Quinoa Date Pudding

Directions

1. 1
   Add the whole milk, quinoa, cardamom, cinnamon and tejpatta in a large saucepan on medium heat and bring it up to a gentle boil. Boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. 2
   While the quinoa is boiling, let's make the date syrup! Add the dates and 2 cups of water to a microwave safe bowl. Make sure that the dates are completely submerged in the water. I used a 4 cup measure and it worked great for me! Microwave for 6 minutes. Using an immersion blender or a food processor, puree the date mixture really, really thoroughly. Strain the date mixture through a fine mesh sieve that is lined with a double layer of cheesecloth. Once the mixture has cooled enough, you should be able to really twist the cheesecloth and get most of the liquid out. In the end you should have about 1 1/2 cups of the date liquid.
3. 3
   Once the quinoa has cooked for 20 minutes, add the date liquid along with a pinch of kosher salt and bring the whole mixture up to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes or so, until the mixture has thickened to the desired consistency. It is going to thicken as it cools, so you might want to take it off the heat while it is still a little liquid-y. Fish out the tejpatta, cardamoms and the cinnamon sticks and taste for salt. You can have the pudding at room temperature or chilled, garnished with chopped pistachios. Enjoy!