Vanilla rice pudding with strawberry, wild mint and praline
This takes me right back to childhood around the dining room table when rice pudding was a treat, with a dollop of mum’s homemade strawberry jam spooned into the middle. I’d always swirl it around and make it into a pink mess, to my mum’s horror. Tasted great though.
Serves two 1 tbsp hazelnuts, peeled
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 heaped tbsp pudding rice
1 tsp butter
⅓ vanilla pod, seeds scraped out and pod retained
300ml milk
2 tbsp double cream
6 strawberries, two halved, the others left whole
4 mint leaves, shredded 1 Heat the oven to 180C/ Gas Mark 4. 2 Make the praline by gently melting 2 tablespoons of the sugar on a moderate heat until it becomes caramel, making sure it doesn’t burn. This shouldn’t take long. When golden brown, add the hazelnuts and combine whilst still on the heat. Then carefully pour from the pan onto an oiled surface or a non- stick silicon mat, and allow to cool for an hour or so. Once cool, blitz in a food processor to the texture of breadcrumbs. Set aside.
3 To make the rice pudding, place the rice, milk, remaining sugar and the vanilla seeds and pod in an ovenproof dish and bring to a very gentle simmer on the hob. Remove from the heat, cover with a lid and bake in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Keep checking to ensure it isn’t catching on the bottom. Once the rice has swollen, it’s cooked.
4 If you prefer skin on your rice pudding ( how my mum makes it), then cook in a shallow ovenproof dish and do not cover. It may take a little longer.
5 Once cooked, remove from the oven and add the butter and cream to enrich the rice. Allow to cool for a minute or two then serve in warm bowls topped with a few strawberries, a sprinkle of praline and some shredded mint leaves.