Vegan Brown Rice Pudding With Rose & Almond (Roz Bel Laban)

The flax is healthy and chock full of fiber, and acts as a stabilizer for the almond milk since vegan milks don't thicken on their own plus it has more nutritional value than cornstarch. I use Sun Crystals to cut down on sugar but stay chemical-free (it is 50% sugar and 50% stevia extract, has 240 calories for 1/4 cup.) so it's sweet but not overpowering the other flavors in it.

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 4
• Yields: 4

Ingredients

• BASE

• 1  cup  uncooked brown rice
• 2  cups boiling water
• 1  dash salt

• TO MAKE THE PUDDING

• 3  cups  plain unsweetened  almond milk
• 2  tablespoons ground flax seeds
• 1⁄4 cup  blanched slivered almond
• 1⁄2 cup sugar (I used 1/4 cup Sun Crystals stevia-sugar blend)
• 1  tablespoon rose water
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3  dashes cardamom (just a few shakes)

• OPTIONAL

•  saffron, powder
•  chopped pistachios

Directions

1. Boil 2 cups of lightly salted water in a heavy-bottom saucepan, immerse the brown rice in it. Lower the heat, loosely cover the pot, and let simmer at medium-low heat for 40 minutes or until the rice has absorbed all the water.
2. Add all the other ingredients and mix well, and loosely cover. Let simmer on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes or until the mixture has thickened and the rice is very tender.
3. Pour into an airtight container and refridgerate for at least 2-3 hours before serving, or overnight. Makes a great breakfast too if made with amaranth or quinoa!