Rum Tummy Tummy

When I was living in London, one of my favorite on-the-go lunches was rice pudding with raspberry jelly from the local Tesco. I know people typically think of rice pudding as a dessert, but I would pretend it was something more akin to yogurt (or as the posh Brits would say, “Yoh-ghurt”). So when I saw the Barefoot Contessa (aka MY IDOL) whip up a batch on her latest show, I hopped off the couch and headed to the grocery store.

This recipe is fairly easy, it just takes some time and vigilance.



Ina Garten’s Rum Raisin Rice Pudding

Ingredients
¾ cup Raisins
2 tbsp Dark rum (I picked up a super tiny bottle of Myers Dark Rum for $3)
¾ cup White basmati, or long grain rice.
½ tsp Kosher salt
1 Extra-large egg, beaten
1 ½ tsp Pure vanilla extract


Directions
1. In a small bowl, combine the raisins and rum. Stir to coat, and set aside.
2. Combine the rice and salt with 1 ½ cups water in a medium heavy-bottomed steel saucepan. Bring to a boil, stir once, and simmer, covered, on the lowest heat for 8-9 minutes, until of the water is absorbed.
3. Stir in 4 cups of half-and-half and sugar and bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 25 minutes, until the rice is very soft. Stir often, especially towards the end.
4. Slowly stir in the beaten egg and continue to cook for 1 minute.
5. Off the heat, add the remaining cup of half-and-half, the vanilla, and the raisins with any remaining rum.
6. Pour into a bowl, and place a piece of plastic wrap directing on the pudding to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate. Serve warm or cold.