Name: Mexican Rice Pudding from Best of Mexican Cooking by Adriana Martin
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: PT-452233H40M15S
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 1 cup rice; 1 cup water; 1 tsp cardamom; 1 star anise; 1 cinnamon stick; pinch of salt; 3/4 cup dried cranberries; 1 12 ounce can evaporated milk; 1 cup whole milk; 1 TBS vanilla extract; 1 14oz can condensed milk

I received a free copy of Best of Mexican Cooking by Adriana Martin. I am showcasing a recipe for Mexican Rice Pudding from the cookbook.

Yesterday I introduced you to the new cookbook from my friend Adriana Martin - Best of Mexican Cooking. As I was looking through the book to pick a recipe to showcase I was struck by the rice pudding. It brought me back to my childhood.

Any time I visited my father’s mother she would always serve us rice pudding. It’s a dish I adore and I’ve been longing to recreate that memory and have not found a recipe that comes close. I have to say that the one included in this book is the closest I have come to that childhood memory. What is amusing is that my grandmother was Irish - born in Ireland and came over to the United States when she was a little girl Irish - and I am finding her comfort dessert in a Mexican cookbook. It only goes to show that good food is universal.

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Mexican Rice Pudding Recipe

1 cup rice
1 cup water
1 tsp cardamom
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
3/4 cup dried cranberries
pinch of salt
1 12 ounce can evaporated milk
1 cup whole milk
1 TBS vanilla extract
1 14oz can condensed milk

In a soup pot or cast iron Dutch oven over medium heat combine the rice, water, cinnamon stick, star anise, cardamom. Cook for 10 minutes stirring with a wooden spoon.

After the first boil the rice will become very creamy. Add the evaporated milk, whole milk and vanilla. Stir and continue to cook for 20 minutes.

When the rice is soft to the touch, add the condensed milk, and stir. Cook for another 10 - 15 minutes until creamy.

Stir in the dried cranberries
Remove and discard the cinnamon stick and star anise.
Remove from the heat and cover the pot with the lid. Serve cold or at room temperature sprinkled with a little ground cinnamon. Add whipped cream if desired

How Was the Mexican Rice Pudding?

It’s so good! It’s creamy. And just spicy enough - I played with the original recipe as I prefer cardamom to cinnamon so I added it instead. It’s one of those spices that people either love or hate and I am firmly in the love group. Whenever I can use it I do. It probably makes my recipe not so Mexican so if you want to be true to the original go with all cinnamon and don’t use that pesky star anise either. What can I write - I’m a rebel.

The recipe says to serve your rice pudding cold or at room temperature. I’m a likes her rice pudding cold kind of girl but it’s definitely a personal preference thing so do what you like best. But by all means pick up Best of Mexican Cooking if you want to try some authentic recipes from a talented chef.