Vegan Black Rice Pudding

I first discovered black rice pudding about the time I first started my blog and I thought it looked for exotic and beautiful. I’ve been wanting to give it a go ever since but since black rice is so difficult to find at the supermarkets I completely forgot about it until I randomly walked passed the health section and some stood out to me. As I started researching black rice it came to my attention that black rice was considered a forbidden food reserved only for royalty in China and other Asian countries. Most recipes online are a traditional Asian type black rice recipe but I wanted to create a recipe more similar to the rice pudding I grew up eating in my culture: Romania. In romania we ate is as dessert or breakfast and it was made with cows milk, not coconut milk like the majority of recipes online. Of course, being plant-based I do not use cows milk and have found rice milk to be the best substitute for dishes like this. I like rice milk because it has a natural sweetness to it and doesn’t leave a funny aftertaste.

Black rice is known for its excellent antioxidant properties ( as shown in its deep colour) and for its wonderful detox abilities, especially for the kidneys. I love it because it’s also quite high in iron. I wanted to make the most of the iron in black rice by adding some orange juice to the recipe to up the vitamin C for better absorption. I’ve also added a little cacao powder, which is optional but great for even more antioxidants and iron.

I’m actually not the biggest fan of cooking rice because it takes forever and I feel like it always turns out a little tough. I think the reason for that is that I always use whole grain rice. I generally stick to brown rice but am making an effort to add more rice varieties into my meals because of the different nutrients they can provide. I will attempt cooking rice in my pressure cooker to see if it turns out better. I’m even contemplating cooking up huge batches of all the different types of rice and freezing them so I can have my own handy microwave rice on hand. Not sure if it will work but it might be worth the try.

I hope you like this nutrient-packed rice pudding recipe. It’s gluten-free, vegan, high in iron and a fun twist on the rice pudding I am used to. Enjoy.