It’s all too true that those of us with a sweet tooth can’t get enough of the usual suspects such as cakes, cookies, and pastries. Although consuming the aforementioned treats is a typical ways to assuage a dessert craving, travelers can choose from a wide variety of sweets as they make their way around the globe. In fact, here are some unusual goodies to try on your travels.
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Mole de Platanos: Common in Guatemala and El Salvador, these lightly fried plantains are topped with a chocolate based mole sauce that usually contains pumpkin and or sesame seeds, tomatoes, and hot peppers. Of course, premade mole sauce can easily be purchased from stores but the genuine stuff was traditionally made from scratch at home.
Image Source: Micah Sittig via Flickr and CC 2.0
Tangyuan: These Chinese rice balls are a holiday treat that originally made their annual appearance during the Lantern Festival but the desserts are now seen throughout the year. Numerous recipes are available and depend largely on regional preferences. These treats may be filled with red bean paste, ground sesame seeds, or chopped peanuts in northern sections of the country. In comparison, tangyuan from the southern portions of China are typically coated with a rice paper wrapper and they are often much sweeter in taste. Sometimes these goodies are accompanied by a light broth or ginger syrup.
Image Source: Tristan Kennedy via Flickr and CC 2.0
Bubur Cha-Cha: This sweet soup from Malaysia contains several foods that people of European decent wouldn’t normally consider using in a dessert. Bubur cha-cha generally is made of sweet potatoes, taro, tapioca or sago pearls, and pandan leaves in a coconut milk base. Sliced bananas and black eyed peas may also be included in some recipes. Sometimes purple or dyed sweet potatoes are even used to give the soup a more colorful appearance. This dish can be eaten either chilled or fresh off the stove.
Faloodeh: If the combination of noodles and frozen rosewater sounds intriguing, then this Iranian treat may be just the thing for you to try on a scorching hot day. Faloodeh resembles a granita but the addition of noodles help give this dessert an unusual texture. Typical garnishes for this treat include pistachios, lime juice, fresh mint, sour cherries, or sour cherry syrup.
Bon appètit!
Sources: The Daily Meal; Wikipedia; Christine’s Recipes; The Kitchn; Latina; A Harmony of Flavors; Frijofeliz.com
