Easy Pumpkin Rice Pudding (Vegan & Gluten-Free)
Made with coconut milk, infused with vanilla and warming winter spices, and sweetened with maple syrup, this homey, nutritious pumpkin rice pudding is deliciously sweet and ultra comforting. Brown rice provides a subtle chew, complementing the coconut-pumpkin custard (it’s naturally vegan). Serve it all on its own, or dress it up with a dollop of whipped cream (regular or coconut whipped cream). I prefer to eat it slightly warm when it’s at its creamiest, but leftovers make for a stellar breakfast drizzled with milk and sprinkled with chopped nuts. While the pudding has to simmer for over an hour, the cooking time is mostly hands-off. You can swap out the vanilla bean for vanilla paste (see the Tips below).
Servings: 6
Equipment
- cheesecloth
- butcher’s twine
Ingredients
- ½ cup (95g) long-grain brown rice (such as Basmati or Jasmine)
- 2 (13.5-ounce) cans coconut milk
- ½ vanilla bean
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 whole clove
- 1 (⅛-inch thick) slice fresh ginger
- 1 2- inch piece orange zest (removed with a vegetable peeler)
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup (160g) maple syrup
- ¾ cup (178g) pumpkin puree, canned or homemade (see below)
Instructions
- Place the rice in a spice grinder (or clean coffee grinder) and pulse to break up the grains (about 8 pulses). You want to end up with broken grains, not a full powder. If you don’t have a spice grinder, place the rice in a zip-top bag and use a meat mallet (or rolling pin) to bang up the rice grains.
- Put the coconut milk in a medium, heavy-bottomed pot. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds with the back of a knife and add the seeds to the coconut milk. Reserve the pod.
- Wrap the cinnamon stick, whole clove, ginger, orange zest, and reserved vanilla bean pod in a 6-inch (or thereabout) square of cheesecloth; tie it into a bundle with a piece of butcher’s twine. Add the spice pack to the coconut milk, along with the ground rice, sea salt and maple syrup. Stir to combine.
- Bring the milk to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent the rice from sticking, until the rice is tender but still has pleasant chew, about 45-50 minutes.
- Stir in the pumpkin puree and cook for 10 minutes longer (it will still be quite loose). Let the pudding cool for 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally (it will thicken up as it cools). Serve it warm or at room temperature.
Notes
To make pumpkin puree from scratch:
- Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and coat it lightly with oil.
- Cut out the stem from a sugar pumpkin (just like you would if you were carving a pumpkin—I even use my Halloween pumpkin carving knife to do this), then cut the pumpkin in half and scrape out the seeds (save the seeds to roast).
- Place the halves cut side down on the baking sheet. Bake 40-45 minutes, or until tender (a knife should slide through without resistance.
- Let cool slightly, then scoop the flesh into a food processor. Process, scraping down sides occasionally, until smooth. This will take a while—just let the machine rip.
- If you want to ensure a really smooth texture, press the pumpkin puree through a strainer with a spatula. 1 sugar pumpkin yields about 2 cups of puree. The puree can be stored for up two 5 days in the refrigerator, or for up to 2 months in the freezer.
Recipe Tips
- The brown rice gets broken up in a spice grinder (I use a clean coffee grinder), which helps it cook more quickly and gives the pudding a richer texture, but you can break it up using a mallet or rolling pin instead.
- You can swap out the vanilla bean for 1 teaspoon of vanilla paste.
- The whole spices (cinnamon stick, clove, ginger and orange peel) are key, lending important dimension. By wrapping the spices in cheesecloth you won’t have to fish them out at the end.
- You can use regular or light coconut milk.
Loved this recipe? Check out @nickisizemore for more!