Rice Pudding

Rice Pudding
Rice Pudding
Ingredients
  • 1/2cup short grain rice
  • 1/4teaspoon coarse salt
  • 2cups milk
  • 1large egg
  • 1tablespoon rice flour
  • 6tablespoons sugar
  • 1each bay leaf
  • 1each vanilla beansplit, scraped and pod and seeds reserved
  • 1/2cup golden raisins
  • 1/4cup cognacoptional
Yield:
Instructions
  1. Combine rice, salt, add 1 cup water and bring to a boil.
  2. Lower the heat to barely simmering, cover the pan, add cook the rice for 18 minutes.
  3. Turn off the heat, keep the pan covered, and allow the rice to steam for an additional 5 minutes.
  4. Transfer the cooked rice to a bowl.
  5. Cover with plastic wrap to seal in the heat.
  6. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the milk with the egg and the rice flour.
  7. Be certain to whisk out any lumps.
  8. Blend in 3 tablespoons of the sugar and set aside.
  9. Pour the remaining 1 3/4 cups milk into a sauce pan and sprinkle in the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar.
  10. Add the bay leaf and the scraped vanilla bean pod and seeds.
  11. Bring the mixture slowly to the boil.
  12. Temper the egg/rice-flour mixture with the boiling milk, then return all to the saucepan.
  13. Whisking constantly, slowly bring this mixture back to the bubbling boil, being careful not to scorch it.
  14. The mixture will thicken up to a nice sauce consistency.
  15. Pour this mixture over the cooked rice and stir to ensure an even blending.
  16. In a small saucepan, heat the raisins and the cognac for 2 minutes.
  17. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside to steep.
  18. If you don't wish to steep the raisins and cognac, stir the raisins directly into the pudding.
  19. Remove the bay leaf and the vanilla bean pod.
  20. Transfer the pudding to serving glasses, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the pudding, and refrigerate several hours or overnight. Remove the plastic covers, and serve.