the easiest pumpkin "pudding" imaginable

I used to spend more time cooking... before I had to give up both wheat and dairy (and then soy). Since I mostly cook for one now, and because it's too hard to cook for larger numbers with foods I still love, but can no longer eat, I have had to find ways to streamline. Otherwise, it feels too much like I'm dining on the law of diminishing returns.

I don't remember when, but on one fortuitous shopping trip, I discovered that Quaker sells a very convenient box of individual packets of grits. Now grits have become my main staple. I began using them just by cooking a packet in the microwave (for one minute) to go with some eggs and maybe bacon, but then discovered, gradually, that I could cook a light-- but very satisfying-- meal in a bowl, beginning with one serving of grits. And in practically no time. (Note: I always cover the grits, etc., loosely, with a paper towel or napkin or paper plate, nothing plastic, to keep them from spilling over.)

I began experimenting by adding just one egg, after the initial cooking, and then returning the bowl to the microwave for another spell (times vary, but probably for a minute or two); and then adding two eggs (w/ Omega 3); other times one or two eggs with some frozen shoepeg corn (smaller kernels taste sweeter & better & are easier to digest), and maybe with some bacon or ham, which might also be heated in the microwave on a plate on top of the bowl of grits. At other times, some mushrooms, from a can if that's all I had on hand. For something sweet, a chopped up banana is also good, or a few berries. Or just a small sprinkling of chocolate chips.

More recently, though, I had been wanting something with pumpkin, probably an unsatisfied craving leftover from the holidays. Finally, I opened one of the several cans of organic pumpkin pie filling that had been collecting in the cabinet, and used about 1/3 of it, adding it to the cooked grits, after beating in two eggs. (Remember, this is all happening in one bowl, with a spoon and a fork, and something to cover the bowl while in the microwave.)

I started off with two minutes in the microwave (after the initial minute for the grits), but the "pudding" needed more time, perhaps because the combination of two eggs and the moisture in the pumpkin. I think I gave it another minute and a half. Earlier on, I used to stir in between microwave sessions, but now I usually just put it back in for more time, if it's underdone. Everything puffs up a bit, far less than a souffle, but still pleasingly, and then settled down a bit, like other baked custards. The texture is not as smooth as the usual pudding, but then the base is ground corn, not milled flour. But if you like polenta, you won't mind.

For a little extra flavor and other good things, I'll dust it with a very small amount of Green & Black's ground chocolate, an equally small amount of flax (because I'm still getting used to it), and a packet of raw brown sugar. Why all the individual packets? Partly for convenience in measuring, but also because I've been making it at work in the communal microwave, and having it for breakfast, while other people are eating other goodies that I can't have. I never used to buy pumpkin pie "filling," only the packed pumpkin, but in this case, having it pre-spiced is a definite advantage, and because it's an organic brand I found in the supermarket, it doesn't contain other things (like modified food starch) that I never know for sure are safe for me to eat.

I confess that I may actually like my "pudding" even more than I used to love pumpkin pie. Which was considerable.