Halo-Halo (Filipino Mixed Fruits Dessert)

Halo-Halo (Filipino Mixed Fruits Dessert)

Halo-halo is a popular Filipino dessert especially during summer. It is a mixture of shaved ice and evaporated milk that makes this dessert creamy and to which various ingredients were added like cooked and sweetened beans, sweetened tubers, fruits, sago (tapioca pearl) and gulaman (agar-agar or gelatin). It is served in tall glass or wide mouth bowl.

Ingredients can vary widely the usual ones but not all of these are necessary to put, else you will not have room for your shaved ice. These are sweetened tubers (such as; sweet potato, purple yam, taro), fruits (like; jackfruit, cantaloupe, honey dew), sweetened plantain banana, sago (tapioca pearl), atap seed (kaong), nata de coco, gulaman (agar-agar or gelatin), coconut sport (macapuno), cheese, pinipig (young rice pounded, and leche flan, ice cream and halaya (purple jam) for the toppings. Most of the ingredients are placed first inside the tall glass or bowl then followed by the shaved ice, sprinkle sugar on top and pour evaporated milk over, then topped with your choice of toppings.

Below is the recipe I used for my Halo-halo, since I am overseas I only use ingredients that are easy to find and readily available. If you have Filipino shops around your area bottled sweets for Halo-halo are available and this will save your time in preparation but be prepared it quite costly than home cooked.

Halo-Halo Recipe

Ingredients: (serves 5 tall glasses)

For bottom:

• 1 cup sweetened plantain (saba)*
• 1 cup sweetened sweet potato*
• 1 cup sweetened purple yam or taro yam*
• 1 cup sweetened kidney beans (white or red)*
• 1 cup cooked pearl sago (big) or Jellies*
• ½ cup sweetened jackfruit*

*see below for the recipe

For toppings: do note that you can use either one of these toppings

• ½ cup purple yam jam  (ube halaya), this one is store bought
• Ice Cream purple yam or vanilla flavor
• Leche flan (Egg and milk custard/Crème Caramel)
• Rice Crispies

Main:

• Sugar
• Shaved ice
• Evaporated Milk

Instructions:

1.   Layer the bottom ingredients on the bottom of the glass or bowl, depending on your preference of arrangement.

2.   Shave the ice blocks on the ice shaver, if you do not have ice shaver, you can crushed the ice in the blender or by wrapping the ice in a clean kitchen towel then pound it with a rubber hammer till the ice crushed.

3.   Place the shaved or crushed ice on top of the ingredients up to the glass or bowl brim.

4.   Sprinkle about a teaspoon of sugar or depending on your sweet preference but do take note that most of the ingredients are already sweet.

5.   Pour enough amounts of evaporated milk, just about to fill the glass but not to the brim.

6.   Topped with scoop of Ice cream or leche flan or purple yam jam and sprinkle with rice crispies if using. Serve and enjoy.

Other ingredients you can use if available:

Macapuno (coconut sport), sweetened garbanzos (chick pea), atap seed (kaong), nata de coco, honey dew (fresh and grated), cantaloupe (rock melon), Pinipig (young pounded rice, toasted), different types of jellies and grated cheese.

How to cook sweetened banana, sweet potato, yams, jackfruit, and beans:

Ingredients:

• 6 cups water
• 3 cups of raw sugar or white sugar (or depending on your sweet preference)
• 2 tsp of vanilla or pandan leaves 2pcs knotted
• 4 pcs banana, sliced
• 2 medium size sweet potatoes, peeled and slice in small cubes
• ½ of small purple yam or 5 pieces small taro yam, peeled and slice in small cubes
• 5 pieces of jackfruit, slices
• 1 can of kidney beans, drained
• ½ cup of big pearl sago

Instructions:

1.   Combine the water and sugar in a big pot, if using pandan leaves put in a pot also, bring the water to a boil and make sure sugar are dissolved before turning off the heat.

2.   If using vanilla, pour the vanilla on boiled water then turn off the heat.

3.   Scoop 1 cup of cooked syrup from the big pot and pour on a separate small pot, let the syrup boil again and place-in the banana, let it boil again and then simmer till the banana is cooked about 5 minutes. Transfer in an sterilized jar or container then let it cool completely or keep it in a fridge before using it

4.   Repeat # 3 for every ingredient.

How to cook Pearl sago.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup sago
• 3 cups water

Instructions:

1) Bring a pot of water to boil. Add sago and simmer for about 10 minutes. Turn off the stove, cover the pot with lid and let the sago continue to cook on its own for about 10 minutes, until all the sago turns translucent. Run the cooked sago through a fine sieve and running water to remove excess starch. Keep the sago with water.