Tembleque

Christmas starts early here in Puerto Rico, so I decided to kick off the festive season by making some Tembleque.

Tembleque is a traditional Coconut dessert (pudding) here in Puerto Rico usually served at Christmas time.

The recipe is really easy and If I can make it, anyone can

Ingedients

• 2 cans (13.5 oz. each) Coconut Milk
• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ cup corn starch
• ¼ tsp. salt
• Toasted coconut (optional for garnish)
• Ground cinnamon (for garnish)

Directions

1. In saucepan over medium-high heat, combine 1.5 cans of the coconut milk with sugar and salt, stirring occasionally until the mixture starts to boil
2. In a separate bowl dissolve the cornstarch with the remaining 0.5 can of Coconut milk, making sure that the cornstarch has no lumps
3. Add this cornstarch and coconut mixture to the pan and stir until the mixture starts to thicken (about 5 mins)
4. Next pour through a strainer(optional) into individual serving dishes or one large bowl then cover to prevent a thick skin from forming on the top as the dessert cools.Allow to cool and place into the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours or longer
5. If you are using individual serving dishes, sprinkle the top of the tembleque with ground cinnamon before serving
6. If you have used a large bowl, then run a thin knife around the edge of the pudding, carefully invert the bowl onto a serving plate. Sprinkle the top with ground cinnamon before serving

Note: I originally used the Coco Lopez brand of coconut milk, but was not satisfied with the color of the final tembleque. It turned out a grayish off white. I switched to Goya Coconut Milk and the tembleque came out perfect.

The above recipe will give you a firm textured tembleque dessert. If you prefer a slightly softer consistency, play around with the cornstarch to coconut ratio