I grew up very American. I don’t speak Tagalog and know embarrassingly little about the Philippines—although I was actually born there. Even if I recognize the food, I don’t always know the name of the food. And if I do know what the name is, I can’t really pronounce it without sounding like I don’t have a single drop of Filipino blood in me.

But I’ve known Polvoron since I was a kid.

I always just knew it as a thick, dry, sweet, and crumbly Filipino treat.

Doing my Filipino treat tasting project has helped me learn more about it.

Historical Background

The geographic area which now constitutes the Philippines was ruled by Spain for over 300 years–from 1565-1898. That may not sound long, but for some context, that’s longer than the United States of America has even existed.

Prior to the Spanish rule, the “Philippines” was not a distinct country. Rather, the more than 7,000 islands were made up of various independent and even isolated city-state groups called barangays. The geographic area was ultimately claimed by Spanish colonizers, who named the area in honor of their future king, King Phillip II of Spain. Therefore, the area was decreed as “Las Islas Filipinas” or “The Islands of Phillip.”

But, for various reasons, the Philippines was difficult to control, with many groups remaining fiercely independent or indifferent to the Spanish rule. Many of the Spanish customs were adopted over time were reinterpreted.

Eventually, the Filipino people fought to separate from Spain. The Spanish American War took place in 1898. In this war, the Filipino people fought alongside the United States to defeat Spain. This resulted in the collapse of the Spanish empire.

Polvaron is a Filipino Take on a Spanish Treat

Filipino polvoron is similar to a Spanish cookie called a Mantecado. The main difference is that the Spanish bake these cookies. The Filipino polvoron is not baked.

Polvoron is made out of toasted flour, whole milk powder, sugar, and butter.

Toasted flour is literally what it sounds like–flour that is toasted (ie: browned) over heat in a pan.

The dry ingredients are then mixed with the butter (or another type of fat) and pressed into a compact cookie.

You can purchase a polvoron mold from Amazon.

Having learned more about Polvoron, I like to think of it as a cookie that embodies some of the Filipino spirit. The Spanish introduced it, but the Filipinos reinterpreted it and made it their own.

Rating the Filipino Polvoron

I purchased classic Polvoron made by Goldilocks.

Goldilocks started as a very small bake shop in Manila, Philippines in 1966. It came to the USA in the 1970s and now has over 600 locations worldwide.

I have to say, Goldilocks is a Filipino food brand that has earned my trust.

I tried and rated the classic Polvoron. I posted my initial reaction on YouTube.

I also give it a more careful review using my proprietary Food Rater scale.

Here are my results:

Best on this score, I give Polvoron just under Amazing, but it’s so close. I don’t mind saying that the classic Polvoron is one of my favorite Filipino treats.

If you haven’t had a chance to try it, you should! If you’ve tried it, let me know what you think.

The post Polvoron: A Filipino Shortbread Cookie appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.

What is Cloud 9

Cloud 9 is a candy bar manufactured by Universal Robina Corporation in Manila, Philippines. It is described as “luscious caramel, crunchy peanuts, and soft nougat wrapped in rich chocolate.”

In my opinion, if you are going to call a chocolate bar “Cloud 9,” it should have some sort of a slogan referencing being on Cloud 9, which means being in a state of happiness or bliss. Although it is unclear, some say that “cloud 9” is derived from Dante’s Paradise, which describes 9 levels of Paradise.

The slogan for this candy could be something like: “Bring on the bliss” or “A Piece of Paradise.”

But I am not the marketing person and no one is asking me.

What Does the Cloud 9 candy bar taste like?

The Cloud 9 bar tastes like someone had a Snickers and said, “I can make this.” Then they came up with a version that wasn’t quite right: Cloud 9 is a little milder in both flavor and size.

It is possible that this more mild take on Snickers is intentional though. American food is often criticized for being too sweet or too rich by foreigners. So perhaps the Cloud 9’s more mild favor is more to the like of the Filipino palate. But then again, the Philippines has really sweet spaghetti by even American standards, so it’s not like Filipinos dislike sweet, rich food.

The point here is that Cloud 9 is most comparable to a Snicker (or maybe even a Whatchamacallit). It just has a less intense flavor profile overall.

The Cloud 9 candy bar rated

I tasted tamarind and rated it using my proprietary hedonic food rating scale. My food rater scale rates foods from 1-10 based on presentation, smell, texture, taste, value in terms of calories, and value in terms of cost. Each variable uses the following chart:

Here’s a video of my taste test of the Cloud 9 bar:

Here’s how I rated Cloud 9 using my Food Rater scale:

Based on my scale, a total score of 7.33 means Cloud 9 bars get an “I like it.”

Yes, in my video I gave Cloud 9 a 6. But I felt like I was being too picky when I did this video. That’s why I like taking the time to rate it using this Food Rater chart. I think it helps give a more accurate view of the food.

That being said, this is all subjective. If my Food Rater score doesn’t feel right, I will adjust it.

In this case, my Food Rater score feels better to me than my first take in the video. Everything is good about the Cloud 9 bar, but there’s also really not much that bumps it from “good” to “great.”

The post Cloud 9 – A Chocolate Bar from the Philippines appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.

Tamarind is a type of tree that grows in many tropical regions but is native to Africa. The Tamarind fruit, also called tamarind, grows in pod clusters. These pods look like large, brown pea pods.

Sampalok, or tamarind candy, is essentially a “pea” from the pod that has been dried, like a raisin, and coated in sugar.

Since it is a dried piece of fruit, there is a fairly large, hard seed in the middle of the candy that you need to watch for. Don’t just chomp into these or you’ll lose a tooth.

My wife says that the seeds are actually quite pretty, which is true.

What does Tamarind taste like?

I find the taste of Tamarind difficult to describe. It starts off bright, tangy, and maybe even a little bit sour (or bitter–hard to tell) but then tapers off into what I would describe as a dark, caramelly, citrusy flavor. It perhaps tastes similar to a dried date, but it is definitely more tangy. I would say the after-tone is very date-like.

If I were to combine flavors, I would say it would be a mix of caramel, lemon, lime, date, orange zest, brown sugar, and raisin. It is a very unique flavor with a lot going on.

Rating Filipino Tamarind Candy

I tasted tamarind and rated it using my proprietary hedonic food rating scale. If you want to see my taste test, check out the YouTube below:

My food rater scale rates foods on a scale of 1-10 based on presentation, smell, texture, taste, value in terms of calories, and value in terms of cost. Each variable uses the following chart:

Here is my rating for tamarind candy:

So, overall, I gave Sampalok, or Tamarind Candy, a total score of “it’s okay.”

Now that it’s been a bit since I tried it, I would say it maybe deserves a higher rating. It is kind of fun to eat and experience the flavor cycle of this candy.

It’s a very unique treat, so if that’s something you are looking for, this is a great candidate.

Where to get Tamarind Candy

I have not been to a Filipino grocery store where they have not carried Sampalok. So check out your local Filipino store if you want to try this. Otherwise, you can get it from an online Filipino store.

If you want to see other Filipino candy I’m trying, check out my post on Trying Filipino Candy & Treats. If you have any suggestions on something I should try (Filipino or not), let me know in the comments.

The post Filipino Tamarind Candy (Sampalok) appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.

What is Chocnut (or Choc Nut, or Choc-nut)?

You will see this candy spelled as either “Chocnut” or “Choc Nut” or “Choc-nut.” I like to use the single word “chocnut.” Chocnut is a combination of the word “chocolate” and “peanut” because that’s what chocnut is–chocolate and peanuts.

Chocnut lists only 5 ingredients: Roasted peanuts, sugar, milk powder, cocoa powder & vanilla.

It is a product of the Philippines from Annie’s Sweets Manufacturing & Packaging, which is located about an hour South of Manila, the capital of the Philippines.

What does Chocnut taste like?

Chocnut is probably most similar in taste to a Reese’s peanut butter cup. Chocnut starts as a more crumbly texture but smooths out very nicely. It is has more of a peanut flavor than a Reese’s peanut butter cup.

One of the most common criticisms of Chocnut is the crumbly texture. A package of Chocnut comes with 24 individually wrapped rectangular briquettes. If you are too rough with the packaging, the briquettes can easily crumble inside the packaging.

Admittedly, it is not as satisfying to open a crumbly piece of chocnut as it is to open an intact one.

Chocnut in Pop Culture

Chocnut is an original creation of the Philippines. As I discovered on Wikipedia, it is a candy featured in an award-winning comic series out of the Philippines–Trese. Trese is also now a Netflix series!

In this episode (Ep. 1), the main character bribes a demon to give her information with a giant piece of chocnut.

So when you are eating Chocnut, you are not only eating a tasty morsel of peanut-chocolatey goodness but you are also partaking of a part of Filipino pop culture.

Rating Chocnut

I tasted chocnut and rated it using my proprietary hedonic food rating scale. If you want to see my taste test, check out the YouTube video above or go to my YouTube channel.

My food rater scale rates foods on a scale of 1-10 based on presentation, smell, texture, taste, value in terms of calorie, and value in terms of cost. Each variable uses the following chart:

So although this came out as a 8 on the scale, I feel like it could be an 8.5 or 9.

It’s a really good candy.

In fact, it is so enjoyable that you have to be careful. You can eat through these like they are a bag of chips. But at 70 calories per piece, you can easily go way overboard.

When I visit my parents over the holiday, my mom usually gets a bunch of packages of chocnut. I generally gain 5-10 pounds. Chocnut is probably a big part of that. No pun intended…

Where to get Chocnut

It you have a Filipino grocery store near you, they very often carry chocnut. If you don’t, you can get them from Amazon or an online Filipino grocer.

If you want to see what other Filipino treats I’m trying, check out my post on Trying Filipino Candy & Treats. If there’s something you think I should try, let me know in the comments.

The post Candy from the Philippines: Chocnut appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.

This is probably speaks to me being a someone oblivious child, but even though I enjoyed most of the Filipino food we would be served, I didn’t really know what the food was called. I knew some of the basic foods like adobo, pancit, lumpia, and flan. But other things I just knew by description: red chicken, the purple soupy stuff, etc.

I eventually got married and had a bunch of kids. We moved from Vegas to Idaho Falls, Idaho. While Idaho Falls had at least some variety of restaurants (some of which were very good), we did not have an option for Filipino food. And any new food places that opened seemed to be burger or steak places, soda shops, or cookie bakeries. I missed Filipino food more than I thought I would.

We recently relocated to the Seattle area for work.

Imposter Syndrome for Eating Food?

I’ve been intending to get out and try some of the Filipino restaurants out there.

But I will say one barrier I have is that I don’t know what the food is, how to pronounce the food on the menu, or what the names of the food means. It makes me feel like I’m an imposter half-Filipino.

In fact, one time I went to a Filipino restaurant by my work. They had a menu outside and I looked it over. I didn’t know what food was and felt embarrassed to go in and ask. So I left.

So I’d like to get to know the food better.

Last week, my wife and I went to a local Filipino grocery store. I wanted to get some candy and treats to start this very project.

They didn’t have that great of a selection. I was looking for some treats and candies that I knew, such as Chocnut or Haw Flakes. Candidly, I was not all that familiar with Pastillas. I didn’t even recognize the look of them, but I thought they looked pretty good.

What are Pastillas?

A “pastillas” is a milk-based confection. It is traditionally made with carabao milk. In case you didn’t know (like me), carabao is water buffalo. There are different varieties: soft, hard, toasted, filled, and, apparently, chewy. I did not know this at the time.

I bought the chewy variety. The assorted flavors in this pack included carrot, ube (purple sweet potato), Buko-Pandan (Buko is coconut and Pandan is a plant that has a vanilla/coconut flavor), Ube Macapuno (macapuno is a type of coconut that has been developed to have softer white innards), and Langka (jackfruit).

I’m also assuming that these were not made with the authentic carabao milk because I think they would have otherwise advertised that as a selling point.

Rating the Assorted Pastillas

To judge the Pastillas, I developed my proprietary Food Rater Form, which uses the following haptic scale:

I hate to be overly critical or whiny, but I did not particularly like this iteration of Pastillas. I gave the Assorted Pastillas a total score of 4.83. I would not round this up to a 5. I’m keeping it as a score of “Not that Good.”

If you want to keep up to date on my tastings and reviews, subscribe to my YouTube channel.

The post Rating Filipino Assorted Pastillas appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.

And you know what they say? “Half-Filipino is better than none!”

Mom my is from Manila, Philippines. She met my father while they were both in school at BYU-Hawaii.

For a variety of reasons, my mom raised us very American, so I don’t know as much as I probably should about the Philippines or Filipino culture.

In fact, when I go to Filipino restaurants, I feel embarrassed that I don’t know how to pronounce anything or even what it is. I feel kind of like a fraud.

It’s Never Too Late to Learn (and hopefully I don’t get too fat)

I’m now 40 years old and I’m looking to exercise the old noggin’ in something unrelated to work. So I figure, “Why not try to learn more about the Philippines (and other places in the world) using my unrelenting sweet tooth as my guide?”

I’m hoping this project won’t make me too fat.

One thing I know about Filipino culture is that if it did make me too fat, my grandma would tell me so.

“Lee, you are getting fat!” is something I heard more than I wished as a young boy.

But then again, it made me feel all the better when she didn’t say that as I got into my teenage years. If she didn’t say that, I knew I was doing pretty well.

My grandmother has since passed away. And my mom would not straight up tell me I’m fat. So I have no one to let me know if this project is making me too fat.

Maybe you, dear reader, can be my Filipino grandmother?

My List of Filipino Candy, Treats, and Desserts

I went onto the r/Filipino subreddit and asked people on there what their favorite Filipino candy and desserts are. I used that (and my own experience) to make this list.

1. Pastillas
2. Pastillas (carabao milk)
3. Pastillas de mani
4. Toasted Pastillas
5. Polvaron
6. Chocnut
7. Ginnatan
8. Pochi
9. Moonbits
10. Sampalok (Tamarind Candy)
11. Leche Flan
12. Butong-butong
13. Bandi (Peanut brittle)
14. Bitso-bitso (crispy caramel coated rice cake)
15. Panutsa (dried caramelized shredded coconut meat candy)
16. Silvanas
17. white rabbit
18. Minami
19. hawhaw
20. Halo-halo
21. Cassava cake
22. tsaka Langka-Ube
23. Ginataang Halo-halo (Binignit)
24. Ginataang palawan
25. Pilipit
26. Pili Mazapan
27. Minoron 
28. Yung langka 
29. Cloud 9 chocolate bars
30. Frutos 
31. panucha 
32. Champi 
33. Samani
34. Hani
35. Yema
36. Bukayo
37. champorado
38. Maxx
39. Taho 
40. Flat tops
41. Kutsinta
42. Potchi

I’m not sure if I’ll get to all of these, but I’m going to give it a try!

If you have any ideas or think I’m missing something good, go to my YouTube channel and leave a comment on any of these videos. Thanks!

The post Trying Filipino Candy & Treats appeared first on Go Sweet Fox.