Just add water....

gathering the ingredients

I think it has been about 3-4 weeks now of this new COVID influenced time of social distancing.

   

And a time of significant increase in the desire to cook!

But the challenge has been trying to make use of what is in the house so as to minimize shopping. 

preparing to beat eggs and sugar

Desperate times call for desperate measures! 

And so... we have experimented with some products that have long been hiding out deep in the cupboards:

• lupini beans, and 
• tapioca pearls. 

So.    Tapioco Pudding.

The colour comes from eggs?!  who knew?!

What a throwback to the past!  

This week, we have done tapioca pudding three different times! 

[I will return to the lupini beans later... lets start with Tapioca!]

The first time we tried it was with a jar of tapioca pearls that might have been in the cupboard since before the last sabbatical.  

As I said, desperate times.... 

Surprisingly, it worked!

And thus, tapioca pearls (a less aged bag) were added to the last shopping list, and we tried the recipe on the back of the bag. 

Or rather, DUNCAN tried his hand at making a custard based dessert. 

The 'tempered' eggs successfully added to hot milk!

Huh?  Cooking includes the cleaning up?!  Note, Duncan's hair was too tall to capture both the pudding and his hair in the frame

A second photo featuring less of the Tapioca pudding, but more of his hair.

Three different flavours:  one 'regular'; one with Almond flavouring; one with Mango

Highlights included:

• soaking the tapioca for an hour
• beating eggs and sugar together
• deciding NOT to use a double boiler
• learning how to ‘temper’ the eggs before adding to hot mixture
• adding the chopped mango
• deciding to skip the dried coconut altogether. 
• 
  

NEXT POST?   Lupini Beans!

OK.  so maybe Tapioco and Lupini beans don't have much in common, but they both start off dry, and both do need water.  

Reconstitution is key! 

[Yes, I agree that there are many metaphors and messages possible here, particularly in these COVID times, but I will just let that idea sit for now, and focus on the family cooking adventure] 

oops... nearly forgot the recipe we used [obviously from the Western Family Tapioco bag... note all the product placements here! hahaha]

  Here it is!