A bowl of something comforting. Rice pudding

As times get darker, physically and metaphorically, I’m looking for food that is simple and reassuring. Wouldn’t it be great to have food that embraces your tired soul with warmth and comfort? Rice pudding, in my opinion, is just such a food and deserves to be brought back to our kitchens, and our lives. Not the corner shop tinned one, but the you made from scratch in your kitchen one.

I can understand why traditional recipes for rice pudding can be off-putting, it takes 2 hours alone to cook it in the oven, to have that very satisfying skin on top. So it requires extra thought and planning as well as uses lots of energy, the two things so precious these days.

This is why I’ve developed a simple rice pudding recipe, that takes 35-40 minutes, and uses the ingredients that are to be found in your pantry. Other than the usual rice and milk, I would say that bay leaf is quite a key addition to the pudding. It contributes new flavours that elevates your pudding to new levels. And if you haven’t got that in your pantry, I would say it’s time you got some, as it’s such a fundamental ingredient for soups and stews and it doesn’t cost a lot. Ideally, you can forage some bay leaves from a bay tree that is so easy to find growing in the parks and hedges here in Wales. Nutmeg is quite important too, and I’d recommend stocking it in your pantry for many other recipes too.

Serves: 3-4, Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

200g risotto rice

400 ml water

50 gr sugar

800 ml oat/almond milk (the creamier type if possible)

1 bay leaf

a pinch of nutmeg

a pinch of cinnamon

Rinse the rice, add it to the pot together with all the other ingredients. Bring it to the boil, then simmer for around 30-35 minutes, or until it’s cooked and has a thick consistency.

Notes:

• It’s important that you use the shorter and fatter rice grain and not the long-grain.

• Lastly, vanilla works great with rice pudding, so if you happen to have some do add it. You can also add a bit of lemon zest, to have that slightly citrusy flavour.

Enjoy!

p.s. if you try making the recipe, do let me know in the comments section how it went.