Thursday, February 17, 2011

Rice Pudding (A Breakfast or Dessert Item- you decide!)



I love breakfast. It is no doubt my favorite meal of the day...
Maybe because the mornings are my alone time while the rest of my family sleeps (I'm an early bird...the only teenager I know who happily gets up before 7 am on a weekend), or maybe because it starts the day off right. And there isn't anything like a good, hearty breakfast to put you in a good mood before a weary 7 hours of school...

That, or the fact that you can get away with eating dessert-like items for breakfast!

I have a sweet tooth. Most taureans do.
I love having a bowl of quinoa or oatmeal [very] liberally drizzled with maple syrup, or a plate of sweet, juicy, fresh fruit. Or maybe cakes, muffins, scones, or cinnabuns.

And I don't see anything wrong with that...
To be honest, I thought this was normal though. I mean, what with all those nasty, processed cereals being sold today. (Though, you can't really compare a home-made, not-Quaker bowl of oats to Lucky Charms) But I guess my parents didn't agree. They thought it was odd that I offered to make rice pudding for breakfast before we went skiing...

But it's all the same. Whether you eat it in the morning or at night, rice pudding is still a yummy bowl of...rice. And hey, at least it's brown rice! Plus, if we didn't eat High-on-the-Glycemin-Index breakfasts to make our blood sugars crash, how else would we get rid of all that energy a vegan diet gives? (hee hee)



Brown Basmati Rice Pudding
2 C brown basmati rice
4 1/2 C water
1/4 tsp salt
1 cinnamon stick
1/3 C raisins
2 C unsweetened, plain plant milk (more or less to preferance, I like a litle bit more)
1/2 C maple syrup
1/4 C agave nectar
2 Tbsp vegan butter
1/4 C slivered almonds
1/2 Tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

1) Whirl the rice in a blender/food processor/coffee grinder to chop it up a little bit. It's okay if some turns to rice flour, but make sure most of it is about half the size it was.
2) Toss it in a pot with the water, cinnamon stick, and salt and bring it to a boil. Once it's rolling, reduce heat, add the raisins, and let it simmer until all the water is absorbed. (It took mine roughly 25 minutes, but my grains always seem to cook faster than the recommended time- whether they've been chopped up or not)
3) When the water has been absorbed, and the rice is soft and cooked fully,remove the cinnamon stick and add the milk, maple syrup, agave, butter, almonds, vanilla, and spices. Mix it thoroughly and let it cook on low just a couple minutes longer...
4) Done! I prefer mine cold, but it's tasty either way :)



And enjoy it for both breakfast and dessert ;D

1 comment:

  1. Sounds delicious! It's been a very long time since I've had a good rice pudding... I'll have to try your recipe soon.

    Thanks for your comment, by the way- glad you liked the Moroccan stew, too. :)

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