Filipino Mixed-Fruit and Cream Dessert (Halo-Halo)

As a child, Edwin's mom told him, "If you want to eat, you should cook it yourself." And that's exactly what he's been doing ever since.

Creamy Frozen Dessert With Mixed Fruit

This is a uniquely Filipino dessert that blends influences from Filipino, American, Spanish, and Chinese cuisines. Traditionally, the ingredients are made from scratch, but this quick recipe relies on ready-made ingredients from your local Asian or Hispanic grocery. In the Philippines, we normally have halo-halo as a dessert or even as a snack in the afternoon, especially after school or work.

Cook Time

Ingredients

• 1 cup ice, crushed or shaved
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 large scoop ube ice cream
• 1 (4-ounce) cup flan (Spanish custard), available at Hispanic stores
• 1 (12-ounce) bottle halo-halo mix, available at Asian stores

Ingredients

Halo-halo mix (mixed fruit and beans)

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What's in the Halo-Halo Mix?

Kaong (palm fruit)

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Instructions

1. Add the crushed ice into a tall glass.
2. Spoon the contents of the halo-halo mix into the glass.
3. Pour the milk into the glass.
4. Top with ube ice cream and flan (Spanish custard).

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Add the ice.

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Variations

• Milk: You can use evaporated, condensed milk, or heavy cream instead of fresh milk. You can also add more milk if desired.
• Fresh fruit: You can add fresh fruits like bananas or mangoes.
• Sago: Traditional halo-halo calls for "sago" or tapioca pearls. Just prepare the tapioca pearls according to the package directions and drain it. Then add it in step 2 of the instructions.

Halo-Halo Mix

Comments

Edwin Alcantara (author) from California on May 22, 2020:

Thanks Linda. Yes, it's unusual in the West but quite common in Asia to use beans in desserts. I reacted the same way the very first time I tried carrot cake in the USA, because I never thought of using a vegetable in cakes before.

Linda Crampton from British Columbia, Canada on May 21, 2020:

This is an interesting recipe. I was intrigued by your photo when I first saw it. I could see that the recipe contained beans, which I'm not used to seeing in desserts, but I didn't know what some of the other items were. I'd love to try the dessert to see what it tastes like. I think I would enjoy it very much.