When I was little, my Grandma used to make the most delicious rice pudding in the world, ever. It was so creamy, sweet and comforting, and to this day just the smell of warm rice pudding evokes the most treasured childhood memories. And I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one – just about everyone I speak to has a story to tell about the time travelling powers of rice pudding.

Now the beauty of eating healthily is this; you can still enjoy any dish you like, sometimes you just have to make a couple of substitutions. In my chai spiced coconut quinoa pudding I’ve taken some inspiration from around the world and swapped rice for quinoa (gracias South America), cow’s milk for coconut milk (istuti Sri Lanka) and sugar for maple syrup (thanks New England).

I’ve also given it a little twist by adding in chai spices for an extra kick. These spices are considered by Ayurvedic philosophy to be calming and mentally clarifying – the perfect addition to this already super comforting and nourishing dish!

Makes about 5 ramekins

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cups (a can) of coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and stir until all mixed together. Then pour into a saucepan and cook on a medium heat until it starts to boil. Turn the heat down, pop the lid on the pan and leave to simmer for around 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so. Once the quinoa has soaked up most of the liquid, turn off the heat and leave it with the lid on to steam for a couple of minutes.

Spoon into ramekins and enjoy – happy time travelling!

Love, Mrs H xx