Some days you find yourself in need of some good ol' fashioned comfort food. The other night we had a dusting of snow and we'd both had a rough day so I thought I'd whip up something warm and comforting. Dave is a big fan of rice pudding but I'd only attempted making it once a few years ago using already cooked rice. I was not in love with the result. This time around, I decided not to follow any recipe, just to use my instincts. Apparently my instincts were pretty good because the resulting rice pudding was delicious, much better than any store bought I've had. The secret (if you can really call it that) is to start with uncooked arborio rice, the kind normally reserved for risotto. The constant stirring develops the starches in the rice and make it nice and thick - and creamy to boot. You could really go any direction you want in terms of flavoring, I kept it pretty simple using a vanilla bean, cinnamon and some freshly grated nutmeg. Top it all off with a dollop of whipped cream and call it a night.
Rice Pudding
Serves about 6
- 3 cups milk
- 1 cup half and half
- 3/4 cup arborio rice, uncooked
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch of salt
Split vanilla bean in half and scrape out the seeds, place (along with pod) in a medium saucepan with remaining ingredients. Heat over medium low uncovered, stirring frequently for about 40 minutes until the rice has absorbed most of the liquids and you are left with a creamy, thick pudding. In the beginning you will question whether the rice will absorb all of the liquid, I assure you it will. Remove vanilla bean before serving.
Note: You can also serve at room temperature or cold from the fridge but I preferred it warm.
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