Summer is already here and the heat is just going up every single day. To combat this, some people have been craving sweet and cold desserts to cool and energize their bodies.
It does not just provide relief from the scorching heat of summer; it also satisfies one’s sweet buds. Here are some desserts you could try this summer:
Ice Candy
Chilled tangy-flavored ice candy
Ice candy is a frozen dessert with various flavors in long, narrow plastic bags, which is similar to ice pops. You can buy these at a sari-sari store or a small convenience store in the neighborhood. The commonly available flavors of this budget-friendly cold treat are mango, chocolate, melon, and buko pandan.
Ice Cream
Discover a variation of ice cream flavors
Ice cream is a creamy, smooth-textured frozen dessert made out of milk and cream. While you can make it at home, it is usually bought at grocery stores, ice cream shops, restaurants, cafes, and even random stalls almost everywhere in variations: swirls in cones or in tubs. Despite having much-loved flavors such as cookies and cream, ube, coffee crumble, strawberry, and more, it also has various interesting flavors to discover and savor, including chili chocolate, corn and cheese, green mango with bagoong, and even coal.
Buko Pandan
Where the coconut and pandan leaves collide
Buko pandan is a Filipino dessert made out of shredded young coconut flesh and pandan-flavored gelatin with condensed milk. This delicacy can be bought at Filipino restaurants and dessert shops, at street food vendors, and can even simply be made at home given the availability of ingredients. Buko pandan has some varieties; there could be tapioca pearls on it with mangos, and some are creamier with added evaporated milk.
Fruit Shakes
Fruit shakes, a healthy option for summer cravings
Fruit shakes are a healthier option for cold desserts made with blended ice and fruit with milk or fruit juice and maple syrup or honey as a sweetener. You can make this at home by peeling and chopping your choice of fruit. This fruit blend may come in different flavors, including watermelon, pineapple, and even a fusion of two fruits like mango-banana and apple-strawberry.
Halo-Halo
Mix and match ingredients for Halo-Halo
Halo-halo is a popular dessert in the Philippines, which literally means “mix-mix.” This delicacy is made of shaved ice, drizzled with evaporated milk, and topped with various ingredients: sweetened beans and fruits, various flavors of gelatin cubes, leche flan, and ube halaya. Finishing it off with a scoop of ice cream. This is also customizable based on your personal preferences because you can add your favorite fruit and favorite flavor of ice cream or remove the ones you do not eat.
With the rising temperature this summer, the appeal of cold desserts has increased and is getting people’s attention, ranging from ice cream to halo-halo. Although it helps us escape the unwanted heat, we should be careful and cautious of the portions we consume. Treating ourselves to these refreshing desserts should come with moderation, but with a sprinkle of sweet joy.
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