Crock Pot Breakfasty Shit, Part: 2

This Week's Flavor: Aval Payasam. (Sounds exotic, doesn't it?)

In South India where my husband is from, they have a dessert sweet they call payasam, it's very similar to a rice pudding. I think with a few minor tweaks it could be a healthy breakfast item, and would work well in my Nesco. Here's my spin on it. It was a challenge to figure out a neutral tasting whole grain to go with the poha (a flattened rice, you can get this in your local Indian market). A nice bit of variety from oat oat and more oat.

To be honest, after two days of last week's flavor, I got bored (not an indication on the flavor combo from last week, but I get bored and demand a big variety in my foodstuffs), so last night (October 1st), I tossed all this into the Nesco and awoke that morning to something that was nothing short of glorious.  Doesn't look too appetizing at first, but give a good stir (the milk sort of formed a skin on top of the porridge, but redeems itself after a few good stirs). 

The "true test" came when I had the husband take a taste without telling him what it was. He blurted out, "Tastes like payasam!" Nice to start the day on an upnote, knowing my objective was achieved.


Ingredients:

1/2 C. Poha
1/2 C. Barley (not pearled)
1 C. Milk powder
4 C Water
1.5 C. Sugar or Splenda (or powdered sweetener of your choosing)
1 Generous pinch Cardamom powder
Pinch or a few strands of saffron
1 T. Butter

Grind Ingredients:
2 T. Dessicated or sweet shred coconut
5 whole Cashews or almonds (I did almonds, as I couldn't find my cashews)
1 Tsp. (White) Poppy seeds

Topping:  Slivered almonds, sultana raisins, some sweet shred coconut, and maybe some diced up dried apricots. (I also plan on adding 1 Mini Moo coffee creamer to it right before eating at my desk. Love Mini Moos, shelf stable half and half! Brilliant!)

Dump everything (including the ground ingredients) into the Nesco and give a good mix. Set the slow cooker setting for 4.5 hours and be sure to VENT the valve. About an hour into this, I opened it up and gave it a good stir before putting the lid on and going to sleep.

Makes approx: 5 servings, approximately 5-6 oz per. 

Note: A traditional payasam calls for the cashew garnish to be toasted in ghee. I feel if you get fancy canned nuts already roasted, that eliminates that step. Again. YMMV, and well, I'll be eating this as a breakfast and not a dessert item.
  
Note: I do about 4.5 hours in my crock (for this batch), because I find that it's all that's needed for what amounts to a half batch of cereal. Also, perhaps the Nesco slow cooker setting might run a little warmer than a standard crock pot with a low and a high setting. YMMV.  It helps to check on it midway to prevent scorch, if your new to crock pot cooking, and when trying out new grains.

PS: In all honesty, I don't think my metabolism can handle all this starch and calories. I eat pretty light in the a.m., and as much as the idea of eating something whole grain-intenstive for a meal makes me happy, I worry it might undermine my weight loss/weight management, as my diet is and should be more protein intensive.