Clients often ask for cookbook recommendations or what my favorite cookbook is and I tell them it’s The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook by Tom Malterre and Alissa Segersten. This cookbook is an absolute gem and this edition has been updated with more recipes, more information, and beautiful mouthwatering photos. Most of the recipes are quick and easy real food recipes but some do require some time to prepare and sometimes they require some ingredients you may not have in your kitchen. In the beginning, there is a brilliant list of real food pantry staples that will explain the use and utility of some of these lesser known ingredients. If you’re looking for some real food cooking and baking inspiration, I’d definitely recommend this cookbook!
I was flipping through The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook a couple months ago and saw a recipe for “Lemon-Blueberry Tapioca Pudding”. I’ve never tried a recipe from this cookbook that I didn’t love so I gave it a try. It was awesome. Over time, I’ve made this recipe at least 7 times and tweaked it a little each time. Below is our FAVORITE version although we also loved it with coconut milk (see note *) and with half frozen blueberries, half frozen sweet cherries (see note **). YUM.
Blueberry Lemon Tapioca Pudding
Yield: about 12 half cup servings
Prep time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Ingredients:
2 cups water
1/2 cup small tapioca pearls (also known as old-fashioned, not instant)
2 cups water*
1 cup raw cashews*
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed or bottled)
1 1/2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)**
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
10 drops lemon essential oil OR 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract OR 1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Directions:
1. In a large saucepan or soup pot, soak tapioca pearls in 2 cups water for 1 hour.
2. In a blender, combine all remaining ingredients except vanilla and blend for 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture is smooth and creamy.
3. Add blueberry lemon mixture to soaked tapioca pearls and heat to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.
4. Once the mixture is boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and continue stirring frequently until pudding thickens and tapioca pearls are translucent, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla.
5. Pour pudding into serving bowls, ramekins, or 1/2 pint jars. Serve warm or store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. The pudding will continue to thicken as it cools.
6. Serve and enjoy! The pudding will keep in sealed containers in the fridge for 3 to 5 days.
Notes:
* The soaking water (2 cups) plus an additional 2 cups of water added to the blended mixture with 1 cup of cashews makes 1 batch of cashew milk (4 cups total). You can replace all 4 cups of water plus the 1 cup of raw cashews with 4 cups of whatever type of milk you choose like coconut milk, cow milk, almond milk, etc. If you do this, soak the tapioca pearls as directed in step 1 then drain off the soaking water. Add 2 cups of milk of choice right to the saucepan and 2 cups to the blender and continue to follow the directions.
** This recipe is also excellent with other berries or a combination of blueberries and other berries like cherries, blackberries, raspberries etc. Experiment all you’d like but I recommend keeping the total berry volume to 1 1/2 cups. If you replace blueberries with other berries, just note that you may need to adjust the amount of lemon juice and/or maple syrup in the recipe.
Please note that this post contains an Amazon.com affiliate link for The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook. If you click on this link and purchase the product, I will receive a small percentage for referring you. I only link to products I love and think you will love too.
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Hi Erin,
Traveling to Rockport Texas so I hope to try this when I arrive. I plan to make the almond coconut milk version with blueberries. I wanted to compliment you on the beautiful photo. I can see how healthy your son is and his features are so perfect. He looks like an angel. Nice job with the photography. Thanks for all your hard work and the love you put into it!
Vicky Bush
Conesus NY