Paleo “Rice” Pudding (Raw)

A small confession: there is no rice in this Paleo “Rice” Pudding. There is no condensed milk or dairy at all. Yet, this  healthy treat is really worth trying.

Growing up in a Latin American country, I really long for the creamy, “custardy”, dairy-filled and rich desserts… Flan… Tres Leches…Puddings…Mmmm, I have a lot of experimenting to do in my kitchen.

Rice pudding has been on my mind for a while and I couldn’t figure out how to make it work with out the rice. I usually use grated cauliflower as my rice substitute, but cauliflower with milk and honey may not do the trick, so I used white chia seeds instead. You can use the regular black ones and the taste wouldn’t really change. I made a creamy dairy substitute using cashews and water and I sweetened it with dates, but you could use raw honey or your sweetener of choice.

For other dessert recipes try my pumpkin custard, baked apples, salted caramel dip, or honey lemon curd

Ingredients:
2 cups of water
 1 1/4  cups of cashews
Pitted dates or raw honey to taste ( I used about 6 dates)
1/2 to 1 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp of vanilla
1 small piece of lemon peel (about 1/2 square inch)
3 1/2 tbsp of white chia seeds
1/4 cup of raisins

Preparation:

• Using a blender, mix the cashews, dates (or raw honey), lemon peel, and water together until cashews are liquified.
• Transfer to a bowl.
• Mix the rest of the ingredients and let the chai seeds soak for 5 to 10 minutes (for a thicker consistency add more chia seeds)
• Eat cold or warm.