Last fall, a publisher sent me a heavy package. Inside were two copies of Amy Chaplin's At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen, a vegan cookbook and whole foods manual of sorts. Amy used to be the executive chef at Angelica's Kitchen, the legendary vegan restaurant in New York City, and now works as a private chef, teacher and recipe developer. At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen is her magnum opus, if I may be so bold, a well-researched, deliciously crafted and carefully written guide to making the most of all the wide array of plants – from whole grains to beans to vegetables to seaweed, yes – available to us today. It feels like an instant classic, modern and interesting and definitive. (Also, the photography is jaw-droppingly beautiful.)
These days, it's tough to keep up with the onslaught of information blaring at you from every corner, and the cookbook market is no exception. The rate at which new cookbooks come down the pipeline is crazy, for lack of a better word, and the speed and haste in which they are thrown together is sometimes depressingly apparent. But in this case it's clear that Amy poured an enormous amount of work into getting the book just right. There is so much information here, so many thoughtful little tips and nice stories, not to mention the delicious recipes, that it really earns the adjective of encyclopedic. I'm so impressed.
I've cooked from the book for several months now, but I've also kept it by my bed for a soothing bedtime read and I'm happy to say that it works on both counts. For those of you who are interested in why soaking grains is so good for you, how to use seaweed to bolster the flavor of beans, for example, or how to make desserts out of things like ground toasted coconut, maple syrup and oat flour, you need this book. And if you're a vegan, this book will become your Joy of Cooking. I'm not a vegan, or even a vegetarian, but the recipes are so richly conceived and so well-developed that they don't read as "special diets" food, but rather as warming, soulful, wonderful food, the kind I'd like to eat all the time. (There are a few exceptions, mostly in the dessert chapter, but I imagine that for people who are gluten-free or vegan or lactose-intolerant or all of the the above, it's manna from heaven. I mean, toasted coconut crust for pies, chocolate pots de crème, Earl Grey fruit cake, helloooo?)
My latest discovery in the book is a black rice breakfast pudding made with coconut milk and lightly sweetened with maple syrup. You soak the rice overnight first, then cook it with coconut milk, water and nut milk (those of us who aren't vegan can use regular milk, like I did, which makes the pudding creamier than nut milk will) until it's soft and creamy and the "pudding" is a deep, beautiful purple. Spooned into a bowl and topped with cool slices of banana and some crisped-up toasted pieces of coconut (regretfully missing from the photos here), it's the nicest breakfast I've had in a long while. Warming, rib-sticking, tropical. Hugo loved it too, by the way!
My husband is obsessed with Amy's turmeric lemonade that I doctored with blood oranges during a recent onset of the flu, and next up on our to-try list is her silky cauliflower-celery root soup made with two whole roasted heads of garlic and roasted shiitakes. There's cherry-coconut granola and a corn-tofu frittata, a hibiscus drink made with ginger and citrus and a black bean butternut stew, among so many other things I cannot wait to try.
And! The second copy is for one of you! Yippee! Just leave me a comment and tomorrow evening I'll pick a winner.
Have a wonderful Friday, everyone. March is almost here!
UPDATE: Anne is the winner! Thanks for participating, everyone! Comments are now closed.
Amy Chaplin's Black Rice Breakfast Pudding with Coconut and Banana
Adapted from At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen
Serves 4 to 6
1 cup black rice, washed and soaked in 4 cups of water for 12-24 hours
1 cup coconut milk
1 1/4 cups milk (cow or almond)
2 cups water
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup maple syrup or coconut nectar
Sliced banana, for serving
Toasted coconut flakes, for serving
1. Drain and rinse the rice. Place in a heavy-bottomed pot and add the coconut milk, almond or cow's milk, the water and the salt. Bring to a boil over high heat without the lid, then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. (Some liquid may escape – as above.)
2. When the rice is tender and the pudding is creamy, remove from heat and stir in the sweetener. If desired, you can thin the pudding with a little extra nut or cow's milk. Serve topped with sliced banana and toasted coconut. Leftovers can be reheated the next day with a little water stirred in to loosen the pudding.
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198 responses to “Amy Chaplin’s Black Rice Breakfast Pudding with Coconut and Banana”
This looks gorgeous! I tried to make a version of this once before (from a Thai cookbook) and it didn’t quiet get that puddingy texture that yours clearly has – I’ll try again with this recipe!
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Ahhh! Between you and Megan Gordon, I’ve heard nothing but good things about this cookbook… I assume it’s easy to cook from living in Germany? (Fellow expat here, living in Mainz.) Sometimes different ingredients are a bit difficult to find over here.
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Yay! Almost like champorado!
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Ahhhh! Between you and Megan Gordon, I’ve heard nothing but good things about this cookbook…I assume it’s easy to cook from in Germany? (Fellow expat here, living in Mainz, and sometimes certain ingredients from US cookbooks can be a bit hard to find…)
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Right up my alley 🙂
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Ahhhh! Between you and Megan Gordon, I’ve heard nothing but good things about this cookbook…I assume it’s easy to cook from in Germany? (Fellow expat here, living in Mainz, and sometimes the ingredients for US cookbooks are a bit hard to find here…)
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Wow, would love to win this! Fingers and everything else crossed 😄
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Sounds great! I like a breakfast that doesn’t require lunch or snacks 2 hours later.
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🙂 exactly what is missing in my shelf….
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Oh, pick me, pick me! My best friend is a vegan and would love to discover some delicious things to cook for her. Can’t wait to try this breakfast pudding, looks divine and reminds me of something I ate years ago in Thailand.
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The color alone is worth the effort!
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Let’s cook from this together soon. Planning to make the porridge for S’s breakfast tomorrow morning! x
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Oh, yumserooney! This looks more than delicious! Can’t wait to see the book with the pictures.
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Oh!! I’m 39 weeks pregnant with our second child and would love to change the way we eat as a family. This book could mean a great new start!! thanks alot!
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I think the picture of the pudding just made me drool a little! I’m not vegan but the book looks lovely indeed – at least it reminds me that I really need to up my veggie intake 🙂
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I’ve been eyeing this book for a while – it would be so, so fabulous to win it, you would definitely make a whole-grain loving student on a budget super happy. (fingers crossed!)
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Sounds really good! Loved that restaurant!
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Ooh Luisa (or maybe the random number generator), pick me! I’ve been diagnosed with gluten intolerance last year and promptly bought every glutenfree ingredient/alternative I could find… and don’t really have a clue what to do with them. I’m mostly eating veggies with basmati rice these days, something more creative would be more than welcome!
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Oh man, this book looks so great! The video trailer is pretty cool too (that pantry! stripes! dog! avocados!). Once I get my hands on some black rice, I will make this pudding asap 🙂
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Wow, this book looks great, and the recipe too! I hope I win, but even if I don’t, I’ll start my search for black rice so I can at least try the recipe.
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This book looks really lovely. Thank you for sharing!
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oh me please!!
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This book sounds too good to be true!
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Ooh! I’ve been hearing a bit about this cookbook – all good, intriguing things. Thanks for sharing in this recipe! It has Saturday morning breakfast written all over it.
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I comment rarely (although I cook from these pages often :)), but one look on that picture and I am convinced – I NEED that book! 🙂
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How nice of you to share…..maybe, me?
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Oh! My! Goodness! I’m vegan and can’t believe I haven’t heard of this cookbook yet! It looks divine and the pudding as well! Can’t wait to try the recipe…Thanks for sharing!
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I have heard of this book! The best things about it really. Even though I’m not vegan, I love cooking all sorts of different dishes and being Greek, I’m no stranger to simple yet satisfying legume and vegetable dishes (not side dishes) and this book would be a good addition to my arsenal of good cookbooks. Love the fact that you say it is almost encyclopedic! I value your opinion so I would be thrilled to get this book!
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I love a breakfast pudding!
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Oh yay, I’ve been so curious about this book, and a rec from Luisa is very valuable! Hope you all are feeling better!
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Oh yes! This looks delightful! Luisa – I’m wondering what type of coconut milk you used for this? I am living in Frankfurt (after NYC for many years) and so far what I have found is much more like coconut cream than milk! Thank you!
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Sounds like a great book!
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Wow, das steht schon ganz lange auf meiner Wunschliste.. Besonders turmeric lemonade klingt gut! Liebe Grüße aus Leipzig nach Berlin!
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That looks so pretty!
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Ooh pick me! I would love to get less dependent on dairy.
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Delicious! I would love a copy!
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Thanks so much Luisa, this made my mouth water and I am sitting in my office now dreaming about black rice with cococnut milk. As a fulltime working mother of a toddler and a pre-schooler I am always looking for inspiration to make our meals as healthy and at the same time as tasty as possible! The book sounds like it would do just that. Would love to win the extra copy (fingers crossed ;-)).
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Oh, and forgot to add: loved the picture of the pot with the boiled-over rice. Thanks so much for keeping it real Luisa. One of the reasons why your blog has been and continues to be my favorite!
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Gorgeous cover!! Would love to have this in my cookbook library! My daughter in Berlin got me hooked on you after she sent me a delightful birthday gift of “My Berlin Kitchen.” Thank you for sharing your talent with the world!
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Although I’m not vegan, I love vegan cooking and am always looking for new vegan recipes and creative ways to cook using less or no dairy. Would be delighted to have a new vegan cookbook!
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This book sounds amazing! Would love to get my hands on a copy. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
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This rice pudding sounds awesome (I love any kind of rice pudding), and even though I’m not vegan, you’ve definitely convinced me to check out the cookbook. Always good to get more plants and whole foods in my diet, right?
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Turmeric lemonade? Yes, please! What a great idea!
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Greetings from Finland! I’m an avid reader of your recipes and stories, not only because I have a hungry son about the same age as yours. This cookbook would be a great help in figuring out how to cook in a more sustainable way and without cruelty towards animals. Thanks for keeping a very informative blog!
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The pudding looks wonderful, as does the book.
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Sounds perfect. I’ll have to try out this recipe over the weekend. Just picked up a bag of black rice recently.
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The book sounds beautiful! I would love to cook from it.
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This looks like a great cookbook!
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My two girls loved it – pleeeease they cried when
I told them i enter the contest for the book-
Meanwhile we cook it again 🙂
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This cookbook sounds wonderful. Thanks so much for hosting this giveaway.
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