Carolina Gold Rice Pudding Recipes

CAROLINA GOLD RICE PUDDING

Steps:

• Put the rice in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water.
• Add the salt and 3 cups of boiling water.
• Cover and cook until the rice is tender, about 30 minutes.
• Stir in the condensed milk, butter, and raisins.
• Cook, stirring frequently, over simmering water until the pudding thickens slightly, about 20 minutes.
• Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the vanilla and nutmeg.
• Spoon the pudding into individual custard cups and refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Invert puddings onto chilled plates and serve with fruit sauce.
• For the fruit sauce:.
• Combine the orange juice, sugar, and cornstarch in the top of a double boiler.
• Cook the mixture over simmering water until it thickens.
• Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the lemon juice, butter, rum extract, and stewed fruit.
• Serve warm over rice pudding.

CAROLINA GOLD RICE

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil and butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat until sizzling hot (see Know-how, page 100). Add the shallot and cook and stir for about 2 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the rice, season with salt and pepper to taste, and stir to coat with oil and butter. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the thyme and just enough broth to cover the rice by about 1/4 inch, stirring just once to combine.
• Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the rice is tender and all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, for about 5 minutes. Serve warm.
• Often called the grandfather of long-grain rice in the Americas, Carolina Gold is a beautiful variety that was the star of the antebellum rice trade and a driving force in the creation of a distinct Southern culinary tradition. Despite these claims to fame, Carolina Gold fell by the wayside after the Civil War, along with the South's rice economy. It was half forgotten and nearly extinct by the time Richard Schulz, a Georgia surgeon and plantation owner, rehabilitated the grain in the 1980s. Thanks to his efforts, it is now once again commercially available from vendors like South Carolina's Carolina Plantation Rice and Anson Mills (see Sources, page 377).

RACHEL'S CREAMY RICE PUDDING

Steps:

• Place milk, rice, and sugar in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until rice is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Beat eggs in a bowl. Add a small amount of the rice mixture to the eggs to temper them. Pour mixture into the pot; add raisins and vanilla extract. Let cook until thickened, 15 to 20 minutes more. Add more milk if pudding gets too thick. Pour into a serving bowl and sprinkle cinnamon on top.

CAROLINA RICE PUDDING BRûLéE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease six 6-ounce ramekins and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
• In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the milk to a low simmer over medium heat with the rice, vanilla bean and reserved seeds, and salt. Raise the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender and the mixture is thick and creamy, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and discard the vanilla bean. Add the heavy cream and granulated sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Cool slightly, then stir in the egg yolks, butter, nutmeg, and cloves until the butter melts.
• Divide the pudding evenly between the prepared ramekins and bake for about 20 minutes, until slightly puffed but still soft in the center. Remove from the oven.
• Preheat the broiler or prepare a small kitchen torch. Sprinkle each pudding evenly with about 1 tablespoon of the natural cane sugar.
• If using a broiler, place under the broiler in the upper third of the oven until the sugar caramelizes, rotating the baking sheet to evenly brown, 1 to 2 minutes. If using a kitchen torch, torch each pudding individually to caramelize the sugar, being careful to keep the torch at the distance recommended by the manufacturer. Serve warm.