I don’t know what it is about rice pudding, it’s not something I grew up eating, but I think it is the ultimate comfort food. Â I like it thick and creamy, studded with plumped raisins, and hot off the stove. Â And with the cool dampness settling in for the winter, combined with an enduring lack of sleep, I have been deeply craving comfort food. (That, and steaming hot bubble baths.)
My mother-in-law recently arrived with a suitcase full of all my favourite spices from India – the freshest cinnamon, cardamom, peppercorns, and cloves – so I’ve been using them in everything I can.
I tossed a cinnamon stick into my go-to rice pudding recipe along with a vanilla bean and a handful of raisins.
I stood at the stove stirring and tasting the warm pudding and deeply inhaling the sweet steam. Â It was like a much-needed warm hug. Â Now if only there was a pudding that feels like a nap.Â
The rice I used was Thai sticky (glutinous) rice – I had it on hand and wanted to find out if it would be a good substitute or arborio. Â It was great on the first day, but got too sticky overnight. Â Stick with arborio.
Feel free to substitute the vanilla bean for extract (just stir in a teaspoon at the very end) and/or the cinnamon stick for ground cinnamon (just swap in a teaspoonful at the same point in the recipe).
And I would totally support your decision to add an ounce of rum with the cream.
Cinnamon Raisin Rice Pudding
Ingredients
- 4 cups 2% or whole milk
- ½ cup arborio rice
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 cinnamon stick broken
- 1 vanilla bean scraped
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 egg yolks
- ½ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, bring milk to a boil with rice, raisins, sugar, butter, vanilla bean seeds, cinnamon stick and salt. Reduce to a simmer, and cook, stirring frequently, for about 1 hour, until rice is very tender.
- Whisk egg yolks in a small bowl. Slowly add 1/2 cup of hot pudding to yolks, whisking constantly, to temper the eggs. Slowly whisk egg mixture into remaining pudding in saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, 3-5 minutes, until pudding thickens. Remove from heat; stir in cream. Transfer to a shallow dish and chill 4 hours, up to overnight, pressing plastic wrap directly onto the surface to avoid a pudding "skin".
YOU ARE AMAZING! i absolutely adore poached eggs but i don’t even know how to make them the “old fashioned” way so i can only get them when i go out to restaurants! for breakfast this morning i had poached eggs and toast and a cup of tea and it was the perfect way to start my day! you are a genius, i never would’ve thought to add the vinegar…oh by the way, did i mention that i was able to have this fabulous breakfast out of my on-campus college apartment?? yum. 🙂
YOU ARE AMAZING! i absolutely adore poached eggs but i don’t even know how to make them the “old fashioned” way so i can only get them when i go out to restaurants! for breakfast this morning i had poached eggs and toast and a cup of tea and it was the perfect way to start my day! you are a genius, i never would’ve thought to add the vinegar…oh by the way, did i mention that i was able to have this fabulous breakfast out of my on-campus college apartment?? yum. 🙂
Haha love that I could help! Gee with words like “amazing” and “genius” floating around, I might start to get a big head… 😉
I tried it this morning and yes you did find a easy and quick way to microwave the PERFECT poached egg! Â Thanks looks like I will be having poached eggs alot more often.
Great!! 🙂
Great!! 🙂
I tried it this morning and yes you did find a easy and quick way to microwave the PERFECT poached egg! Thanks looks like I will be having poached eggs alot more often.
Great!! 🙂
Great!! 🙂
What a brilliant idea!  I really like eggs, but rarely make them that much because I’m terrified of undercooking them…I’ll definitely have to include this microwave poached egg in my quest to improve my egg-cooking skills.  Seriously amazing 🙂
Awesome! Am so trying this for breakfast, but thanks to you it’ll only take a minute 😀 Would putting a small plate over the ramekin or cup work instead of plastic wrap?Â
I don’t actually know how that would affect the transfer of heat… you’d could try it, but you’d have to be willing to sacrifice an egg if it doesn’t work!
I don’t think it did, although the yolks did start to go un-runny on the very edges. Might just be my microwave power though. Yay thanks for this, will be such a lifesaver.
OMG… I am obsessed with poached eggs!!! Seriously!!! If I am able to successfully do this, you will have changed my life.
hahah I LOVE your enthusiasm!  🙂 My life has been changed.  I believe yours will be too.Â
can’t believe how excited I am to try this. when’s breakfast?
can’t believe how excited I am to try this. when’s breakfast?
It is right now!! Run for the kitchen! 😉Â
can’t believe how excited I am to try this. when’s breakfast?