Rice pudding
Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2015 8:45 am
No not the mundane baked version you are thinking of, though that is delicious. I've been playing with a Nick Stellino recipe of rice pudding. Made on the stovetop and fantastically creamy. Oh, and easy to make too. Just follow the recipe 100%. Arborio rice must be used without substitution. The starch it brings is required to keep the pudding from turning into sweetened scrambled eggs.
Nicks is made with almond flavor and maraschino cherries and it's delicious. But I decided that since it's not baked that it can assume most any flavor; anchovy if you wish, just to go to an extreme. But instead of anchovy, yesterday I decided to make hazelnut/chocolate with roasted hazelnuts in the mix. The 100% cacao reduces the sweetness a bit (my wife thinks its sweeter but it isn't- it can't be), and it's just decadent.
As far as desserts go I don't think it's super high in calories, and a little goes a very long way in the hazelnut/chocolate version, so portions can be smaller.
Yes, you can make it.
Cherry Almond Rice Pudding
serves 6-8
Ingredients
4 cups milk
2/3 cup uncooked arborio rice
Pinch of salt
3 egg yolks †
1/3 cup sugar
*2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
*1 (8 ounce) can dark cherries, drained, cut in half and juice discarded (Nick used maraschino cherries on the show)
† - the easiest way to separate yolks from the white is to crack the eggs into a bowl and using your hands, hold your fingers with narrow “slots” between them. Just fish out the yolks cradling them gently and the white will run through your fngers and back into the bowl that they came out of.
Directions
Bring the milk, rice and salt to a boil in a 2 quart (2-1) nonstick (nonstick is not absolutely required)
saucepan set on medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and
keep at a slow boil for 10 minutes, stirring often. (I use even lower heat to reduce the tendency to boil over- keep an eye on it!)
In a medium bowl, mix the egg yolks, sugar, almond extract and
vanilla, stirring to dissolve the sugar. With a glass measuring cup or
ladle, remove about 1 cup of the hot milk/rice mixture from the pan and
gradually whisk it into the egg mixture in the bowl. Slowly pour the
egg mixture into the pan with the remaining milk/rice mixture and stir
until thoroughly mixed. Continue cooking over medium heat for 5
minutes, stirring constantly to prevent the pudding sticking to the
bottom of the pan. The pudding should become thick and coat the
back of a spoon. Stir in the cherries and pour the pudding into a
large serving bowl or individual desert bowls.
If you wish to serve the pudding warm, let it cool at room
temperature for 15-20 minutes and serve. To serve chilled,
refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight, covered. As in the
picture some grated chocolate can be sprinkled over the top.
Brian’s Hazelnut/chocolate variation
In the above recipe do not add the asterisked items.
Instead substitute:
2 tsps hazelnut extract
2 ozs (4 "squares") ghirardelli 100% cacao chocolate cut up to break in to pieces for easy melting
3/4 cup roasted hazelnuts
The chocolate is best cut up with a serrated knife. It is added immediately after the pudding has thickened and has been removed from the heat. Stir to melt and incorporate.
Allow to cool for a time to thicken a bit more. ½ hour is about right. Then stir in the hazelnuts that you’ve roasted in a 350°F oven to your taste, 10 minutes or so. Check them as they roast and pull them from the oven when they please you.
Spoon into dessert dishes, or put into a bowl. Like the almond/cherry version it can be served warm or chilled.
Nicks is made with almond flavor and maraschino cherries and it's delicious. But I decided that since it's not baked that it can assume most any flavor; anchovy if you wish, just to go to an extreme. But instead of anchovy, yesterday I decided to make hazelnut/chocolate with roasted hazelnuts in the mix. The 100% cacao reduces the sweetness a bit (my wife thinks its sweeter but it isn't- it can't be), and it's just decadent.
As far as desserts go I don't think it's super high in calories, and a little goes a very long way in the hazelnut/chocolate version, so portions can be smaller.
Yes, you can make it.
Cherry Almond Rice Pudding
serves 6-8
Ingredients
4 cups milk
2/3 cup uncooked arborio rice
Pinch of salt
3 egg yolks †
1/3 cup sugar
*2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
*1 (8 ounce) can dark cherries, drained, cut in half and juice discarded (Nick used maraschino cherries on the show)
† - the easiest way to separate yolks from the white is to crack the eggs into a bowl and using your hands, hold your fingers with narrow “slots” between them. Just fish out the yolks cradling them gently and the white will run through your fngers and back into the bowl that they came out of.
Directions
Bring the milk, rice and salt to a boil in a 2 quart (2-1) nonstick (nonstick is not absolutely required)
saucepan set on medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and
keep at a slow boil for 10 minutes, stirring often. (I use even lower heat to reduce the tendency to boil over- keep an eye on it!)
In a medium bowl, mix the egg yolks, sugar, almond extract and
vanilla, stirring to dissolve the sugar. With a glass measuring cup or
ladle, remove about 1 cup of the hot milk/rice mixture from the pan and
gradually whisk it into the egg mixture in the bowl. Slowly pour the
egg mixture into the pan with the remaining milk/rice mixture and stir
until thoroughly mixed. Continue cooking over medium heat for 5
minutes, stirring constantly to prevent the pudding sticking to the
bottom of the pan. The pudding should become thick and coat the
back of a spoon. Stir in the cherries and pour the pudding into a
large serving bowl or individual desert bowls.
If you wish to serve the pudding warm, let it cool at room
temperature for 15-20 minutes and serve. To serve chilled,
refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight, covered. As in the
picture some grated chocolate can be sprinkled over the top.
Brian’s Hazelnut/chocolate variation
In the above recipe do not add the asterisked items.
Instead substitute:
2 tsps hazelnut extract
2 ozs (4 "squares") ghirardelli 100% cacao chocolate cut up to break in to pieces for easy melting
3/4 cup roasted hazelnuts
The chocolate is best cut up with a serrated knife. It is added immediately after the pudding has thickened and has been removed from the heat. Stir to melt and incorporate.
Allow to cool for a time to thicken a bit more. ½ hour is about right. Then stir in the hazelnuts that you’ve roasted in a 350°F oven to your taste, 10 minutes or so. Check them as they roast and pull them from the oven when they please you.
Spoon into dessert dishes, or put into a bowl. Like the almond/cherry version it can be served warm or chilled.