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Because Philippines is known as a tropical country, the weather during the summer months are extremely hot. Every Filipino have its own way to beat the heat. Some are spending their vacation in the beach to refresh their body from the humid of summer, others may find the cheapest way to cool down the temperature and that's to eat the seasonal flavor of summer, halo-halo.
Halo-halo (from Tagalog word halò, "mix") is a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shaved ice and evaporated milk to which are added various boiled sweet beans and fruits, and served in a tall glass or bowl.
Ingredients include boiled kidney beans, garbanzos, sugar palm fruit (kaong), coconut sport (macapuno), and plantains caramelized in sugar, jackfruit (langkâ), gulaman, tapioca or Tae, nata de coco, sweet potato (kamote), pounded crushed young rice (pinipig). In terms of arrangement, most of the ingredients (fruits, beans, and other sweets) are first placed inside the tall glass, followed by the shaved ice. This is then sprinkled with sugar, and topped with either (or a combination of) leche flan, purple yam (ubeng pula), or ice cream. Evaporated milk is poured into the mixture upon serving. (from wikipedia)
During summer, every corner of the street in the Philippines is fill with halo-halo vendors. They grab the opportunity to get extra income for their family. You can buy as low as seven (7) pesos to a higher price of thirty (30) pesos for a special one. Prices may also differ when you buy inside the malls and restaurants.
The preparation of Halo-halo ingredients maybe the hardest among Filipino delicacy. Every ingredients should be cook separately. Halo-halo is a representation of how the Philippines is bountiful with regards to tropical fruits.
Today, every ingredients of halo-halo can be find in the supermarkets. It shorten the long way of preparing it. When you have those, just mix all the components and you may have now the world's elusive dessert.
Photo from Flickr.com
