The Pudding’s Mysterious Disappearance

I had bought a lot of tahini. I decided to make the vegan fruit pudding my housemate in the 80s used to make. I was going to look up a recipe, but wondered what the point was, since I wouldn’t follow it. Instead, I would recreate the recipe from memory as well as enhance it.

In the past I had used apple juice, but this time I used mango nectar apple juice blend and poured all thirty-two ounces (it is important to use a juice that heats well) into a saucepan and put the burner on low. I added a large spoonful of tahini, but didn’t know if that was enough, so I let the tahini drip drip drop drop from the jar into the saucepan, until I said, “Enough!” I poured in unsweetened oat milk until I said, “Enough!” I sliced two bananas, two Bartlett pears, three kiwis (any kind of fruit that heats well will do) and stirred them in, then a tablespoon of agar agar. I said my magic incantation, “Mush kush, mush kush, stir, stir, stir” until I saw bubbles.

I removed the pan from the heat and poured the mixture into my blender, covered it, and pressed the highest speed. Zoom! Whoosh! I uncovered the blender and poured the blended mixture into a large bowl, then repeated the process til everything was blended. I adjusted the lid, making sure it clicked into place over the bowl. I put the bowl in the fridge and told it, “Just chill, okay?”

Several hours later, I took it out. It looked like a beige-ish snowbank. I sampled a little for quality control purposes. Very delish. Next thing I knew there was a large-ish hole in my bowl. What had happened to the pudding?

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