal memories, saying he used his grandmother’s cooking pot and a Batirol, a wooden whisk, to froth the drink.

“It’s a hot chocolate Filipino drink, and I’m using my grandma's pot,” Rex noted.

The torta, he added, should “blossom” on top if baked correctly, indicating a signature crack that reflects its authenticity.

During the tasting, judge Francis noted that the torta looked “Mexican” and explained that this was due to the shared influence of Spanish colonization on both Filipino and Mexican cuisines. He later commented,

“When you bite into this torta, it's crunchy. It's crackly. All that sugar has caramelized.”

Timothy named Rex’s entry one of the judges’ “favorite” dishes, describing the dessert’s texture and pairing with Sikwate as “perfect.”

This feedback placed Rex in the top two contestants of the round, which he described as a confidence boost, saying it felt really good to be recognized at that level.

Rex experiments with durian in Silvanas during bake sale challenge in The Great American Recipe

For the second segment, where contestants had to create a bake sale item, Rex made Silvanas, a Filipino dessert made with meringue wafer sandwiches.

He gave the dish his own twist by adding pineapple, durian, and mango to the buttercream filling. Rex admitted that using durian was risky because it isn’t a flavor everyone enjoys in The Great American Recipe.

“Typical Silvanas back home is just plain buttercream, but I'm taking a risk of infusing our flavor of pineapple, durian, and also mango,” he told Timothy.

He further added that even his wife had warned him about using the polarizing fruit.

After tasting, Francis compared the meringue to an “ice cream sandwich” and said the sweetness was subtle.

Timothy appreciated the use of nuts for texture and said the dish “turned out well.” Francis did express one concern:

“They all look the same. So there was no way to know what flavor you were getting.”

Despite the risk, Rex was once again among the top two performers of the round, alongside Fran, who won the challenge in The Great American Recipe. His consistent performance across the two rounds demonstrated his ability to blend cultural storytelling with culinary risk-taking.

Stay tuned for more updates.