Tapioca.
Something that as a child I probably would have thought was some kind of sick joke if placed into my lunch bag…
But as an adult, something that after stumbling across in a William Sonoma cookbook, I became quite curious about!
So on my most recent trip to the Asian market, guess what found its way into my heart cart 
Never a dull food moment around here, right…?
According to Fanatic Mom, my great-grandmother had quite the knack for making a delicious whipped lemon tapioca dessert back in the day.
Which I find quite interesting, considering tapioca and lemon don’t exactly seem to fit her all-Polish background now do they hmmm….
I have to wonder if my adventurous culinary side isn’t hereditary, passed down through the generations?
I also can’t help but wonder what great grandma would think if she saw me whipping up my very own citrus tapioca in my modern day kitchen, decades later!!
Right?
Small tapioca pearls.
Which, in their larger version, are also used to make bubble tea.
Something I haven’t yet tried but am very curious about – big surprise there.
Fresh banana and lime.
Marinate, friends, marinate away.
Once cooked in some boiling water, the tapioca pearls begin puff up and get all jelly-like, turning from all white into clear little bubbles with a white center.
So fascinating and fun!
It doesn’t take much y’all 
Add some cane sugar.
And some coconut milk.
Which by the way, freezes wonderfully in ice cube trays, since I know I’m not the only one out there who never uses a whole can of the stuff at once
P.S. These are great to pop into some iced coffee too to both cool it down and add a tropical twist!
Speaking of tropical twists – in go those lime soaked bananas.
Lime and banana is such a wonderful combo, and one that I am thinking is definitely under-utilized!
Give the tapioca a final stir and set aside to cool for a few minutes before serving.
The texture of this dish was definitely unique – but in a good way! Kind of reminded me of a less-jelly-like Jello, if that makes sense at all?
And it had a natural sweetness from the bananas & coconut, which was not too overpowering (eh hmmm speaking of Jello) and also had just a lil’ bit of tang from the fresh lime!
Quite refreshing if I say so myself 
Plus super fun to look at!
What a conversation piece as a dessert at your next get-together, no???
Hey, I’d come over
Have you ever tried tapioca before? What about bubble tea?
Tropical Tapioca Serves 6 1. Bring water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and turn down to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the tapioca pearls have turned clear with a white center. 2. While tapioca boils, chop banana and cover with fresh lime juice. Set aside. 3. Once the tapioca is cooked, stir in coconut milk, sugar and salt. Cook another 2-3 minutes. 4. Finally, stir in lime soaked bananas, setting a few aside for serving if you’d like.
This is such a creative mix! I love the idea of the frozen coconut milk. mmm mmm. I have had tapioca but never bubble tea!
I have never tried tapioca! Do you think you could make this with regular milk? I’m allergic to coconut.
I think that it would work with regular milk as far as texture, but I’m not sure it’d have the same sweet flavor? I wonder if you could use vanilla soymilk or something like that, to add the sweetness?
So cool! I’m going to have to try this!