Rice pudding is a dessert I love, but don't get enough of. I've had a delicious rice pudding at Anthos, fried like an arancini. Two nights ago, I had an almond-scented rice pudding at a Turkish restaurant. But generally restaurants don't really serve rice pudding.
With just cream and sugar and nutrient-obliterated rice, rice pudding also isn't something I would want to eat every day, even if I could get my hands on it. Scarcity and nutrition led me to this healthy interpretation.
Rice pudding may very well be good because of the comfort-factor elicited when little squishy balls are suspended in a creamy base. It's a thing. Cottage cheese isn't trendy like yogurt or kefir, but I think it's an under-utlized ingredient -- most obviously in the realm of rice pudding-simulcrum desserts.
Chia seeds, of course, are trendy. When put in liquid, they inflate to 9x their size and are extremely high in protein, fiber, and Omega-3s. Together, the cottage cheese and chia seeds make a dessert of zero nutritional value into something you can most definitely eat everyday.
RECIPE: Mix one tablespoon chia seeds into 1 cup cottage cheese (small or large curd, fat-free or whole, your choice). Add a tablespoon of milk, to loosen it up and give the chia seeds more to soak up. Let rest for at least 20 minutes. Serve with fresh fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup or honey.