Creamy rice pudding with rhubarb and cardamom

Name: Creamy rice pudding with rhubarb and cardamom
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 200g carnaroli rice; 1 fresh bay leaf; 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped; 3 strips lemon peel; 80g caster sugar; 1.2 litres full-cream milk, plus extra as needed; 200ml pure cream

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

September 15, 2023

Creamy rice pudding with rhubarb and cardamom.William Meppem

Time:30 mins - 1 hourServes:4

Rice pudding is one of my favourite desserts. Like a risotto, it benefits from frequent, if not continuous, stirring to ensure the creamiest consistency. Here I’ve used carnaroli rice, an Italian rice that’s good for risotto and rice pudding alike. Arborio and vialone nano are also suitable. The addition of a fresh bay leaf to the pudding adds an interesting herbaceousness and works very well with the lemon and vanilla. Topped with some stewed rhubarb, this is my idea of spring-dessert perfection. It can also be chilled and served cold, and loosened with some milk or cream before serving.

Ingredients

200g carnaroli rice
1 fresh bay leaf
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
3 strips lemon peel
80g caster sugar
1.2 litres full-cream milk, plus extra as needed
200ml pure cream

FOR THE STEWED RHUBARB

250g rhubarb, roughly chopped
100g caster sugar
3 cardamom pods, bruised
juice of half a lemon

Method

Step 1
To make the stewed rhubarb, place the rhubarb in a medium saucepan with the sugar, bruised cardamom pods and 2 tbsp of water. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then cook on a low-medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until the rhubarb is soft. Stir in the lemon juice and set aside.
Step 2
In a large saucepan, combine all of the ingredients for the rice pudding and stir well. Bring toa simmer over a medium heat,then reduce the heat to low and cook gently for 45 minutes, stirring often, or until the rice is al dente. If, towards the end of cooking, the rice begins to dry out before it’s cooked, add more milk, as needed.
Step 3
Remove the bay leaf, vanilla pod and lemon peel and spoon the warm rice pudding into bowls. Top with a dollop of the stewed rhubarb, then serve.