Pumpkin pudding

Date:    Thu, 07 Jul 94 13:01:58 PDT
 From:    J. Ari Kornfeld 
 
   The following is my current favorite as a "yogurt substitute."  It
 has a similar mouth-feel although different taste.  This recipe is
 very basic, you can make endless variations....
 
 PUMPKIN CREAM (vegan)  (ok, so it's a pudding)
   makes 4 1/2-cup servings.
 
 3/4   cup  rice milk
 1/2   cup  solid pack pumpkin
 3/4   cup  water
 1/4   cup  tapioca flour (not pearls)
 2-3   TB   water
 1     TB   sugar  (I've used Sucanat & white sugar successfully)
 1     tsp  vanilla
 option:
 1     stick licorice root, split  (3-4" long)
 
   Pour rice milk into a two-cup measuring cup.  Add pumpkin until
 liquid level is up to 1 1/4 cups.  Add water until level is at two
 cups.  Stir, pour into pot, add licorice root, if using.  Cover.
 Bring to rolling boil.
 
   While liquid is coming to a boil, mix tapioca, sweetner and 2-3 TB
 water and stir well until smooth.
 
   Once liquid is boiling, turn of flame/remove from heat. Fish out
 licorice root, if using.  Stir with a wooden spoon for around a minute
 to let the mixture cool off a bit.  Stir in vanilla.  Alternatively,
 stir vanilla into tapioca mixture.
 
   Continue stirring and slowly pour tapioca mixture into hot liquid.
 The liquid will gel almost immediately.  Stop stirring once the
 mixture is smooth.  Cover an let it all cool off for twenty minutes or
 so. 
 
   Pour into 1/2 cup bowls and cover with plastic, or pour into small
 jars and screw on lids (more ecological, not as pretty).  Refridgerate
 and serve cold.
 
   You can eat this warm right away but I don't know if it reheats
 well.
 
 NOTES:
   If the mixture did not gel try adding some more tapioca immediately.
 I have found, though, that once the gel breaks up you can't fix it.
 
   Try different variations - use different "filling" or more or less
 sweetner, more vanilla, other flavorings, vary the milk/water ratio
 etc.  In some cases you may need to add more thickener in order to get
 it all to gel.