Tropical Quinoa Custard

This quinoa custard is similar to tapioca pudding but has a rich flavor almost like caramel. The recipe calls for lime zest, dried mango, and ginger; but I went with cinnamon, raisins, and pecans. I think that either version is delicious.

The recipe is from Whole Grain Baking.

Tropical Quinoa Custard
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup boiling water
1 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 large eggs
3/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons dark rum
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup dried mango, chopped
2 to 4 tablespoons crystallized ginger, minced
grated zest of 1 lime

Rinse the quinoa well. Place in a small bowl, pour the boiling water over it, and let the quinoa soak for 1 hour. Drain the quinoa and rinse it again with cold water.

Preheat the oven to 300F. Butter a 1 1/2-quart baking dish.

Place the quinoa in a saucepan with the milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it's thickened, about 15 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and heat through.

Beat the eggs, brown sugar, rum, salt and nutmeg in a medium bowl with a wire whisk. Gradually whisk in the hot quinoa mixture. Stir in the dried mango, crystallized ginger to taste and lime zest. Turn the custard into the buttred dish.

Bake until the sides of the custard are set, about 40 minutes. The center will still be wobbly--that's OK. Remove the custard from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes before serving.