Creamy Rice Pudding

Recently, Peter and I went out for chinese food with my family and ended up with a bunch of extra rice. I feel like this happens every time we have chinese food. I hate to see it go to waste, so I usually like to make rice pudding with those superfluous servings of rice that they serve.


I love Kozy Shack rice pudding, so I found (what claims to be) the history and recipe behind it. I recreated it at home to be a slightly healthier version. This one is SO good that you might actually confuse it for Kozy Shack, and you'd never even know that it's a better-for-you version too!


The 'Kozy Shack' recipe that I found, uses whole milk and uncooked rice that simmers in the whole milk mixture to cook into the pudding. Instead, I used one part non-fat milk and one part half & half for the creamy base, and I used precooked rice so that you can use that leftover rice that always makes it into your fridge after a chinese food dinner.


Recipe (4 servings)

• 2 cups Half and Half
• 2 cups Nonfat Milk
• 1 Egg
• 1/3 cup Sugar
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1 1/2 cups leftover or precooked Rice
• 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
• dash of Cinnamon

Combine your half & half and milk in a pot and bring to a simmer over low heat (about 5 minutes)

While your milk simmers, cream together the egg, sugar and salt:

Stir the egg mixture into the simmering milk. Mix well. Then add the rice into the pot and stir again.

Continue to simmer pot over low heat, stirring constantly

Simmer, stir, and allow to thicken for about 30-40 minutes

Eventually the rice grains will swell, and you should be able to see them in the mixture without even stirring it up. Then remove pot from the heat.

Stir the vanilla into the mixture:

Sprinkle just a dash of cinnamon into the pot (I just tilted the cinnamon shaker and gently tapped it twice to get this much):

Stir well:

Serve:

Eat:

Enjoy the sweet, creamy goodness:

OR, cool in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator...

and enjoy it chilled, Kozy Shack style!

Alternative Options: 

• Add 3/4 cup golden raisins into the pot for the last 10 minutes that it simmers
• Serve topped with raisins, chopped pistachios, or an extra sprinkle of cinnamon for a little garnish and extra flavor.