Pumpkin Oat Pudding

I've been working on this for a while. See, I love oatmeal, but I have to be careful with how much I have at once since I have diabetes. I also love pumpkin pie, but I also love the crust too much. When I want the flavor of pumpkin pie, I eat this! Since there's more pumpkin than oatmeal, it's more of a pumpkin pudding thickened with oats. I love the texture the oats give to it. 

What you need (some not pictured): 

• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup rolled oats (not quick oats) 
• Teensy pinch salt (optional, but it brings out flavor)
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (make sure it's not filling--just plain, no other additives)
• Cinnamon (and ginger, cloves, nutmeg, if you like them--I do)
• Vanilla extract (Use the real stuff if you have it, and make sure your bottle is well-loved like mine obviously is)
• Sweetener such as honey, maple syrup, or agave (I use stevia drops) 

Presenting the main cast

Turn burner on to medium high. Add water and oats. Add teensy pinch of salt, if using. When it starts to bubble, stir, turn heat down to simmer, and cook for several minutes, stirring often. This is twice as much water as you need to cook the oats, but they will soak it up. It's a good ratio for the finished pudding, but you can play with your pumpkin/water amounts if you want.

When everything starts thickening, add coconut milk. Make sure to wipe the inside of the measuring container with your finger to get out every last drop. Note I didn't say it had to make it into the pot. Sorry about the messy stove. I already got pumpkin on it somehow.

Stir, and let cook a minute or two more. Then add the pumpkin.

Stir again. (I'm noticing a theme here.) 

Then add your spices. Some people are cinnamon people. I'm one of them. I use around a whole tsp in my pudding. If you're not a cinnamon purist, add nutmeg, ginger, cloves, mace, cumin--strike the cumin. Unless you are really weird. But that's okay, I'll still love you. ("Smells like cumin." A bajillionty points to whomever gets that vague reference.)

After your delicious spices are added and your mouth is watering like crazy, add a spash of vanilla, then stir in the sweetener of your choice. I like to use flavored stevia drops.

Warning: this makes a really big bowlful. I like really big bowlfuls of pudding, but if you don't, share with someone. I like being selfish. Also, if I have skipped my snack and worked out or something, or I just feel the need for a humongous breakfast, I can serve it with something else. Like this. Sauteed mushrooms and onions with eggs and Southwestern Mrs. Dash. It was very tasty. And yes, I did serve myself breakfast in bed. (Actually, it was the nicest surface to take the picture on at the time.) If you are vegan you can do scrambled water-packed tofu with the veggies, which would also be amazing.

21 Day Fix equivalents: Pudding--1 Yellow, 1 Blue, 1 Green 

                                    Eggs (or tofu if you do that instead) and Veggies--1 Green, 1 Red