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Deliciously Organic: A Weekend Away and Rice Pudding

Deliciously Organic

A blog devoted entirely to simple, wholesome, organic cooking.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

A Weekend Away and Rice Pudding


I'm home from a long weekend get-away, the air has cooled, and the Santa Anna winds are ripping through the flat landscape today.  The heat is turned on in the house and I have a pot of rice pudding gurgling on the stove. 

Last week I was searching for inspiration and over the weekend I found plenty.  I had the opportunity to attend Helen's photography class and make some new friends who are also fellow bloggers. I then traveled to Las Vegas to spend some time with my Mom.  Few things are more inspiring than stimulating conversation with interesting new friends around a well-prepared table.



My Mom attended the Catersource convention in Las Vegas and was also a featured speaker.  Since I'm only a few hours away I thought it would be perfect to drive up and spend some time with her.  We attended several seminars and demos taught by caterers and also chefs.  Chef Carla Hall (from Top Chef) did a fabulous cooking demo and I laughed the entire way through.  Not only can Carla cook, but she has the most wonderful sense of humor.  Even though I'm not in the catering business, it was a blast being there and I even picked a few ideas for my own cooking. 


Early Monday morning, my Mom gave her speech and, wow, was I impressed.  She captivated the 500+ audience for 90 educational minutes and I was completely blown away.  What a thrill to see her in action! 

I'm home now and back to cooking, washing dishes, taking care of the kids and spending time with Pete.  It's great to get away and be able to come home and appreciate even the simple things once more. 




Brown Rice Pudding
I served this with cherries tossed with a bit of almond extract which made a lovely compliment.
Serves 6

1 cup brown rice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups water
4 cups whole milk
1 cup cream

3/4 cup maple syrup
1 vanilla bean
1 teaspoon almond extract

Melt butter over medium heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pot.  Pour in rice and sauté for 3-4 minutes until rice begins to turn milky-white.  Stir in water, bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, cover pot with lid and continue to simmer for 30 minutes or until the water is almost fully absorbed. 

Stir in milk, cream, and maple syrup.  Cut vanilla bean in half, scrape seeds out, and place seeds and bean in pot with rice.  Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and maintain a simmer.  Cook uncovered, for about 45 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens and a spoon is just able to stand up in the pudding.

Remove from heat and remove vanilla bean and stir in almond extract.  Pour rice into a large serving dish or individual dishes and cover tightly with plastic wrap.  Cool and serve at room temperature or chilled. 

11 Comments:

Blogger Rose said...

These crazy winds! My sinuses have been a mess! Where are you living now? Must be somewhere in SoCal (given the Santa Ana winds comment). =) Looks like a great dish!

March 11, 2010 at 12:58 PM  
Blogger Deliciously Organic said...

R.: We are living on a military base just north of LA. The winds out here were a sustained 55 mph! Crazy! :)

March 11, 2010 at 1:46 PM  
Blogger Rose said...

Ah, yes I know where you are. The winds are crazy out there!

March 11, 2010 at 1:53 PM  
Anonymous Dianne Jacob said...

Your mom sounds amazing. Very few of us have a role model like her! No wonder you've followed in her footsteps.

Look forward to more from you, Carrie.

March 11, 2010 at 3:22 PM  
Anonymous Stacy said...

I love rice pudding sweetened with maple syrup--so good! You must be so proud of your mom!

March 11, 2010 at 8:57 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this rice pudding looks so comforting!

March 11, 2010 at 10:12 PM  
Blogger singerinkitchen said...

Your rice pudding recipe looks great! I have not tried it with whole grain and I should. How great about your mom! I am sure she is happy that you are so proud of her!

March 12, 2010 at 6:58 AM  
Blogger bookworm0709 said...

This recipe sounds wonderful. Thanks for putting up a rice pudding recipe that doesn't have cinnamon in it! (I'm allergic.) I will have to try this out soon.

March 12, 2010 at 7:07 AM  
Blogger Me and My Pink Mixer said...

Your rice pudding looks fabulous! Wish I had some right now :)

March 15, 2010 at 9:23 AM  
Anonymous marla {family fresh cooking} said...

You and your mom are so inspirational! Vegas sounds like it was a blast! Your brown rice pudding sounds like something my whole family would love! Great photos.

March 15, 2010 at 1:10 PM  
Anonymous marla {family fresh cooking} said...

I have rice pudding on the brain & your looks amazing :) Funny, you wrote this post right about the time that we met. xo

September 26, 2010 at 2:50 PM  

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