They’re neither Irish, nor alcoholic, but hey, they’re green!

My St. Paddy’s Day this year was taken up by the Fair Folk assuming possession of my wireless router, hence the delay of this post. I also wasn’t feeling much for proper Irish fare this weekend, as I think my limit of wintry stews has been fully exploited, and the thought of eating any more potatoes before next Fall sends shivers down my spine. Yes, a shameful Irish-ish lass I am who shuns the humble potato.

I have, however, been wanting to try cooking with matcha (green tea powder) for ages. This weekend seemed as good a time as any to go for the green stuff. I decided on a simple coconut pudding to which was added a few teaspoons of matcha powder. This gave the pudding a lovely pale green hue and an intriguing, slightly grassy flavor from the matcha. At first it was a tiny bit odd, but pretty quickly became hard to stop eating it! I’ve seen other recipes that result in striking deep-green colored cakes or puddings, but for me I can’t imagine using the quantity of powder required to make them so dark, since it took only a modest amount here for the flavor to be nicely present but not overpowering.

This pudding is somewhat lighter in fat and calories than a typical coconut pudding that uses coconut milk or coconut cream, but the taste is hardly compromised. I love the slightly chewy bits of coconut, and couldn’t help but top the wee servings with a bit of diced mango, which added some contrasting color and tartness. Actually, I would put them in larger containers next time; the shot glasses made a charming presentation, but we ended up needing at least 2 per person. At any rate, these coconutty puddings were certainly as addictive as any rainbow-chasing…I think even Paddy would approve!

Coconut-Matcha Pudding
Adapted from Bon Appétit, August 1996

2 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3-4 teaspoons matcha powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bring milk to simmer in a heavy medium saucepan. Add coconut; cover and remove from heat. Allow to steep 20-30 minutes, then pour into a bowl.

Whisk sugar, cornstarch, matcha, and salt in small bowl to blend. Add to the (now empty) saucepan. Slowly whisk in coconut mixture, then the egg. Stir over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; cool slightly. Stir in vanilla. Refrigerate to cool completely, at least 2 hours. Makes approx. 4 servings.

Posted by the cookworm on Tuesday, March 18th, 2008 at 10:39 pm.