Wholesome Banana Rice Pudding

      Somehow it happened that we had one lone overripe banana in the house.  Usually I try to make sure we have a few at a time so I can make Di's Banana Cake or these delicious Banana Oat Muffins. I just made a batch of our favorite Whole Grain Banana Yogurt Pancakes for Fat Tuesday, so those were out.  What the heck was I going to do with one banana?! Then genius struck!


     This is one of those clean out the refrigerator dishes that tastes so good too.  Some leftover rice from last night's dinner, that old banana on the counter that had better be used today or it is going to be nothing but a gooey mess and some pantry staples and voila! This would make a perfect snack or a great healthier dessert.  Heck, it would be a tasty breakfast as well! It is perfect for toddlers and adults alike.

     This recipe isn't overly sweet, and it gets most of its sugar from the banana.  If you banana isn't as ripe as mine was, you may want to give it a taste and either drizzle with a little more honey or stir some in.  I was fine with it just as is, but you can certainly do it your way.  In just over 10 minutes I had my first serving.  I just love warm rice pudding!  The rest went into the fridge for later.  It was really good cold too.

Wholesome Banana Rice Pudding

makes about 4  2/3 cup servings

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups prepared rice (I used leftover organic brown rice)

1 ripe banana

1 cup whole milk

1 T honey

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

More cinnamon for serving

1. Place banana, milk, honey, cinnamon and salt in a blender and blend until smooth.
2. Place rice and banana mixture in a medium saucepan (use one larger than you'd think, the milk mixture will foam and expand while you are cooking it.)  Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thickened, about 10 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
4. I love eating a serving while it is still warm, but if you like your rice pudding cold just refrigerate for about an hour or until chilled.  
5. Serve with an additional sprinkle of cinnamon.