Berry Creamy and Delicious!

Crema di Riso alla Sambuca con Frutti di Bosco

Sambuca Jasmin-Rice Pudding with Mixed Berries

Oh, how boring! A children's dessert and such an old-fashioned one at that! Yes I can hear you thinking that to yourselves, of ye of little faith! But you don't really think I just made any-old rice pudding now, do you? And you know I have no children! So in went the alcohol- and a good time was had by all- haha! Well... by me that is, as I obviously polished this delicious little treat off on my own!

Star anis and Sambuca gave this rice pudding a nice adult twist, vanilla and cinnamon kept it traditional and mixed berries kept it fresh and tangy... all in all a good thing I would say! Easy to make and ready to enjoy in just 20 minutes- and this is how to do it!

Bring 3 cups of milk for each cup of rice you are going to cook to the boil and add a stick of cinnamon, a star anis and a piece of vanilla pod to make it delicious and aromatic from the start. I used a mix of half short grain risotto rice and half jasmin rice to make this... I wanted the creaminess of the carnaroli but also the perfume of the jasmin. I stirred in the rice, added a pinch of salt and sweetened mine with Stevia as usual... sugar, honey or maple syrup are also good options though! 

I reduced the heat to a low simmer and let it sit for 5-6 minutes to begin cooking normally, after that time, I gave it a good stir with a wooden spoon, nice a vigorously, to get the surface of the grains of rice rubbing nicely together and giving off plenty of starch that would make the rice thicken. 

I gave it another couple of minutes and stirred again, and repeated this over and over, until the rice was thick, swollen, creamy and full of flavor from the cinnamon and anis, which I then removed. After 15 minutes total cooking time, I gave it one last stir, turned off the heat and let it sit with the lid on for a further 5 minutes- and in the meantime, prepared a little simple compote by cooking down a couple of handfuls of the red berries, with a little Stevia, water and sambuca, then draining it through a fine sieve and adding a little instant gelatin to thicken it slightly. 

I served this on top of the steaming rice pudding, with a few fresh berries and a sprig of fresh mint and the star anis as a garnish... easy as pie, pretty as a picture- and tasty as can be! Hope you give it a go when the kids are away! Enjoy!