JulieH 107 posts Feb 06, 2005 6:34 PM	Hi Bryanna, I was wondering if you have a recipe for tapioca pudding using soymilk and minute tapioca? Thanks in advance! Julie
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 791 posts Feb 07, 2005 11:25 AM	I don't really like tapioca, but there was a Reader's recipe in the 6th issue of the Vegan Feast. Maybe you could use soymilk instead of water? It's very hard to find egg-free Minute tapioca recipes! According to Fannie Farmer,1/4 cup pearl tapioca = 1 and 1/2 tablespoons minute tapioca, and of course, it would not have to be soaked first or cooked as long. ****************** “This recipe's really good--every time I make it, we marvel that it's not a more famous dish. I got it out of an old Workbasket magazine. It's really fresh-tasting, because the strawberries aren't cooked.” Rebecca Ross REBECCA’S TRAWBERRY TAPIOCA Serves 6 2 c. sliced strawberries 3/4 c. vegan sugar 2 c. berry juice and water 1/4 c. Minute Tapioca (instant tapioca) 1/4 tsp. salt 2 T. lemon juice Sweeten strawberries with 1/4 cup sugar and let stand 30 minutes. Drain; add enough water to juice to make 2 cups. (Maybe you could use this a s a guide for other recipes, using 2 c. straight soymilk instead of the juice and water). Combine berry juice and water, tapioca, remaining sugar, and salt in saucepan; mix well. Place over medium heat and cook until mixture comes to a full boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, cool, stirring occasionally. Add berries and lemon juice. Chill. ---------- "To look like a goddess, eat like a peasant." Karen Andres
JulieH 108 posts Feb 07, 2005 1:53 PM	Thanks Bryanna. I actually wound up playing around with it last night, and it did work without the egg. I made a green tea tapioca with soymilk. My kids really enjoyed it. I'll try the strawberry version when strawberries come into season (yum!!). Julie
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 792 posts Feb 07, 2005 3:59 PM	I found the following recipe in one of my cooking notebooks from 2001! (Was looking for something else!) Obviously, I don't treat my husband to this very often! I was trying to make the custardy kind of tapioca pudding. BRYANNA’S VEGAN CLASSIC TAPIOCA PUDDING, MICROWAVE VERSION I’m not fond of tapioca pudding (my father hated it, so it was never served when I was growing up—maybe it’s an acquired taste!), but my husband likes it, so I devised this recipe for him. 3 c. soymilk 1 and 1/2 T. Bird’s Custard Powder 3 T. Minute tapioca 1/4 c. vegan sugar pinch salt 3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract Whisk together the first 5 ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl (with plenty of head-room for boiling up).. Microwave on High for 4 minutes ; whisk; microwave 4 minutes more. Stir in vanilla. Chill. You can add fruit to the chilled pudding. ---------- "To look like a goddess, eat like a peasant." Karen Andres
JulieH 109 posts Feb 07, 2005 5:13 PM	That recipe looks really good Bryanna! I'll have to try it for dessert tonight. I love the idea of adding Birds custard powder to it for creaminess. I know what you mean about food aversions. My husband didn't grow up eating tapioca (or pudding or custard), and so he doesn't really like it. But my kids and I love it!!
JulieH 110 posts Feb 07, 2005 7:44 PM	Bryanna, that was the BEST tapioca pudding ever!!!! Thank you for sharing it!!
Dori 190 posts Feb 07, 2005 10:03 PM	What is custard powder? ---------- "To cook is to create. And to create well...is an act of integrity, and faith." - author unknown
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 793 posts Feb 08, 2005 7:11 AM	It's a British thing and it's available all over the Commonwealth and in some food stores in the States. It's basically cornstarch with annatto coloring, sometimes vanilla-flavored, sometimes not. Some international deli stores and gourmet shops have it. I have found it in Latin American stores in Vancouver, too. It's cheap. You can buy it online in the USA at this Texas company that specializes in British products: Bird's Custard Powder (they have Marmite, too) Or, you could try using cornstarch with a pinch of tumeric or saffron. ---------- "To look like a goddess, eat like a peasant." Karen Andres
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 795 posts Feb 08, 2005 7:20 AM	Glad you liked the pudding, Julie! Do you think it was sweet enough? ---------- "To look like a goddess, eat like a peasant." Karen Andres
JulieH 111 posts Feb 08, 2005 10:36 AM	I actually did increase the sugar to 1/3 cup. I also cooked it on the stove top and it worked beautifully. The Bird's powder gave it a great custardy flavor too. Fortunately I had a tin from the last time I was in Vancouver, though I could probably find it down hear if I looked hard enough.
Debbie 533 posts Feb 08, 2005 12:45 PM	Hi Julie, I buy Bird's Custard Powder from Ralphs supermarket, here at SoCal. It is not hard to find. I think Vons have it too. I use it often. I use this powder to make Bryanna's Quiche Lorraine too. It is the best vegan quiche. It is in Soyfoods Cooking for a Positive Menopause cookbook. ---------- Debbie Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
Debbie 534 posts Feb 08, 2005 1:22 PM	Julie, The Bird's Custard Powder at Ralphs here is not the one in a tin but in envelopes (6 per box). But they should work too. If I use only 1 to 2 Tbsp. I just reclosed the envelope and fastened it with a paper clip. ---------- Debbie Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
OldLady 1 post Aug 22, 2008 3:44 PM	Hi Bryanna I have been reading some of the messages referring to Bird's Custard Powder and was surprised to learn it appears that it is not available everywhere. I have lived in Ontario for 75 years and have always used Custard Powder - Sometimes it is Bird's Custard Powder and sometimes it is Harry Horne's Custard Powder - they are the same and are available in any grocery store I have ever been in. They are both the same they have a vanilla flavour and the recipe is on the tin. If you have the original receipe for Nanaimo Bars it called for Custard Powder. I have been served Bars that the person serving called Nanaimo Bars, but they had used some kind of pudding powder in them and not the called for Custard Powder. It does make a difference. I was just very surprised that people couldn't buy it. My grandmother used it, my mother used and now I have been using it for 75 years.
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 2383 posts Aug 22, 2008 11:30 PM	Old lady, it is harder to find in the USA than in Canada. Commonwealth countries always have it available, but it is difficult to find in many States.
Mimi 48 posts Aug 23, 2008 4:41 PM	http://edwardandsons.com/SellSheetFront_Tapioca.html Edward & Sons has 3 organic tapioca products: Starch, Small Pearl (Quick), and Granulated Mimi www.localdc.com/cooking
Brenda W. 218 posts Aug 24, 2008 4:41 AM	Looks like you can get it from Amazon too: Birds Custard Powder
Bryanna Owner/Moderator 2385 posts Aug 24, 2008 12:27 PM	Bird's custard Powder is the oingredient that is often hard to find in the USA. You can order it online here: http://britishsupermarket.com/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=2255&Product_Code=156&Category_Code= and here is a page with a list of British food suppliers: http://www.britsintheus.com/foods.htm
Shona 27 posts Oct 07, 2008 8:17 AM	I just made this and it's divine! Bonus ... my daughter doesn't like tapioca pudding, so I get it all for myself. Happy day!