Hello Beautiful Beings of this great community 
One time, my partner came home and brought cassava salvaro (cassava crisps). While eating, it brought me back to my childhood days when I was growing up in the countryside. It was a common snack that time and neighborhood aunties sold it outside the school premises, or they would sell it walking around the village, and they would stop by at our house too. Now, I am in the city, I still get a chance to eat some of them. This made me thought about today’s post. So, I want to talk about some of the Childhood Snacks that I grew up loving.
Although I can still eat them nowadays, the memories I have that are associated with those childhood years make it more nostalgic for me. Thankfully, I still have these pics hidden in my gallery. Every time I visited my friend, she would prepare these snacks too.
Champorado (Chocolate Rice Porridge)
This is a simple snack that is made of rice. Leftover cooked rice can be used for this. It is just cooked by boiling water, add chocolate or “tableya” (this is traditional and sometimes homemade chocolate tablets which is also made by roasting pure cacao beans). To make it creamier, we add milk powder before eating. The more milk powder, the creamier. I especially love eating this on cold mornings; this is also eaten for breakfast. Young kids love this because of the combination of chocolatey and milky taste.
Pinaypay (Fried Banana Fritters)
The name implies something like a hand fan as evident by how it looks like. A cardava banana is used for this and slits are made to make make it look like a fan, thus the name “pinaypay” which is our dialect word for fan. This is just fried cardava banana then sprinkled with white sugar. You can also coat with egg-flour batter mixture to give it a fluffier look. It is also as good even without the coating. As you can see, we pair it with iced coffee, or any beverage will do; it’s just a personal choice.
Camote (Boiled Sweet Potato)
Simple to prepare and less expensive snack for me. It is just boiled and eaten right away (with the skin removed) if you are too hungry to wait until it gets cooled. However, the taste of this depends on the quality of sweet potatoes you have. So, ask the vendor to give you the best and freshest ones. My mother used to spread a little butter before eating for added flavor. The sweet potatoes with orange and purple flesh are the yummiest for me.
Camote Que (Fried Sweet Potato)
This is another way to enjoy our sweet potato snack. Skin is removed, washed, then sliced into whatever size we prefer. This is just fried in hot oil then brown sugar is added to coat the sweet potatoes. They are mixed continuously until cooked; you know it is cooked when it turns to golden brown. This is still commonly sold by sidewalk vendors. If you prefer a healthier choice, the boiled sweet potatoes is a better option for you.
Biko (Sticky Rice with Coconut Milk)
Our all-time popular snack called “biko.” My father used to cook this on Christmas day, one’s birthday or just weekend snack in the countryside long years ago. The type of rice used is “malagkit” rice or sticky rice, different from the rice that we eat for meals. It is just cooked with coconut “gata” (coconut milk), brown sugar. Cooked until the coconut milk is fully absorbed. You can already eat this as it is, however, you can also spread some “latik” or coconut syrup (made by just boiling the coconut milk until it reduces to brown syrup) for added flavor.
Yummy, nostalgic childhood snacks for me! This is for the first part; I will mention other favorite childhood snacks of mine in the coming blogs.
I hope I made you smile today. Thank you for your precious time and for coming around. Good day; good night. Until then, Gracias!
Note: Photo Collage edited by Canva