Mango-coco tapioca pudding

I admit, I have a sweet tooth. I prefer cooking than baking, but serve me pastry or cakes, and I’m instantly a happy gal. It’s something I’ve been trying to work on lately – to take down my sugar intake, but forgetting about desserts is way too sad for my liking. This had led me to experiment on different options to satisfy that sweet tooth without overloading on sugar (or butter or flour).

For the recent CNY dinner we had, we decided to make a light dessert as we knew we would be stuffing our faces with all the savoury treats. Light. A word I use heedlessly. Let me qualify that. A light dessert for me is a sweet treat that is not necessarily dough-based or, for Asian desserts, rice-based. Less carb component, less calories, and thus light. Logical, right? Yes, if you are desperate for sweets and need some justification.

This is the mango-coco tapioca pudding.

It takes 10 minutes to make (minus the soaking part), and doesn’t involve a cup of sugar or flour or rice. I know what you’re thinking, what’s tapioca made of and is it really light. Well, wikipedia says

“Tapioca is a starch extracted from cassava root… Tapioca predominantly consists of carbohydrates, with each cup containing 23.9 grams for a total of 105 calories; it is low in saturated fat, protein and sodium.”

So the answer to your question, it’s definitely not carb-light. I guess my excuse fell through. Enough of the rationalisation. All that thinking and questioning deserve some good old reward – this lovely (probably not light) concoction that will make you think of the tropics and the beach.

Mango-coco tapioca pudding
Serves 2

1 large mango (Philippine/Thai/Australian mangoes are my top choices)
2 tbsp coconut sugar
200 ml coconut cream
200 ml coconut milk/almond milk
1/2 cup tapioca small pearls

Rinse and soak the tapioca pearls in water for 20 minutes. Drain. Boil water in small pot. When the water’s boiling, pour in the soaked tapioca pearls and let it cook for 5 minutes. Quickly remove from heat and drain the hot water under running cold water to stop the cooking process.

Now prepare 2 dessert bowls. Spoon in about 3-5 spoons of tapioca pearls in each bowl. Add half of the sugar and half of the coco milk/almond milk. Mix well. Top with mango pieces, and pour half of the coco cream. That’s it! Enjoy your summery dessert! ✌︎