Quinoa Pudding with Fresh Blueberries

(4 servings)

I have been experimenting a bit with quinoa lately as it's still relatively new to me. I love its texture and the fact it cooks so quickly. I know it can be used in place of rice, so I thought I'd try it in a pudding this time.

Cooking the quinoa in milk required me to babysit it a bit, something I haven't had to do, but there was the danger of the milk burning. I could have used water, but I prefer using milk when I make rice pudding, so I used it here as well.

1/2 cup quinoa
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 tsp cardamom
a pinch or two of nutmeg
2 eggs
2-3 tbsp maple syrup, to taste
2 tbsp ground flaxseed, (optional)
2 tbsp heavy cream, (optional)
2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 pint fresh blueberries, rinsed and picked over
additional milk**

Rinse the quinoa in water, then drain it before adding it to a small pot. Add 1 1/2 cups of milk reserving 1 cup. Stir in the cardamom and nutmeg and cook for about 20 minutes or until most of the milk has absorbed into the quinoa. You might have to lower the heat a touch and you will definitely have to stir it to keep the milk from burning.

Whisk together the eggs, remaining 1 cup of milk, maple syrup and flaxseed in a small bowl.

Stir the egg mixture into the quinoa and continue stirring it until it thickens, but don't allow the mixture to boil as the eggs might curdle. Remove from heat.

Stir in the cream and vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature. **If the pudding seems too thick then stir in a few tablespoons of milk to thin it out to your liking.

Divide between four bowls or plates and sprinkle with almonds and blueberries.

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Thanks very much to Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes for nominating me for the Liebster Award! I'm absolutely thrilled!

"Liebster" is a German word meaning "favourite", and this honor is given to bloggers with less than 200 followers by fellow bloggers.

The award has the following stipulations:

1. Thank the giver and provide a link to their site.

2. Copy and paste the tag on your blog.

3. Pick 5 bloggers and let them know by leaving a comment on their blogs.

4. Hope the people you have chosen will continue the tradition.

These are my picks in no particular order:

My Little Expat Kitchen This blogger has relocated to The Netherlands from Greece. She has covers a range of international recipes in addition to Greek, takes beautiful photos of her food and weaves it all together with her engaging dialogue.

Chili und Ciabata  A nice collection of recipes from this German blogger who also has an additional site just for her bread recipes! (in German)

Thyme in Our Kitchen This dad (of 6 boys!) shares his nicely photographed, tasty recipes.

Scandi Foodi This Finnish blogger has settled in Australia. She's a prop-stylist who takes amazing photos of wonderfully styled (healthy) food. I have no idea if she fits within the category of less than 200 followers, but I love visiting her blog.

Life is Great I have just begun to follow this blog recently. This delightful blog out of Singapore, is well written, has an interesting mix of recipes and great photography.

Thinly Sliced Cucumber I have also just recently come across this bright and cheerful blog, full of great photos and recipes. The author of this blog hails from beautiful Vermont.