simple. delectable. perfection.
Hi there, guys! It's Wednesday, I'm still in weekend mode (</3), and this week is a busy one. We're moving floors at work, I'm working on a ton of new recipes, and I'm finishing up some "spring cleaning" at the apartment. OH! And Ryan had oral surgery on Friday, so he's on this soft food only diet. Do you know what that means for me? That means it's basically my (??heh??) responsibility to come up with creative meals he can eat everyday. How many things can one do with lentils and potatoes? Ergh. GOOD thing the week is almost over, and can have back my personal taste tester and best eating buddy!
So, since Ryan is on this whole "soft food" thing, I got thinking on what I could make that's a good eat & not totally bland. After a bit of research, it came to me- rice pudding! Surely he can eat that, and it's the perfect dessert to finish of a plain meal! Welp, after successfully making a batch and excited to tell him what I whipped up, the response I got was, "oh. I don't actually like rice pudding." -_- I'm pretty sure this is the second time EVER that Ryan actually told me he didn't like something I was cooking. But like the last time he claimed he hated mushrooms before devouring the entire pot of my Wild rice & mushroom soup, he had a bite of this pudding and LOVED it, phew. A relief, because how else would I eat this massive bowl of rice pudding on my own?!
I think rice pudding is one of those classic sweets that you either love or hate, and I personally missed it when I went vegan. Did you know "Rice to Riches" (aka Rice pudding heaven) is only right down the block from me? Talk about temptation! Chuck in some nuts, raisins, chocolate chips.. Really anything you'd like! Or add some cocoa powder or funky flavoring to jazz it up. So excited to have this staple recipe that I can now do wonders with. I promise it'll impress your non-vegan friend that is Rice pudding obsessed <3
Thanks for reading! Xx Sam.
I N G R E D I E N T S:
- 1 cup of arborio rice
- 4 cups of unsweetened almond milk
- 1 cup of light coconut milk (canned)
- 1/4 cup of cane sugar*
- 1/4 tsp of sea salt
- 1 tsp of vanilla extract
- Ground cinnamon- to top! (a must)
BEGIN: In a large pot over high heat, add your almond milk, rice & salt. Give it good stir to combine well- bring to a boil! Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer while stirring frequently. You want the liquid to absorb & cook the rice, plus it'll get super creeeeamy. This part will take about 25-30 minutes.
FINISH!: Once it hits that point where the liquid is mostly dissolved, it's time to get even creamier. Add in the sugar & coconut milk. Stir until completely dissolved and continue to simmer for another 15-20 minutes, again stirring quite often to evenly cook and prevent sticking. Once it gets that ooey gooey rice pudding look, it's done! Just taste to make sure the rice is cooked to your preference. If not, add more liquid (almond milk or coconut milk) and continue to cook until desired. Kill the heat, add the vanilla and remove from heat. Serve hot, or let chill and eat cold. Top with cinnamon! YUM!
*Notes: The original recipe calls for 1/2 cup of sugar, but I don't like my rice pudding super sweet. Adjust the sugar to your preference. Also, once it's chilled, it'll set and become more "pudding-y". OH! And I've noticed that the next day, the rice really soaked up the liquid, so just keep that in mind at the final stage!
This recipe was adapted from Go Dairy free.