Oats and Coconut Milk Pudding

Ingredients
1/4 to 1/2 cup Whole rolled oats (Quick cooking kind)
*1/4 cup Jaggery ,grated[available in most Asian stores)
1/2 cup to 1 cup Water (depending on the amount of oats)
1 cup(about 4 ounce) Lite Coconut Milk
Roasted nuts and dried fruits for garnish

Cashew nuts, broken into small pieces – 3 tablespoons (Optional)
Raisins – 2 tablespoons (Optional)
cardamom powder – 1/4 teaspoon (Optional)
*If Jaggery is hard to find use 2 tablespoon brown or white sugar,or 3 teaspoon Agave nectar.

Method
In a heavy bottom sauce pan add the jaggery ,oats and water.Bring to a slow boil and cook until oats are softened.Reduce the heat and add the coconut milk,let simmer for 4-5 minutes until thick and creamy.Serve warm ,garnish with roasted nuts and dried fruits.

In a heavy bottom sauce pan add the powdered jaggery and water.Once the jaggery dissolves completely, pour this syrup slowly into another vessel so the impurities in the jaggery will remain in the bottom of the sauce pan itself. Now clean the sauce pan and transfer the syrup back to the sauce pan itself. Let this syrup boil for 2 minutes. Now add the oats to the syrup and let it boil for another 3 minutes. By this time the oats would have cooked. Now add the coconut milk to the oats/jaggery mixture and combine it well. Once it boils, switch off the stove.In a small frying pan add the coconut oil. Once it heats add the cashew pieces and raisins and fry until golden brown. Add this and the cardamom powder to the oats pradhaman.

Those who have ate oatmeal (or oats kanji) would know that oats tends to get sticky. I think toasting the oats in a dry skillet for 2 minutes before adding it to the jaggery syrup would make it less gooey.

Avocado Carob Pudding

2-3 avocados
1 3/4 cups of dates, pitted and cut up
1/2-3/4 c of water
3 Tbsp raw carob (or cocoa powder if you don't like carob-- it's all good)

In a blender, place avocados and blend until smooth. Add dates a few at a time with water and blend until smooth. Add carob and blend until mixed in. Chill. Serves 4-6.

Raw Carob-Cashew Pudding or Mousse

1 cup raw cashews, soaked in room-temperature water overnight (if soaking for more than 10 hours, place in the refrigerator)
12-14 dried dates, soaked in room temperature water overnight (if soaking for more than 10 hours, place in the refrigerator)
2 tsp. carob powder
water or soymilk, as needed
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract, optional

After the nuts and dates have soaked for at least 6 hours, drain the nuts but not the dates. Pour the cashews, dates and soaking water, and carob into a blender. Blend over low speed until combined.
If the mixture seems too thick to blend, you can either blend smaller batches or add more liquid, a small amount at a time, to encourage the mixture to whirl round. Stop every few seconds and scrape down the sides, then blend again, continuing to blend at progressively higher speeds, until you have a perfectly smooth and creamy pudding. This may take 5-10 minutes. Unfortunately, a food processor isn’t going to get the mixture quite smooth enough, so you’re just going to have to wait.