I can still remember the days when my “lola” or “titas” would get us ice cream from carts that peddle these on the streets of our hometown. The sorbetero would only have either cheese or ube flavored ice cream. My choice would always be cheese but topped with sweet red beans served in small cones that tasted like barquillos – the cigar shaped wafer roll.
Eventually they offered pandesal or monay as an alternative to serve your ice cream in. Eating ice cream in this manner is not soley “Pinoy”. Countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand have been known to do the same thing and are also popular street food snacks.
Recreating this childhood treat is not that difficult at all. I used a brioche which is a kind of sweet bread to serve as the base. Cut the bread in half and place two generous scoops of ube ice cream then finish it off by placing a dollop of macapuno (sweetened coconut strings) on top.
