Quinoa Rice Pudding

Last week I decided to screw around experiment with quinoa. I cooked up a big batch to use as a side dish for my chana masala, but it expanded more than I thought it would, and I was left with a whole bowl left over. I industriously put it in the fridge and vowed to figure out what to do with it later. As it turns out, later came the next morning. It was unnaturally cold for Los Angeles, although I think my vintage apartment building might have a bit of a draft problem. So, I turned on my extremely dangerous gas heater and set about making something warm and comforting for breakfast.
My inspiration was this youtube video from Bethany Frankel, star of The Real Housewives of NYC and an organic chef (or something). Let's take a moment to rant about Bethany. Her method of naturally skinny dieting basically focuses on eating 2-3 bites of something and then pawning it off on someone else. Originally this method, like Bethany herself, annoyed the hell out of me. But as I cook more and more for this blog, I can empathize with her at least a little bit. Plus, her idea of using leftover brown rice was my inspiration. The biggest difference in mine is that I cooked mine on the stove, because I do not own a microwave. I don't believe that anyone should be eating anything that can only be cooked in a microwave. Sure, I use it at work to heat up leftovers, but at home I cook only on the stove. If I need to reheat something, it's going to get re-heated the same way it got cooked in the first place. That's it for me on my soapbox, now on to the breakfast pudding!

Nicole's Healthy Breakfast Bowl

• 1/3 c. cooked quinoa
• 3/4 c. almond milk
• 1 tbsp. egg replacer
• 1 tbsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. sugar free maple syrup
• a box of mini raisins
• a few almonds (I used 7)
• 1 tsp. brown sugar

1. In a small saucepan, beat together egg replacer and almond milk over medium-high heat. Stir constantly until it starts to simmer.
2. Add cinnamon, vanilla, and maple syrup, stirring well.
3. Add quinoa and raisins and return to a simmer before lowering to medium heat. 
4. Add quinoa and raisins and cook for 3 minutes, or until mixture thickens and quinoa is heated through. 
5. Serve garnished with raw almonds and brown sugar.

serves 1 at 346 calories