Cooking Therapy

Rice is a universal crop, and can be found in many recipes around the globe. I love eating rice as much as I can fit on my plate, but it is often seen as a side to a savory meal rather than a main course. Rice pudding, however, changes all that. It makes rice the star of the course. It’s a sweet, creamy blend of soft rice that packs an amazing amount of flavor. Top and blend some cinnamon in it and it’s out of this world. For this recipe I wanted to use the seasonal flavor of pumpkins and incorporate it in an already delicious dessert. It is an Autumnal twist on this classic favorite. As you can see from the photos, I do enjoy my cinnamon, and I like swirling it into my pudding when I eat it. While it does take a bit of time to cook the rice pudding, the effort will be well worth it in the end. Try yours today!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours

Serves: 8

Ingredients

2 cups arborio rice

8 cups whole milk

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups of sugar

3 capfuls of vanilla extract

3 tablespoons of cinnamon, plus more for garnish

2 teaspoons nutmeg

2 teaspoons allspice

2 teaspoons of ground ginger

1 teaspoon of cloves

Instructions:

• In a heavy bottom pot, add the sugar, the whole milk, the rice, and 2 capfuls of the vanilla, and stir. Make sure you are constantly stirring throughout so that the rice does not sink to the bottom and burn. Bring to a boil over a medium high heat, then lower the heat to simmer the mixture
• Let it cook, constantly stirring in 30-second to 1-minute intervals
• About 30 to 40 minutes of simmering, prep the spiced pumpkin
• In a pan, add the cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, and cloves. Toast for 30 seconds on a high heat

• Then add the pumpkin puree and cook on a low heat until it is heated
• You will see that the rice has absorbed some of the milk. Add the warm pumpkin mixture and heavy cream into the milk mixture. Stir well until the pumpkin has been blended in with the liquids
• Continue simmering on a low heat until the mixture thickens, and the rice has softened. If the mixture has thickened but the rice is still a bit undercooked, slowly add a bit more milk and stir. Keep doing this as needed until the rice softens
• Transfer into serving bowls and sprinkle some cinnamon on top to garnish
• Serve hot or cold
• Enjoy!