This vegan tapioca pudding is made with rose water, coconut milk and no refined sugar. The strawberries are marinated overnight in rose water, vanilla and cardamom. This delicious dessert is also gluten free and paleo friendly so all your guests can (and will!) eat it up.
Don’t give mom flowers this Mother’s Day.
Feed them to her.
If your mom is anything like me, she’ll appreciate it so much more.
I love the smell of fresh flowers. But my allergies don’t. And then they die which, in addition to being sad, can be messy. More work for mom!
Delicious, healthy and simple desserts, like this one, can be made and enjoyed over and over again.
Or, better yet, can be made for you over and over again. While you put your feet up with a glass of wine. But, I digress.
Tapioca pudding is my all-time favorite but I haven’t had it in years because the store-bought kinds are loaded with crap and I thought homemade pudding would be a) super complicated. They really are not. and b) high in refined sugar. They don’t have to be. Excellent news all around. So when I decided I wanted to make a floral dessert for Mother’s Day, this was my first choice.
Vegan Tapioca Pudding with Rose Water and Marinated Strawberries
[clickToTweet tweet=”Healthy, floral dessert for #mothersday. Rose Water Tapioca Pudding.” quote=”Tweet this!” theme=”style1″]
My son is interested in cooking and is pretty good at it. I think it’s time he learned how to make this pudding.
After all, he excels at eating it.
So does his mama.
Plus, can you imagine what a catch he’ll be when he’s old enough to fall in love and whips this out on Valentine’s Day? Total marriage material.
But that is a long long long way off. *sentence included because sometimes he reads this blog*
adapted from Unconventional Baker’s Vegan Coconut Mango Tapioca Pudding

- 1/3 cup tapioca pearls small
- 1/2 cup rose water
- 1 can full fat coconut milk
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- small pinch of kosher salt
- 1 16 ounce container of fresh strawberries there will be some leftover, hulled and quartered
- 1/4 cup rose water
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- crushed toasted for topping, unsalted pistachios
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Soak tapioca in rose water for about an hour.
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Combine tapioca, coconut milk, maple syrup,vanilla and salt in a medium saucepan and bring just to a boil. Stir frequently to prevent pearls from sticking to bottom and milk from scorching.
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Once it reaches a boil, immediately lower heat and let simmer very gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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While pudding is simmering, combine strawberries, rose water, cardamom and vanilla in a bowl, stir well, cover and chill overnight.
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After 20 minutes, remove pudding from heat and let cool to room temperature.
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Cover and chill overnight.
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Serve topped with crushed pistachios.
**Prep/cook times don't include overnight chilling of pudding and marination of strawberries.
PRESENTATION: If you want the pudding to look kind of perfect, you should consider chilling it in the glasses/bowls it will be served in. Be sure pudding is at room temperature when you do this so the glasses don't break. If you do it like this you have the choice of just chilling the first layer or serving with the marinated berries on top as opposed to layered in the middle (as pictured.)
This is a popular Indian dessert. There’s an Indian restaurant that’s famour for it in Queen’s featured on Vices F*ck that’s delicious show.
Oh, really? I will have to check that place out! Thanks for letting me know.
I love how you infuse flavor into your foods…this tapioca pudding sounds amazing with the rose flavor.
Thank you, Sandi!
I think I am off my game since I don’t have rose water in my pocket! I guess I am going to have to go on a buying spree and get my fru-fru spices and waters! I need to get in the mix! This is the perfect dessert for Mother’s Day, which should be evey day if you ask me!
Couldn’t agree more, J. Rose water is one of those things I picked up in the grocery store with absolutely no plan for it. It sat in my cupboard for a long time. But I think my brain was working on it in the background. It’s so delicious. And I’ve heard of people adding it to their lemonade which sounds incredible to me.
You have made me crave for Tapioca now C! I love Tapioca pudding, and grew up eating it! Never tried it like this though… love that you added rose water! I’ve added tapioca to the shopping list aready! ๐
I loved tapioca as a kid, too. I’m so happy to have it back in my life!
I LOVE rosewater. We use it in Persian cooking all the time in sweet and savory dishes! This dessert is going to make me so happy!
I hope you enjoy it, Shadi! It is popular around here for sure and we’re pretty new to rose water.
This looks so yummy! I love the idea of eating your flowers instead, much better! I do love fresh flowers though, maybe I can have both?
You can absolutely have both!
This is so pretty! I love that is has rosewater, and the strawberries! I agree, this is way better than flowers!
Thanks, Meghan!
Thanks for this yummy recipe!
xox
My pleasure! Thanks for stopping by and please let me know how you enjoy it!
LOVE this! I need more rose water in my life, for sure!
Oh it has a permanent place in my cupboard now. I’ve heard of adding it to lemonade, too! Can you even stand how awesome that sounds??
Looks beautiful and sounds delicious. I love the idea of bringing children into the kitchen! I taught mine when they were very little and now I’m teaching my grandchildren. I love a man that can cook. ๐
I love that he’s interested! At an age where he’s not interested in much aside from video games. Thinking cooking could be our “thing.”
This is so beautiful, Christine, and I have the ingredients! Perhaps my hubby will make it for me ๐ I’m with you, I’d rather eat my flowers!
Love a woman who always has rose water on hand. Thanks, Tamara. Let me know if you try it!!