Rose Scented Vanilla Sorghum Pudding with Pistachio-Ginger Crumble

The roses are blooming like crazy–4 to 6 weeks early!  I just have to celebrate, or perhaps I might cry. I don’t know what all this means with respect to our climate changes and our ever changing earth–I kind of don’t want to know–as I fear we’ll feel the inevitable consequences, ,maybe even before summer´s end! Summer used to come in July, although we begged for it to begin in June, but gosh by golly it’s only May, and it’s practically summer in every way–soaring temperatures, dry air, and botanically speaking, most spring blossoms have already faded and summer blooms are bursting! Even the local strawberries are ready!

I couldn’t resist pulling out my rose water and coming up with a special recipe to mark the arrival of our early summer. It’s rather a twist on an old childhood favourite–rice pudding!  Who doesn’t love rice pudding?  As kids we typically enjoyed it in the cooler months as a warm dessert or breakfast, but I thought it might be nice to create a warm weather ‘rosy’ version that hits the spot and share a new grain with you if you haven’t tried it before.

Sorghum is a gluten-free grain that is a staple in India and Africa but still surfacing in North America. It´s more often found as flour. Yet, the whole grain makes a lovely porridge and can also stand in for rice or most any grain in savory recipes.  It is grown from hybrid seeds thus there is no need to worry at this point about GMO’s, phew!

On the alkaline scale sorghum is moderately acidic meaning it should be within the 25% of acidic food you consume daily.  Ideally it’s best to balance each meal with 75% alkaline food alongside your acidic food, such as this pudding, and at the very least balance your overall day´s intake.  If you enjoy this as an afternoon snack with a cup of tea just be sure to have a nice big salad for dinner–better yet, follow your snack with a green juice or a glass of water with a greens powder to balance it– and you´ll be good to go!  If you are cleansing or battling candida or are working to overcome a highly acidic body by super alkalizing, save this for when you feel balanced and your symptoms are resolved. Go ahead and continue with high, high alkaline meals to dump acids until you are feeling great.  You can save this porridge for something to look forward to.

Sorghum’s nutrient profile is pretty good considering it is moderately acidic. It’s rich in magnesium, copper, iron, niacin, and selenium. One cup contains 22 grams of protein and more fiber than rice. It also contains phytochemicals (plant based chemical compounds) with antioxidant activity that combats damaging free radicals in your body and helps to prevent disease. Keep in mind that when you consume acidic foods you have the choice to select healthy acidic foods over unhealthy acidic foods (i.e. processed and fast food).  Sorghum is a great choice for your acidic balance providing necessary nutrients for optimal well-being. That said I’ll repeat that “it’s all about the balance.” You will not achieve the alkaline balance you may be looking for if you eat healthy acidic foods far beyond the 25% ratio too often. Do your best (without obsessing about it) to pair 1 part healthy acidic food with 3 parts alkaline food to maintain an alkaline lifestyle and to keep disease at bay.

I like to cook this porridge in my favourite le crueset pot and I stir it as I putter in the kitchen.  However, if you have a rice cooker it is ideal for cooking this grain to perfection. It’s not a quick-cooking grain, so think ahead when you choose to give this recipe a shot. I also highly recommend soaking the grains, which means you really do need to plan the night before. Soaking wakes up the beneficial enzymes that help reduce anti-nutrients that the grain naturally contains (these anti-nutrients protect the grain while it is a dormant and newly planted seed).  The more you reduce this the better you will digest and absorb the nutrients from sorghum or most any other grain, seed, or nut for that matter.  Just think to yourself, “I should always be soaking something,” and each night before bed, choose something to soak. If your plans change you can always rinse and soak longer to sprout the grain a little more; or you can cook the grain up, freeze it, and toss it in a soup or stir fry at another time.

Now, if you aren’t having a wee tea party with this recipe there’s bound to be leftovers since this makes six small portions. I love leftovers like this! Just refrigerate and then gently warm it with a little extra almond milk to room temperature, or make it a tad warmer to have as a nice breakfast alongside a big glass of green juice. (You can also freeze it and save it for another afternoon tea time!)

Look for sorghum in your local health food store, most likely in the bulk bins.  I’m betting you’ll like the texture of it and if you do, give it a whirl and substitute it for another grain in one of your favourite recipes. It just might become a staple in your kitchen if it isn’t already!

Rose Scented  Vanilla Sorghum Pudding with Pistachio-Ginger Crumble
*moderately acidic

Yield: Serves 6

Do ahead: Soak 1 cup sorghum in 3 cups water for 24 hours.

Rose Scented Vanilla Sorghum Pudding
1 cup soaked sorghum grain, drained and rinsed well
2 1/2 cups almond mylk
2 1/4 cups filtered water
1 whole vanilla bean
1 tsp maple syrup OR 2 to 3 drops liquid stevia (optional)
pinch of Himalayan salt
2 1/4 tsp alcohol-free rosewater
1 recipe Whipped Coconut Cream

Pistachio-Ginger Crumble Topping
1/2 cup raw shelled pistachios
1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
2 drops liquid stevia
6 organic rose petals for garnish

Vanilla Sorghum Pudding: Place the sorghum, almond mylk, water, vanilla bean, maple syrup (or stevia), and salt in a medium pot. Cover and simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 1 hour until the mixture is creamy and the grain is soft to the chew with just a little resistance- al dente if you like. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Pour in the rosewater and stir until well combined. Set aside.

Pistachio-Ginger Crumble Topping: Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and combine until nicely crumbled.

To serve, divide the sorghum evenly among 6 dessert ramekins, top with a dollop of *Whipped Coconut Cream (see recipe below) and sprinkle generously with the pistachio-ginger crumble. Garnish with a rose petal.

Whipped Coconut Cream
***purely alkaline

This is a soft whipped cream that melts easily, so be sure to keep it well chilled.

Makes 1 3/4 cups

1 tin (13 1/2 oz.) organic full-fat coconut mylk, chilled 4 hours or overnight
1 tsp alcohol free vanilla
3 drops liquid stevia (or 1 tbsp coconut nectar or a combination)

Open the tin of coconut mylk from the bottom and carefully drain the coconut water into a bowl. Reserve it for another use, perhaps a smoothie.

Scoop the coconut cream into a blender, add the vanilla and stevia and mix until verrrrry, verrrrry creamy and well combined, 30 to 60 seconds. Keep chilled until needed. This will keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

As much as I am excited for our early summer and the arrival of roses I know you might be a long way away from enjoying pretty roses in your neighborhood.  Winter has been a bit crazeee for some parts of our planet, hasn’t it? I hope you see pretty flowers soon and that glorious rays of sunshine beam thru your windows. And I’m thinking that some of you are just heading into winter, it’s hard to imagine for me, sitting here listening to the birds in my hydrangea bushes. I hope Mother Nature is good to us all.

Here’s a couple things from my inbox this week you might find interesting…

Ross talks about 7 Reasons to Cut Wheat From Your Diet

A nice alkaline balanced green juice Kris Carr’s Go-to Green Juice Recipe

Christa Orecchio shares amazing information & a program offering if your digestion is upside down in her Gut Healing Webinar It’s only available until May 27th.

Have a wonderful weekend my friends….

xoxo

Your Alkaline Sister

PS. I have nothing to gain by sending you my inbox goodies, and just want to share them for your benefit in case you might be interested.