As summer winds down (scary that were getting into August already), every year I inevitably start thinking about my summer checklist:
- Have I gone to the beach? [not yet.. :( ]
- Did I go camping/hiking/fishing? [check! see my post here!]
- Have I had enough BBQ/grilled foods to last me through fall and winter? [burgers? lamb skewers? check, check!]
- What about watermelon? Corn? Cherries? [chuh-yeck! cherry hand pies, anyone? Ok, so I didn’t actually eat these, but I did with my eyes!]
- Have I eaten a grilled hot dog from our home butcher shop? [check!! It’s the once-a-year total abandonment of health consciousness. Say what you want about hot dogs, but it’s all about the natural casing. I realize that sounds mildly inappropriate. But y’all know what I mean!]
- Did I manage to make a few trips to local ice cream parlors for a real treat–not something from the supermarket frozen desserts aisle? [NOPE.]
Well, as you can see, lately I’ve been thinking that I seriously have been slacking on that last one. The only chances I’ve had at cold desserts this summer was a crappy impulse-buy ice cream sandwich from the Duane Reade during my evening commute and 2 entirely mediocre frozen yogurt experiences.
Something had to be done! So I thought that I’d at least live vicariously by requesting these Hong Kong-style icy, sweet, fruity desserts from the Beijing homestead. They’re actually copycat recipes from one of the most famous dessert chains in Asia, Honeymoon Dessert. If you ever find yourself in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, or Indonesia, ya srsly need to go there. Got that? Good. We actually thought for a while that a Honeymoon dessert had opened up in Flushing, NY, but, alas, t’was a knockoff. They were sued, closed, and all of Flushing was much sadder in just a matter of several months.
:(
But. The silver lining is that these desserts are actually kind of a snap to make, with a little bit of TLC and planning ahead! To the point that an entire city was temporarily fooled! Plus, with all this amazing summer fruit around, I can’t even believe we waited this long.
:)
Onwards with these copycat Honeymoon Dessert recipes!
To make the black sticky rice:
- 1 cup Thai black sticky rice
- 2 1/4 cup water
- 3 tablespoons coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons sugar
For the Mango Version:
- 1/3 cup condensed milk
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 mangos peeled and diced (preferably golden mangoes, if you can get your hands on some)
- 1 cup shaved ice
- vanilla ice cream
For the Blueberry Version:
- 1 cup ice
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup condensed milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- blueberry ice cream
- 1 cup blueberries
Rinse the Thai black rice and soak overnight in 2 1/4 cups of water. Pour the rice and the water it was soaking in into a rice cooker and add coconut milk and sugar. Stir everything together and turn on the rice cooker. This will likely look pretty grody when raw, but once it’s done, you’ll never look back. Set aside the rice to cool when your rice cooker chirps the signal that it’s done!
To make the mango dessert, combine the condensed milk, milk, and vanilla. Add a big scoop of sticky rice to 2 bowls, and top each bowl with a handful of shaved ice and diced mango. Pour the vanilla sauce over everything and top each bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. You can also layer everything in a glass to make it a bit prettier.
To make the blueberry dessert, combine the ice, milk, condensed milk, and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into two bowls. Add a scoop of sticky rice to each bowl, a scoop of blueberry ice cream (you can substitute vanilla ice cream, if you want), and a handful of blueberries. That’s an Asian summer dessert party in your mouth, right there.
Thai Black Sticky Rice Dessert (Two Honeymoon Dessert Recipes!)
Ingredients
To make the black sticky rice:
- 1 cup Thai black sticky rice
- 2 1/4 cup water
- 3 tablespoons coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons sugar
For the Mango Version:
- 1/3 cup condensed milk
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 mangos (peeled and diced)
- 1 cup shaved ice
- vanilla ice cream
For the Blueberry Version:
- 1 cup ice
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup condensed milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- blueberry ice cream
- 1 cup blueberries
Instructions
- Rinse the Thai black rice and soak overnight in 2 1/4 cups of water. Pour the rice and the water it was soaking in into a rice cooker and add coconut milk and sugar. Stir everything together and turn on the rice cooker. Once cooked, set aside to cool.
- To make the mango dessert, combine the condensed milk, milk, and vanilla. Add a big scoop of sticky rice to 2 bowls, and top each bowl with a handful of shaved ice and diced mango. Pour the vanilla sauce over everything and top each bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. You can also layer everything in a glass to make it a bit prettier.
- To make the blueberry dessert, combine the ice, milk, condensed milk, and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into two bowls. Add a scoop of sticky rice to each bowl, a scoop of blueberry ice cream (you can substitute vanilla ice cream, if you want), and a handful of blueberries.
looks yummy recipe..
Hi there, quick question – is the 1 cup of rice, 1 standard cup, or the cup that the rice cooker comes with (which is less than a standard 250ml cup). Thanks!
Hi Kim, it is a regular cup but if you use the rice cooker “cup” (which is actually 3/4 cup) just use the same “cup” to measure both rice and water so ratio of rice to water is the same.
Is the condensed milk sweetened or unsweetened?
Hi Jayne, we used sweetened condensed milk, but feel free to adjust the sweetness level to your own taste.
Hello, These recipes look great! How many servings does it produce? Thank you
Hi Karen, sorry we missed your comment! This yields 2 big servings or 3 smaller ones.
Great recipes! I am always on the lookout for authentic (but easy to make in America) Asian recipes! Your Lanzhou Noodle recipe looks exactly like what we ate (and ate and ate) in Lanzhou! Our son asks for them all the time!! I have to ask though, how long do you cook the black sticky rice? My rice cooker only has a few settings.. do I put it on White or Brown or set the timer? This looks like a great dessert to finish up our Hot Pot nights!! thanks again for taking the time to share these great recipes!
Hi Missy, we have a rice cooker with numerous settings, so we just used the “Sweet Rice” setting. As for your rice cooker, if there’s no such setting, you should cook it as if you’re making regular rice. The sticky rice should be somewhat wet and gooey–this amount of water on a “plain rice” or regular rice setting should work out alright. And remember that the most important thing is to soak the rice before cooking! Let us know if you run into any trouble!
I don’t know if I’ve actually tried sticky rice before! This makes me want to eat some, though!
you should totally give it a try, Cathy!
This looks so delicious! Thanks for linking up to the Bloggers Brag Pinterest Party.
This is one of my favorite Taiwan dessert! I thought a couple of times to cook it at home, but the thought just slipped away… Just pinned to my “to cook” board to remember this time! Like the idea to add condensed milk.
Same with you, I never managed to make ice cream for this summer… My small kitchen cannot fit in any sort of machine right now…
Ugh, I know, I’ve been debating whether or not we should get another kitchen gadget…the thought of making ice cream is so tempting though!
This looks great! I had a friend make mango sticky rice for us once after I’d made green curry for dinner… it was a wonderful end to the meal! Now I know how to make my own :) Gosh summer isn’t winding down already, is it? I haven’t been camping! Our beach trip isnt until September! AHHH
Don’t worry, there’s still time! I, for one, haven’t been camping or anywhere near the beach all summer. Still a few weeks left…but it’s hard to believe July is almost over, isn’t it?