Magic Rice Balls

The Burmese name of these treats—traditional food at the Burmese water festival, in mid-April—translates as “sweets rising in the water.” The balls, made of a rice dough wrapped around small chunks of palm sugar, are dropped into a pot of boiling water. They swell as they cook and bob to the surface; when done, they are translucent, so they look a little like large peeled lychees. The magic comes when you bite into them, for each one hides a smoky, sweet molten core of palm sugar.

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