Creamy Baked Rice with The Gold Panner

Creamy with mellow lemon and apricot flavours. To add to the lusciousness, try using ‘Half & Half’, a blend of milk and single cream. Topping the pudding with lemon shreds adds flavour and texture, but don’t go overboard with the amount – less is more.

Serves 4 generously

Ingredients

½ cup Arborio rice

1 tablespoon Taste of the Alps, The Gold Panner – Apricot and Lemon Jam

750ml full cream milk

1 tablespoon sugar

½ small lemon

To serve

Fernglen Farm Artisan Sheep Milk Yoghurt, Natural

…..

Heat the oven to 160°C.  Lightly grease a 5-cup-capacity ovenproof dish (preferably one that is not too deep).

Scatter the rice evenly over the base of the dish then dollop the jam in the centre of the rice.

Mix together the milk and sugar then pour over the rice and gently stir.

Cover the dish with compostable foil and put in a shallow baking tray. Put into the oven and bake for 1 hour then carefully remove the foil and bake for a further 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, pare the rind from the lemon, leaving behind the white pith, then shred thinly. Blanch in boiling water then refresh under cold water. Put on kitchen paper to drain.

Remove the rice pudding from the oven and scatter over the lemon shreds. Return to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes until the pudding has a golden crust and slightly caramelised edges. (The rice should be soft and tender).

Serve hot, warm or cold with spoonfuls of Fernglen Farm Artisan Sheep Milk Yoghurt.

Tips

• Some recipes suggest you stir the pudding 2-3 times during the first hour and you can do this, but I prefer to leave it alone and let a crust begin to form naturally.

• As the rice pudding is covered during the first hour and, once completely cooked you should have some residual milk that the rice hasn’t absorbed. As you begin to serve, gently stir the milk into the rice. A bit sloppy is good!

• If your oven runs on the hot side then bake pudding at 150°C.