• 1 pound of tapioca starch (Thai food stores should have it)
• 1 packet of sweetened coconut flakes or grated fresh coconut
• non-hydrogenated vegan margarine or vegetable spread

This is a tradional northern/northeastern Brazilian recipe and it's pronounced biju (bee-JOO) or tapioquinha (tah-pee-oh-KI-nya). This is extremely cheap to make and is served for breakfast or as an afternoon snack with a strong cup of coffee. In many cities in Brazil you can find these kind ladies all dressed in white, the Bahianas, who will make it for you on the street in under 2 minutes.

Put all the starch in a deep bowl and cover it with water. Mix it well with your hands making sure to break any lumps. Let it sit for about 5 minutes and when it starts to sediment, carefully pour the water out. You want to get rid of as much water as possible and the best way to do this is to go about it in stages, letting it rest and then pouring more of the water out. This should be done about 10 hours before you plan to prepare to cook (I suggest you do it the night before).Leave the starch in the bowl overnight or for whatever time it takes for the water to evaporate. When the surface of the starch is hard to the touch, you're ready to cook

Now, to prepare the biju you'll need a small or medium non-stick skillet and a wire-mesh sieve that's not terribly fine.

Break off a piece of the starch: it should be solid by this time so you can grab large chunks of it. Rub it against the inner side of the sieve catching the small flakes in some kind of container.

Put the skillet over medium to medium-high heat and let it warm up. Now, grab a handful of starch flakes and toss enough of them around over the skillet to form a thin layer that covers the entire bottom - you're making something that will look like a crepe. The flakes will start to stick to each other and after about 1 minute, when it looks like the crepe is getting loose, sprinkle some coconut flakes over it and fold in half. Optionally, you might not use coconut at all; some people like it just plain. Turn it once and let it cook for another minute; be careful not to let it burn ! Take it off the skillet and spread some margarine or vegetable spread on top of your biju. Repeat to make as many bijus as you like.

In case you don't want to make it all at once, you can save the starch for a later time. The secret is to keep some moisture in it, so if you plan to use it again the next day, sprinkle some water on it at night. If you grated too much of the starch, mix the remaining flakes with the rest of the starch before you add the water. If it becomes too dry, the flakes will not coalesce to form the biju.

Serves: 15 or more

Preparation time: 15 minutes