A late summer dessert: Pomelo Mango Papaya Sago Dessert (楊枝甘露)

Hello world! I'm sorry I haven't been active like I use to. I've been so busy with a night science class, busy working in the morning before class at night... babysitting my brother's high energy dog in between. But there has been a crazy late summer heat here in the Bay Area. This so call "Indian Summer" heat... I will welcome a nice cold winter with open arms.

But none the less, I made some nice summery desserts lately. I go out at night with some friends to some Asian (mainly HK or some Taiwan-based) dessert houses, and this is one of those popular desserts... 楊枝甘露. I don't know how to translate that, but it is basically a pomelo mango sago dessert. It is sweet, mango-y, touch bitter from the pomelo, milky, little creamy... real good served ice cold.

I don't remember how I picked the pomelo, basically make sure the fruit is heavy and firm... but if you can't find pomelo or you don't like the taste of it, you can substitute it with pink grapefruit. The pink will give the dish a nice little sprinkle of blush pink from the flesh, and will probably won't be so bitter. I find the taste of pomelo more bitter, but both fruits are quite similar in taste to me. I think this is where the mango comes in to help sweeten the dish. Nice ripe mangoes will do, whether it is Manila/Honey/Champagne mangoes or big ol' Common mangoes. I added papaya into this dish. I've seen it added and not added in some dessert houses. So this is optional. But I added it because papaya is good for you, and it adds a little something more to munch on. I chose Hawaiian papayas because when perfectly ripe, they are sweeter, texture is more solid but still have that papaya mushiness, and more floral in fragrance.

One thing I like about dessert recipes like this is that you can add as much or as as little of certain ingredients as you like. I pretty much used the recipe from GourmetTraveller88, but omitting the confectioner's sugar, but adding papaya cubes and adjusting the taste to my own and my family preference. Here is a quick wikihow on how to open a pomelo, cuz these suckers are hard to deal with. There is a special dish made with pomelo skin. My grandmother makes it, and it is delicious. It has a spongy texture, and best part for the diet-crazed individuals... it is said to be low in calorie and cholesterol... like seriously. Haha! Plus it is a humble from-the-village dish, the recipe isn't something you will find in any Chinese restaurant. Very homely. If I can catch her making it again, I'll try to get the recipe from her.

Sweet and refreshing, great for a summery day.

Ingredient:

1 large pomelo; skinned, sectioned, and flesh separated into chunky pieces

3 - 5 ripe mangoes, cubed (I used big super ripe Common mangoes.)

1 - 2 ripe Hawaiian papayas, cubed (optional)

½ - 1 cup sago

¾ cup water

1 cup coconut milk

1 cup crushed ice (optional)

How-To:

- Cook sago according to package. (I say look into Step 4 in GourmetTraveller88's recipe, linked above). Once done, set aside.

- In a bowl, peel, section, and "flake" pomelo (see above link on how to open a pomelo). Set aside into the refrigerator.

- In another bowl, peel and cube papaya. Set aside into refrigerator.

- In another bowl, cube mangoes. Reserve ½ - ¾ bowl for the next step. Set aside the rest (I say leave about 1-1½ mangoes worth, or the amount of how much you like mango) into the refrigerator.

- Taking the reserved mangoes, puree it in a blender. Add water and coconut milk, and mix to incorporate. Refrigerate to chill.

- When ready, in a large container or punch bowl, gently pour chilled mango mix in. Add sago, and mix to incorporate.

- From the fridge, gently add cubed papaya and mangoes, and pomelo flesh into mango-sago mix. Gently stir to mix.

- To serve, ladle into a cup or bowl.

- Add a bit of crushed ice for extra coldness to serve.

If you want to get extra fancy, break pomelo flesh chunks into little pearls for the dish/for garnishing. But that takes a lot of time and patience to turn a whole pomelo into little pearls, but it is nicer for presentation. But big chunks of fruit is more delicious to me. Of course, add some sugar syrup or melted-then-cooled rock sugar syrup for added sweetness if mangoes/fruits are not in season/at their ripest. It totally beats paying about $4-5 for a tiny bowl at the dessert houses. I hope you guys like it. 

It's Spring! Strawberries are here!

Spring is here! Sorry for my long absence. I blame my physiology class. For one class this semester, it is a headache and too much to deal with. So yeah~ I've been ignoring life, in general. The only thing that I have a little time for between class, work, and assignments are the little silliness and quick entertainment such as 9gags.

I was sitting with my cousins a few weeks ago just chillin', one of my cousins looked at me, pushed his phone's screen right at my face and with a straight blank face, and he said "Make it." I had to adjust my vision to see what the picture was of, his phone was WAY too close to my face. It was a 9gags submission of a plate of strawberries stuffed with Nutella. It looked good. So I, also with a straight blank face, was like, "Okay." Couldn't have been a better time too! I was walking home from the bus stop, looking at what the local mom-pop produce store was selling, and big boxes of ruby red giant strawberries were stacked high on the stand, and was on sale too! So the next day, I went strawberry shopping. Went home, and realized I was more than half of container out of Nutella. THE TRAGEDY! So had to walk back out to get a new container of Nutella.

I don't normally like to eat strawberries because I have bad memories of them: either they are super sour, or I get to eat them when they have been drowned in a mountain of granulated sugar to the point where they ONLY taste and feel like sugar. But I like Nutella. The chocolaty hazelnut spread is creamy, rich,  and so good on just about anything. If chocolate and strawberries has been a tried and true tasty classic combo, Nutella and strawberries will be just as tasty of a combo. The creamy and sweet chocolaty taste of the Nutella just compliments the sweet tartness of the strawberries. Oh such a perfect dessert to have as an escaping indulgent moment from reality.

This recipe, I worked off of a photo reference on 9gags, because this recipe couldn't be easier. 2 ingredients, and it is yummy, but it is so messy.

This was one box of strawberries, and more than half tub of Nutella.

Ingredients:
1 box Ripe Strawberries
1 container Nutella

How-To:
- Wash your strawberries in a little bit of salted water, and rinse with fresh cold water.
- Pat each strawberry as dry as you can.
- With a sharp pairing knife, cut off the stem and a little bit of the top to slightly expose the core.
- With the sharp pairing knife, hollow out the core a little bit more with a gentle twisting motion to allow more room to stuff the Nutella into. *Use a bowl, a container, or over the sink to catch the juices and bits of flesh you dig out.
- Set the hollowed out strawberries to the side.
- Open Nutella, and gently mix the spread loose to a nice semi-runny consistency.
- In a zip-top sandwich bag (or if you have the fancy piping bags) in a small cup or empty jar, fill a corner of the bag with some Nutella. Twist the baggy to trap the spread in the corner. With a pair of scissor, snip off a small bit of the corner filled with the spread. Now you have a make-shift piping bag ready.
- Take a strawberry in one hand. In the other hand, take the Nutella-filled baggy, stick the open tip into the hollowed-out strawberry and gently squeeze the spread in. Top off the strawberry with a bit more if you wish.
- Repeat until all strawberries are filled.
- Serve immediately, or chill in refrigerator until serving time.

How easy was that?!?!?!?!? And let me say, my cousins each can inhale a strawberry container of these to themselves. Chilling them in the fridge until serving gives it a nice refreshing feeling. The Nutella's sweetness counters the tartness of the strawberry, which is a nice pairing. A great finisher to a nice dinner. Or even a nice simple gift to someone you care/love. If you don't want to stuff the strawberries, you can do is scoop some Nutella into a bowl and dip them for an even faster satisfaction. Hope you all enjoy this! (^-^)