Pudding Play

Today’s recipe comes courtesy of my mother. Not even an inspiration. She actually wrote out the recipe and ingredients. Don’t be fooled though - she did it for her own food blog, not mine. However, she made this rice pudding yesterday and so I demanded a recipe for it. And here it is. 
My mother's writing style is quite different to mine. She really likes to embellish recipes with sensory descriptions. I guess I can't really do that, having never made these things myself. But seeing as this is my blog, I have edited bits (most) of what she has written, into something a bit simpler, but perhaps somewhat lacking in the same artistic vision. (Not that I can't be artistic - my friends will remember when asked to VERY simply analyse a painting, I waxed lyrical about the "the light and dark metaphorical cloth of life." It was a picture of a lady in a dress.)

Anyway, I digress. Back to rice pudding. Here I give you some handy hints from my mother left unadulterated. 

“Indian rice pudding is never baked in the oven. The creaminess comes from reducing the milk by more than half and this takes time!  More than an hour of constant stirring – so pull up a bar stool, get a book and get set for a marathon run of stirring.” 

“The best pan for cooking the rice pudding is, of course, a cast iron Le Crueset pan – the bigger the better – no boiling over and spilling of the frothy milk.”

She is much much better with her level of detail in her recipes. But as always, times and measurements are approximate.

Indian Rice Pudding
With raisins, cashews and almonds.


Serves 6 

Half a cup of basmati rice, washed and dried in a sieve for about half an hour
A knob of butter
A few cardamom seeds
Some cinnamon sticks1/2 cup / handful skinless chopped almonds1/2 cup / handful chopped cashews
1/2 cup / handful washed raisins
3 litres of full cream milk
Cup of sugar – or to taste

1. Warm the milk up in batches in a measuring jug in the microwave.
2. Melt the butter in the pan and add the cardamom and cinnamon. The spices will release their flavour into the butter.
3. Add the rice and stir gently to coat with the butter and fry for a minute or two on low heat.
4. Add a litre of hot milk to the rice and stir, and turn up the heat.  
5. When the milk froths and nearly boils over, reduce the heat to a simmer and keep stirring. The grains of rice will be quite distinct.
6. Add the nuts and raisins.
7. When the milk reduces and the mixture begins to thicken, add more milk – about half a litre at a time.  Keep stirring making sure that the pudding does not stick to the bottom and get burnt.  
8. Continue the process until all the milk is added and the mixture is thick like lightly whipped double cream. The rice grains will be soft and will no longer hold their individual shape. and they will look a bit squished.
9. Add the sugar. The mixture will be a bit runny as the sugar dissolves.
10. Simmer for a few more minutes
11. Take off heat, and place in a nice dish to be served and eaten. Yum yum yum!

Make sure that the bottom is well stirred (ooh err!). That is, the bottom of the pan, obviously. If bits at the bottom are left and become burnt, it will make the entire rice pudding smell and taste foul. Which is a waste of good rice pudding if you ask me. 

If almonds are bought skin on (which might actually be better if you think about it - more versatile), then place them in a deep dish or measuring jug and pour boiling water over them. Pour out the water after 5 minutes and you’ll be able to easily pop them out of their skins (is it just me or does that sound like something from a horror movie?). Speaking of horror movies, although it isn't one, I have been terrified by watching the Lovely Bones. Of course, you can easily skip this step or buy already skinned ones. Even my mother admits sometimes when cooking she creates more work for herself. 

According to my mother “The pudding is best served warm.” But don’t be fooled - yesterday I ate some cold, and it was still delicious. It’s also nice in the morning as a decadent sort of porridge, and if eaten straight out of the fridge is all creamy and thick. This however could be something to do with my strange breakfast eating habits. That is if you can call eating pizza at 1pm breakfast. That is an average time for me to come downstairs at weekends, holidays or any time I don’t actually have to get up early (early being 10am.

My mother also has a few variations to offer.
For a kind of Arabian feel, add a few drops of rose essence can be added and the pudding decorated with edible rose petals.

Instead of chopping the cashews, take a pestle and simply roll it over the cashews and crush them.

Add a few saffron strands for a splash of colour and a different note in the fragrance and taste.

The cashews will transform into soft bites, the almonds usually retain a touch of crunch, giving a nice contrast of texture. However, a couple of months ago, my dad admitted, after 25 years of marriage, that he prefers this rice pudding without nuts. And he kept quiet all that time :P

I think in this blog I should also keep a record of what I myself try to make. Today it was "just add water" couscous. And surprisingly, it wasn't bad. I added some sweetcorn (which I add to many things I make, because it is delicious and easy - just open a can [is there a difference between can and tin?]), some ham, and some oven-dried tomatoes made by my mother. They are even better than sun dried tomatoes you buy if you ask me. Nothing beats homemade, they are so moreish. The couscous would have been great for Duke of Edinburgh expeditions. I ended up eating the most awful things on D of E. But that would take up another post.

I know I said I would do something about strawberries on this post but this one I think is quite long enough so I'll see what other food is coming my way. If anyone actually does read this, I'd be grateful for feedback, comments, ideas, anything really. Talk to me about non food stuff, Duke of Edinburgh awards, the Lovely Bones, overzealous artistic analysis if you want.

Bye bye xxxx :)