Barley, ginkgo, bean curd skin dessert

Suddenly got a craving for it and so googled the recipe. Don't even need to google hard. The first entry does a good job so here's the link if you want to see his recipe. But then this is not a difficult dish.

Ingredients
1 sheet of bean curd skin. It has to be the the melting type. If unsure ask before purchase as there are many varieties. Soak it first to soften, don't worry if it breaks.
50g barley rinsed
15-20 red dates (pitted gives it a milder taste, whole gives it more intense taste)
100g of gingko nuts (shelled)
Rock sugar to taste
3 pandan leaves tied into a knot (optional)
1.8l water

Step by step

1. Add water, barley, pandan leave and red dates. Bring to boil and and let simmer for about 20 minutes or until barley is soft.
2. Add gingko nuts and bean curd skin and continue to simmer until bean curd skin breaks down to the level that you like. If you like them to breakdown into itsy bitsy pieces, then simmer longer. If your bean curd skin is not breaking down even after 20 mins of simmering, you gotta check if you got the right type.
3. Taste the soup. If you think it's sweet enough with red dates than it's done. Otherwise add a bit of rock sugar and stir until dilute. Repeat until it reaches the sweetness that you desire.

I did not use pandan leaves as it's notoriously hard to find here but it still taste good in my opinion. Nite give thumbs up too. But then she is having cravings...so who knows :)