Some of you may remember that I was the culinary intern at Poplar Ridge Farm last summer. Some of my favorite recipes came out of that farmhouse kitchen, when I had an unlimited supply of fresh organic vegetables, and an unlimited number of hours in the day to devote to cooking.
Last week I got a package in the mail – an early birthday present from the wonderful Dorry! She knew I had been on the search for black quinoa, and when she saw it at her Whole Foods, she grabbed a bag for me!
Seeing the black quinoa brought back memories of my farmhouse summer, when I made black forbidden rice pudding during the peak of blueberry season. So I thought I would re-make the old recipe into something new…
Black Quinoa Blueberry Pudding
Ingredients:
- 1 cup dry black quinoa
- 1.5 cups water
- 1 cup light coconut milk
- 1 cup soymilk
- 1/4 cup honey or agave nectar
- 1 pint organic blueberries
Instructions: Black quinoa is very similar to red quinoa – a little coarser and nuttier than the traditional variety. I couldn’t get past the beautiful color of the seeds when I opened the bag!
Just like you do with regular quinoa, rinse the grains through a small sieve to remove the bitter residue before cooking. Then add 1.5 cups water and cook until tender, either on the stovetop or in a rice cooker.
Once the quinoa is cooked, it will look colorful and fluffy!
While it cooks, prepare the base for the pudding on the stovetop. Add 1 cup each light coconut milk and soymilk to a sauce pan, and heat over medium high heat. Add 1/4 cup honey or agave nectar and stir until melted.
Bring the milk mixture up to a simmer. Once that is reached, add the cooked quinoa and stir to combine.
Continue to stir over medium high heat for a few minutes, until the mixture begins to thicken.
After a few minutes, mix in the blueberries and remove from the heat.
Transfer to a shallow bowl, and refrigerate for several hours until chilled and thickened. I found that it helps to stir the mixture every 20 minutes or so while cooling, in order to distribute the temperature change throughout the mixture.
Come back in a few hours, dish it up, and enjoy!
I love the chewiness and nuttiness that the quinoa brought to a recipe that is traditionally made with rice.
This pudding would make a great breakfast, snack, or dessert. I like that it isn’t overly sweet, so you can still taste the natural flavors of the blueberries and coconut – a delicious combination.
And with the combination of soymilk and quinoa, this delicious dessert is packed with protein! Healthy dessert with a nutritional boost? Please pass me a spoon.
Enjoy!
83 Comments so far
Leave a comment
What a creative recipe – love the addition of blueberries. Yum!
[Reply]
Holy crap! This is amazing. I can’t wait to try! Black quinoa is so mysterious!
[Reply]
This looks soo good! I love the use of quinoa instead of rice.
ps: your recipe page is great! It makes printing your recipes so much easier. Both you and Casey should be very proud!
[Reply]
Oh boy – that looks incredible!!!
[Reply]
That sounds like my dream job: having an endless supply of fresh produce and an endless amount of time to devote to cooking!
[Reply]
I have never even heard of black quinoa but it is so pretty!
[Reply]
This looks so lovely; I love the color contrast. I’d love to try a take on this with millet (my favorite grain).
[Reply]
Your photos are gorgeous, and this recipe sounds SO good! I can’t wait for blueberry season!
[Reply]
So excited to see this! I am sitting here imagining the delicious combination of these flavors and texture. I’ve been missing berries lately and this recipe is a perfect reason to pick up some blueberries! And your photos are incredible. <3
[Reply]
What a gorgeous pudding! I’ll have to be on the lookout for some black quinoa. I think one of our co-ops might carry it.
[Reply]
I just recently tried red quinoa for the first time, I really love how much color it has in comparison to regular quinoa. This looks delicious!
[Reply]
Wow, looks great!
Question: I once heard that light coconut milk was just watered down coconut milk and that it was better just to buy the full fat stuff and water it down yourself. Do you know if that is true?
Oh, and love the new car! So fancy!
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:49 pm
I have never heard that, so I’m not sure. I know full fat coconut milk is a LOT thicker, and usually needs to be stirred up because it separates easily.
[Reply]
I am going to Whole Foods this weekend and I am really hoping there’s black quinoa because this recipe looks awesome!
[Reply]
So pretty!! I love the idea of quinoa in pudding.
[Reply]
Aww Dorry is so thoughtful. Hi Dorry! Black quinoa is mysterious!
[Reply]
This is so interesting. I love the look of black quinoa!
[Reply]
That looks so great Emily! Where were you able to find black quinoa?? I would love to try it !
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:49 pm
Dorry sent it to me!
[Reply]
Nice one! I bet I wouldn’t mind the chewier quinoa (which I normally don’t prefer) among all the other awesomeness that is going on! :)
[Reply]
wow the Black Quinoa Blueberry Pudding is beautiful!
i have never cooked w/ black quinoa but I love how you went in the sweet direction (not savory) with it. And i love blueberries, big time! :)
[Reply]
That looks awesome! I would definitely like that as breakfast or dessert. I’ll have keep an eye out for some fresh blueberries. I LOVE quinoa in all colors :)
[Reply]
That looks so so good – it kind of looks like chia seed pudding!
[Reply]
I have a spoon JUST like that too :)
[Reply]
I recently purchased a few ikea jars to display my grains, particularly new (to me) varieties of quinoa, but I hadn’t considered how I’d use them. This pudding is perfect!
[Reply]
Wow! How creative! Definitely going to be trying this!!!
[Reply]
i’ve never seen anything like this at all! i so want to try it! now I’M on the hunt for black quinoa! :)
[Reply]
I like how you specified that it could be breakfast, lunch or dessert, because I was on the fence between breakfast and dessert myself.
In addition to black quinoa, Alter Eco also manufactures amazing chocolate single-sourced from Bolivia. Check it out.
[Reply]
This looks delicious! I’m going to have to keep my eye out for black quinoa–still haven’t seen it.
[Reply]
This post makes me so eager for fresh-picked blueberries in the summer. It seems so far away! Another fantastic looking recipe!
[Reply]
This looks amazing, would love to find black quinoa! Thx for sharing!!
[Reply]
Dorry is such a sweetheart! This pudding looks great. I love how pretty the black quinoa is.
[Reply]
I LOVE rice pudding, and I have a ton of black quinoa cooked in my fridge!! I can’t wait to try this!:)
[Reply]
This look absolutely delicious–what a great idea! I have yet to try black quinoa, and I think this would be the perfect way! :)
[Reply]
I love recipes that make quinoa into a sweet dish! I tried once with coconut milk but didn’t come out like I wanted it to. I’ll have to keep trying! :-)
[Reply]
Everytime I eat quinoa, I think it has a similar nutty taste like wild rice. This black quinoa even looks like it!
[Reply]
Oh my word…please pass me a spoon too!
[Reply]
holy yum. I had black quinoa when my hubby and I went out for our fourth anniversary. It was made with confit tomatoes and rosemary toasted pine nuts. This post reminds me to take another look at Whole Foods for some black quinoa!
[Reply]
This looks sooo good!!! I’ve never seen black quinoa!
[Reply]
This looks amazing! I’ve been on the lookout for protein-y dairy-free desserts and this definitely fits the bill! I don’t know if I’ll be able to track down black quinoa in my town though. Do you think it will work with regular quinoa?
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
Yes, definitely!
[Reply]
This looks incredible! I am dying to make this and already have black quinoa in the pantry, it was meant to be. :)
[Reply]
I love this. Just added it to my bookmarks. I am going to make it this week! Thanks, Em.
[Reply]
this is too funny. when i was making quinoa for lunch today i totally got a craving for rice pudding and thought i should try it with the quinoa. i am not vegan so i was just thinking about making it with normal milk. looks yummy with the blueberries! i will have to try it.
[Reply]
Great last shot! All your photos look so crisp + pretty!! This recipe looks awesommmmme!!!!
[Reply]
this is really making me hungry! i need to get some berries and try this recipe out very soon. sounds like a great breakfast for me.
[Reply]
Ooh, I’d love to try this out! We have quinoa, blueberries, coconut milk, and almond milk, so I think I’m set. :) I’ve seen black quinoa in the bulk section at Whole foods.
[Reply]
You know what I like about your site is it’s about food alternatives that really matter. I follow some “healthy” food blogs and the philosophy of many is pretty much “I’m a healthy blogger therefore what I eat is healthy” and then spend the next 30 pictures showing their love affair with alcohol and power bars (aka carbohydrates and fat) and then talk about how they had to run ten miles to keep all those “healthy carbs” from turning into lard.
Your alternatives actually are worth considering because they tend to take things like protein into consideration and are not just drink-a-logs garnished with a salad (oh but it’s an AMAZING SALAD)
Bravo my dear, you do the world of food justice. Your blog is a Valentine treat
[Reply]
Looks delicious– thanks for another tempting recipe! Do you think it would be possible to sub red quinoa or would that change the tastes too drastically?
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
No I think you could definitely sub red quinoa.
[Reply]
So pretty! Black quinoa looks so fancy, especially when combined with the bright blueberries. I need to try this. :D
[Reply]
how thick does the puddin get?
like, would it coat a spoon like typical puddin, or would it be more runny?
looks delish!
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
I’d say it’s sort of in between. Not super thick, but not really runny either. Definitely delicious!
[Reply]
This looks really, really interesting. I’m a big fan of rice pudding but I might try this. Do you think it would work with frozen blueberries? I know it would be purple, but that might be interesting too.
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
It might make it too watery? Usually frozen blueberries add a bit more water than fresh.
[Reply]
Oh man, that is just beautiful! Everything about those pictures (the colors,texture, etc.) makes me want to jump out of my chair and out of my office and cook that!
P.S. I love reading about your Poplar Farms experience and recipes, I like to daydream about doing that…maybe one day…
Thanks Emily, keep up the good work :)
[Reply]
Very pretty recipe. I love that you use your rice paddle to stir the pot with!
[Reply]
I’ve never seen black quinoa…actually, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the red kind in any of the grocery stores around here! This recipe sounds great! I miss pudding :)
[Reply]
I can’t wait to look for some BLACK quinoa and give it a try!
[Reply]
Looks delicious! it sort of looks a little thinner than I’m used to but I’d love to experiment with using grains in place of rice for pudding!
[Reply]
I love quinoa and this is making me hungry. Can’t wait to cook that up!
[Reply]
This would make an awesome breakfast! I’m on the lookout for black quinoa now.
[Reply]
This looks and sounds wonderful! I’ve never tried black quinoa before, but I’ll definitely look for it next time I’m near those bulk bins. :)
[Reply]
The many uses of Quinoa love that grain you can pretty much do anything with it!
[Reply]
Oh my goodness, this looks amazing! I have to try this…HAVE TO.
[Reply]
This looks really good. I will have to try it when blueberries are in season…or maybe defrosted frozen blueberries would work.
[Reply]
Looks incredible!!!
[Reply]
This makes me crave summer and blueberries so badly. I love sweet quinoa- I definitely prefer it to savory (not a shocker, though). It’s really good mixed with PB as well!
[Reply]
Looks absolutely heavenly, Emily! And those photos are spectacular. I haven’t had black quinoa, but I’m a red quinoa addict. So, I’ll be on the lookout for this!
[Reply]
Emily your new recipe page is the best out of any blog i’ve seen congrats! I have a quick question about your (famous) vegan bean burgers…
would it be better to use onions or is there a reason you use onion powder? if you think onions would taste better what quantity would you suggest?
thanks!
[Reply]
Emily Malone Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 4:47 pm
Well if you use real onions, I think you’ll probably want to cook them first. The benefit of onion powder is the no-cooking. :)
[Reply]
I am always amazed at your creativity in the kitchen. I haven’t tried black quinoa- I’ll have to look out for it!
[Reply]
Excellent presentation. It’s really reminding me that I need to eat more quinoa (and more blueberries, now that you mention it.)
Allow me to direct you to a similar recipe, just because it’s from the 15th century and eaten from England to Italy. Rice in almond milk. Basically all you do is take cooked rice, add an equal amount of almond milk, a bit of honey to taste, and simmer until it thickens.
[Reply]
I just used black quinoa for the first time today (and, in fact, my first time using quinoa period). But, I still have enough leftover to make this recipe! It looks divine.
[Reply]
mmmmm this looks good and filling!
[Reply]
This sounds heavenly, I must give it a try!
[Reply]
Well hello black quinoa…where have you been all my life. I am on the hunt to find these little gems and cant wait to try this recipe! xoxo
[Reply]
i made this tonight but used red quinoa since that’s all I had, plus unsweetened vanilla almond milk instead of soy milk, plus the coconut milk was light. I think it’s gonna taste yummy based on the tiny taste I took while it’s cooling! I can’t wait for another hour or two to pass so I can eat it!!! YUM!! What a beautiful recipe, when I find black quinoa I’ll make it again just so I can admire its beauty.
[Reply]
This looks so fantastic! I’ve been experimenting with quinoa, and I recently impulse purchased some black quinoa. I was surprised to find it in the bulk section of my supermarket!
I can’t wait to try it! Thanks for the constant inspiration!
[Reply]
[...] (I’m talking about Central Market if you live in Texas) in the bulk bins and wanted to try this recipe for Black Quinoa Pudding with Blueberries that Emily made last [...]
Can I use almond milk instead of soy milk?
[Reply]
[...] Sweet Potato Pecan Cinnamon Rolls Bonus Round: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins The Daily Garnish: Black Quinoa Bluberry Pudding + Strawberry Jelly Surprise Muffins With a Side of Sneakers: Doughnut Muffins The Spiced Plate: [...]
I can’t wait to make this! Probably tomorrow :)
[Reply]
Leave a comment