My mom used to make rice pudding, and it was always a favorite! But I found that it was easy enough to substitute brown rice for white rice, egg whites for whole eggs, a THM-approved sweetener for sugar, and home-dried, sugar-free cranberries for raisins. So I’ve been making this tweaked version of rice pudding for several years now, but just the other day I had a brilliant idea. At least, I thought it was!
You know what looks a lot like rice? Cauliflower rice. You know what smells a lot different than rice? Cauliflower. But still. It couldn’t hurt to try, could it? Because when I have rice pudding, I’d really like a larger serving than 3/4 cup. Plus, I’m constantly trying to up my veggie intake. Okay. I decided to give it a try.
And you know what? It passed the taste test and it even passed the smell test. Yes, I stuck my nose half an inch away, took a big whiff, and I honestly could not smell cauliflower! Win, win.
So this recipe has everything. A great carb source. A veggie. A lean protein. And it tastes terrific.
First, let’s talk about dried cranberries. If you can find them sweetened with on-plan sweeteners, you’re ahead of me. I have a dehydrator, and I followed this recipe for dried cranberries. You can also dry them in the oven. Or, if you have the brand-new Trim Healthy Future cookbook, you can learn how to dehydrate them in your air-fryer! Whatever method you use, it’s worth having a stock of these on hand. They last a long time. My granddaughter and I cut up 3 bags of cranberries to dry over a year ago, and I’m still using them. Although now that I’ve tweaked this recipe, I’m sure I’ll go through them more quickly.
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So, let’s get started!
Recipe: Sneaky Brown Rice Pudding with Cranberries (E)
(4 servings)
• 1.5 cups cooked brown rice (We prefer basmati.)
• 1.5 cups riced cauliflower (fresh or frozen)
• 2 cups nut milk (We prefer cashew milk.)
• 1 cup egg whites (or 8 whites)
• 1/2 cup Lakanto monkfruit/erythritol blend (or your choice of sweetener)
• 2/3 cup dry, sweetened cranberries
Measure all ingredients into a saucepan, stir well, and cook over medium heat (stirring often) until hot and bubbly. Remove from heat and add:
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Scoop into four bowls and serve… or refrigerate for later. I enjoy it hot or cold. Sometimes I add a dash more cashew milk, sometimes I don’t.
This is a breakfast Sadie from Raindrops on Radishes would totally enjoy in her Trim Healthy Mama story… at least, once she learned to trust carbs!
Please Note: I am not an authorized Trim Healthy Mama coach or blogger, although I play one in fiction…
Connie says
Thanks so much for adding the recipe! I’ll be trying it next week 🙂
Valerie Comer says
You’re welcome! I really thought it might turn into something for the trash can… or that I would eat it holding my nose! But it was GREAT.