HALO-HALO TIME: Chef Jessie Sincioco creates a creamy, colorful concoction

She works in a restaurant that revolves over the city, and in January she served Pope Francis roast beef for dinner with flambéed mango and ice cream for dessert in her capacity as the official chef for the papal visit.

She's also the Philippines's first female pastry chef. She could probably whip up a delicious halo-halo in her sleep.

It was no surprise when Chef Jessie Sincioco became the first Filipina pastry chef in 1990. After all, she was grand prize winner in the baking category of the Great Maya Cookfest in 1983, which earned her a spot at the pastry station of Hotel Intercontinental Manila. Now, Sincioco runs her own company, JCS Gastronomie Inc.

Chef Jessie also currently runs three acclaimed restaurants in the metro: Chef Jessie Rockwell Club in Rockwell Center, Chef Jessie Top of The City in Citibank Tower in Makati, and 100 in Libis, Quezon City.

"My halo-halo is so simple...I just chose the ingredients that I personally like," she says. What sets her recipe apart? Sweet potato, and her own special cream.