Love it | Hate it - Tapioca Pudding

So my husband has an affection for starchy foods, particularly starchy desserts. Rice pudding is a fave as well as what I made today. Tapioca pudding. Personally, I think it's nasty but it makes him profess his love to me in languages I never even knew he could speak. So I guess it's not all bad, right?

A few years ago I mastered rice pudding (sans raisins because the hubs cannot stand cooked raisins in anything) and was kind of avoiding tapioca pudding because it's really hard to make foods that I don't like and I honestly think those icky little tapioca pearls are disgusting. Gluey, chewy and fish-eyeball-ey. But the hubs loves it so away we go!

The Gear

• medium saucepan
• wooden spoon
• small mixing bowl
• fork
  
• bread pan or another prettier dish to serve the pudding in

The Goods

• 1/2 Cup small tapioca pearls
• 3 cups milk (the more cream, the better)
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 Cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Start out by combining the milk, tapioca pearls & salt in medium saucepan on the stove over medium high heat. Do not abandon your post! Stir constantly until boiling and take care to not let the milk scorch. Simmer for 5 minutes and gradually add the sugar.





In your mixing bowl, crack 3 large eggs. Beat thoroughly. Carefully add approximately 1 cup of the hot tapioca mixture to your beaten eggs. This will help bring the eggs up to the same temperature as the tapioca and prevent curdling. Skipping this step will give you more or less scrambled eggs in your tapioca. Nasty.

Blend the egg & tapioca mixture well and return to the saucepan. Bring the tapioca back up to almost a boil and reduce heat. Cook until nice and thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour into serving container and allow to cool 15 minutes or so. Serve warm or chilled.


Now, I should admit... previously, I'd never tasted the stuff. I wasn't attracted by it's appearance. So I figured this was the perfect time to taste it, especially since I knew exactly what was on the ingredient list (sugar & vanilla usually make a dessert/snack win). But. It was everything I hoped it wouldn't be. Too gluey for me, the tapioca pearls are chewy and they still freak me out. Ick. Ray is over the moon but I'm still totally underwhelmed.

How do you feel about tapioca pudding? Love it or hate it?