Halo Halo - The sweet things in life

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One of my all time favorites,when fighting off the sweltering heat. When I pick up this chilling treat that will quench my thirst and satisfy my sweet tooth I can see why I have gained a few pounds in these months I have been here.

The Filipino community is especially lucky to have and share a drink that doubles as a cold dessert: halo-halo is a Filipino dessert-drink that is part slushie and part sundae. Literally translated from Tagalog, halo-halo means “mix-mix”, and it is the perfect name for this distinctly delicious concoction.

The basic foundation of halo-halo is shaved ice that is bathed with either evaporated milk or condensed milk. What differentiates this pairing from a snow cone is the inclusion of fruits (such as jackfruit, plantain, and coconut palm), beans (garbanzo, kidney, and red), and tapioca underneath the ice, as well as the leche flan (Filipino custard), pinipig (young crushed rice), and ube (purple yam) ice cream that is used to top the dessert.

The ingredients listed above are not finite; recipes vary from region to region, and individuals are also free to manipulate halo-halo to their liking. Filipino-American chef, Dale Talde, prepared a unique version of the dessert on the reality TV show Top Chef. His halo-halo featured avocado, kiwi, mango, and nuts, and was well received.



Regardless of what the components are, the dessert will always include a varied mixture of assorted ingredients.  Cultural activist and performing artist, Carlos Celdran, often uses halo-halo as a metaphor for Filipino culture—the dessert is made up of a multitude of ingredients, mirroring our country’s unique culture that is the result of influences from American, Spanish, and Japanese colonization.

The origins of the first halo-halo are difficult to trace, but historical records reveal that in the 1940s, Japanese women groups introduced a variation of the ice dessert in the Philippines and perhaps incorporated local ingredients later. Historically, halo-halo was sold along roadside stands in the Philippines during the summer months (March to July). This was not only because of the heat, but also because of the availability of the seasonal ingredients.

Posted adpoted from : kapisanancentre.com


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