Pastillas de Leche

After reading Market Man’s blog entry on Pastillas, I quickly phoned my mum in Manila with strict instructions to order 2 boxes of Iya’s Jumbo Pastillas and bring them here to K.K. posthaste.

When I unpacked my mum’s suitcase and found the green boxes with the cows on it, I quickly thought, jackpot!!!! We opened the first box as fast as we could and each took one piece. At first glance, it looked like how pastillas were supposed to look, white cartolina covered by a layer of white paper. The pastillas itself were large but I would not call them jumbo either. When we would normally buy pastillas, they were usually an inch long, the Iya’s brand were easilly double their size.

It had a lovely creaminess to it which melts in your mouth. They were so soft and fresh just like good pastillas should be. It was love at first bite, but after chewing for a bit, I realised that they were a little bit too sweet for me and I had to drink half a glass of water after each piece.

All in all for 250 pesos per box of 24 pieces, they definately cost more than your run of the mill pastillas, however, I think that 250 is a fair price and I would definately get more when I go back to Manila.

To get yourselves some good pastillas, call Iya’s at 729-0325 and make sure you make your orders at least 2 days in advance.

Lihi atbp.

In the Philippines, pregnant women have this condition called “lihi”. It’s when a pregnant woman strongly craves for something, usually but not limited to food. Now, I have heard of really outrageous cravings from women around here. One woman at work pined, craved and would not rest until she got to eat a koi fish! Other examples of strange cravings are the combination of pickles and ice cream, chewing on bath sponges (without swallowing) and even mud, clay or laundry starch! The condition of craving for non edible foods is called Pica. It is believed that pica occurs when the mother lacks certain vitamins or minerals in her diet. If any of you yummy mummies experience the need for eating inedible substances, please tell your doctor right away.

I on the other hand, do not have cravings for mud, or anything “weird” in that sense. The weirdest thing I’ve had so far are green apples dipped in soya sauce! What I have been craving for on a daily basis is ketchup! I find myself salivating over the thought of french fries and burgers smothered with ketchup. I also crave for a lot of food that I can’t find over here and it has been very frustrating! I miss my old Filipino favourites like pastillas de leche, green mangoes and bagoong, polvoron, bottled tuyo, Brazo de Mercedes, mum’s mechado, and tamarind candy. Thank God the Philippines is close enough that mum can come in a moment’s notice to fulfill my pregnant desires. While waiting for her to get everything on my list together, I often have a look at Market Man’s blog and find myself craving for even more goodies from back home. I am a hopeless case. hehehe

Here in Sabah, Malaysia, people are very superstitious. Old wives tales are taken very seriously and ever since people have found out about my pregnancy, I have been hearing a steady stream of advice on what to do and what not to do. Last week, I was sitting in the staff canteen hapily eating a few slices of pineapples. Little did I know that people were watching me and later informed me that pregnant women should not eat pineapples. I was shocked! They said that pineapples were very acidic and are used to terminate pregnancies over here. Huh?! Really? Wait, I have another one to top that. I was told to keep a lime in my pocket. They believe that a pregnant woman’s blood is sweet and carrying a lime in your pocket disguises the sweetness so that the monsters don’t bother you and take your baby away. Wow. Monsters after my baby? That’s a bit far fetched for me but I still respect the ladies’ words of wisdom and love how sweet and caring they are over here. Sabahans are the best!