I need a vacation and a ginataang halo-halo!

It is obviously Holy Week this week and for those who have the means, they are scampering to get away from the city to forget the hustle and bustle and just go somewhere peaceful to reflect on life and enjoy.

Where am I going? I am going to the beach! Of course, it is not gonna be outside the house, so it's gonna be the Yoban Beach for now. Yoban or Banyo, is the bathroom beach.

Where would I love to be right now? Hmm, perhaps Boracay or Tingloy. I miss Tingloy's waters and its skies.

But before I pack my bags, let me just cook some ginataang halo-halo for my bunso sister @Expelliarmus30 so she could enjoy it with her family.

We actually call the ginataang halo-halo "Tabirak or Binignit" in Bisaya. It is one of the most common foods shared during Holy Week. I remember our neighbors giving us a bowl of it and since we received a lot, we would judge the bowl based on what was in it and how sweet it is.

The recipe that I'm gonna share with you will be just purely based on my stock knowledge- from a book when I was in Grade 5 where we cooked ginataang halo-halo and were hailed the best in class. But don't expect too much this time. I also don't want to add glutinous rice or malagkit, bilo-bilo or that balls of sticky rice, and other fancy stuff to make it thicker. I just want to enjoy eating the root crops.

Here are the ingredients for the ginataang halo-halo:

Coconut -1 piece

Root crops such as sweet potato, taro, purple yum, yautia or what we call "Lutya", and all other root crops you could think of. - 1 or 2 pieces of each root crop

Saba- a banana commonly used for cooking- 4 or 5 pieces

Sago- or saksak/sagu (I want the colorful ones like purple, green, red)- the more the merrier

Brown sugar- .50 kilo or if you want it sweeter depends on you

Jackfruit- just a little part of it to make the halo-halo fragrant

Steps in cooking the ginataang halo-halo

1. Clean all the ingredients except the sugar

2. Open the coconut. Make the coconut milk by taking the coconut grating mixing it with the water and filtering it with a strainer or clean cloth. The first thick coconut milk extract should be separated. Add water to the grated coconut and strain it again, it should be your second coconut milk.

3. Pour the second extracted coconut milk into your cauldron

   (You should prepare a big cauldron)

4. Cut all the root crops and banana

5. Pour all the root crops and sago with the second extracted coconut milk and mix it with brown sugar

6. Bring them to boil for at least 30 minutes

7. Add the first coconut milk extract and the banana

8. Let them boil again and lastly, add the jackfruit

9. Serve hot

If you have questions or clarifications, just comment below. Also, I don't want to cause too much agony on your part, so here is a video from YouTube. Thanks to Queen Cocinera.

Disclaimer: We might have different ingredients and steps in making the ginataang halo-halo, I suggest you follow her because she is more knowledgeable.

Since I am done sharing with you one of my favorite foods to eat during Holy Week. I am going to prepare my swimsuit, my snorkel, and my towel so I could finally to Yoban Beach. There is no need for sunblock lotions and food. A cup of ginataang halo-halo will make my day though. What about my kids? Nah, their dad will take care of them. I will spend a day or two on the beach and then they can come over. I just have to reenergize my batteries first so I will have a lot of stamina for our adventures.

To those who have been affected by the storm and lost friends and relatives- our prayers are with you. Please keep yourselves safe and follow government protocols. If there is a need to evacuate in advance, kindly do so. Lost properties can be replaced but never a lost life.

May we all have a solemn, peaceful, and safe Holy Week.

All contents are mine unless stated otherwise. Proper credits have been given to the content creator Queen Cocinera on YouTube. The lead image was from Unsplash.com

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April 13, 2022

©HermaniGinger