Vanilla pudding bars are silky coconut milk custard poured over a golden almond crust and chilled into cool, creamy squares. Tapioca flour sets the pudding into a glossy layer that slices cleanly, topped with fresh strawberry slices. Sixteen bars of proper old-fashioned pudding, made grain-free and served cold.
SERVES 16
Ingredients
Crust
1½ cups almond flour
3 tablespoons (45 ml) coconut oil, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons (45 ml) palm sugar
⅓ teaspoon salt
Filling and Topping
2 cups (480 ml) coconut milk
4 tablespoons (60 ml) tapioca flour
⅔ cup honey
2 teaspoons (10 ml) lemon juice
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
2 large eggs
5 small strawberries, hulled and sliced thin
Coconut oil for greasing foil
Preparation
1.В В Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Make a foil sling for an eight-inch square baking pan by folding two long sheets of aluminum foil so each is eight inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Grease foil with coconut oil.
2.В В Place almond flour in a food processor and process to fine, even crumbs (about 30 seconds). Add melted coconut oil, palm sugar, and salt and pulse to incorporate, about five pulses. Transfer mixture to prepared pan and press firmly into an even layer using a wide metal spatula. Bake until crust is fragrant and beginning to brown (12 to 15 minutes), rotating pan halfway through baking. Let cool on wire rack for at least 15 minutes.
3.В В Add coconut milk, palm sugar, tapioca flour to a bowl and whisk to combine. Add palm sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Transfer mixture to a saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to medium-high and whisk until thick and glossy (1-2 minutes).
4.В В Pour pudding mixture over cooled crust. Allow to cool at room temperature for 10 minutes. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (at least three hours). Remove from the pan using the foil sling and cut into sixteen squares. For thicker bars, stack one square on top of another and garnish each with a strawberry slice or mint leaf before serving.
Pro Tips
- Whisk the pudding constantly as it comes to a boil — tapioca flour catches on the pan base quickly and scorched custard tastes bitter.
- Thicken it to a glossy, pourable consistency off the heat; it firms considerably as it chills, so don't cook it all the way to stiff.
- Cool the crust fully before the pudding goes on. A warm base melts the bottom of the filling and you lose that clean layered look.
- Chill at least three hours — overnight is better. The bars cut into perfect squares only when the custard is completely cold.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make these dairy-free?
They already are — coconut milk and almond flour do all the work here, so the whole tray is dairy-free and grain-free as written.
How long do vanilla pudding bars keep?
Four days refrigerated in a covered container. Add the strawberry garnish just before serving so the fruit stays fresh and bright.
Can I use another thickener instead of tapioca flour?
Arrowroot works in the same quantity, though the pudding will be slightly less glossy. Cornstarch would work but isn't paleo.
Why stack the squares?
It's a serving suggestion — two thin squares stacked with a strawberry slice or mint leaf on top look far more elegant than one flat bar.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Method
- 1. В В Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Make a foil sling for an eight-inch square baking pan by folding two long sheets of aluminum foil so each is eight inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan.
- Grease foil with coconut oil. 2. В В Place almond flour in a food processor and process to fine, even crumbs (about 30 seconds).
- Add melted coconut oil, palm sugar, and salt and pulse to incorporate, about five pulses.
- Transfer mixture to prepared pan and press firmly into an even layer using a wide metal spatula.
- Bake until crust is fragrant and beginning to brown (12 to 15 minutes), rotating pan halfway through baking.
- Let cool on wire rack for at least 15 minutes. 3. В В Add coconut milk, palm sugar, tapioca flour to a bowl and whisk to combine.
- Add palm sugar mixture and whisk to combine.
- Transfer mixture to a saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, whisking constantly.
- Reduce heat to medium-high and whisk until thick and glossy (1-2 minutes). 4. В В Pour pudding mixture over cooled crust. Allow to cool at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (at least three hours).
- Remove from the pan using the foil sling and cut into sixteen squares. For thicker bars, stack one square on top of another and garnish each with a strawberry slice or mint leaf before serving.
