Vanilla-Almond Rice Pudding

Since getting my Ellie Krieger cookbook in the mail, I've been anxious to try one of her dessert dishes.  Who doesn't want something sweet and healthy, right?  I decided that her Very Vanilla Rice Pudding would hit the spot considering how cold and gloomy the weather has been around here lately.  With all this icky weather, I was in need of some nice, hot, comfort food.

I've liked rice pudding since I was a little kid.  I think I liked rice pudding (and oatmeal) for the same reason – they reminded me of the porridge eaten in lots of my favorite, childhood stories, like Goldilocks and The Three Bears. 

Now, I like rice pudding for its comfort-food-factor.  This dish is especially good, because according to Ellie's book, a 2/3 cup serving has only 154 calories, 2 G of fat (see book for other nutrition info), and is a good source of protein.

I was originally going to make the recipe exactly as it appears in Ellie's cookbook, but I was hesitant to add the cinnamon because, although I find the flavor delicious, I am, unfortunately, allergic to cinnamon. *sad face*  So, when I saw the almond-vanilla rice pudding over at smitten kitchen, it was a no-brainer for me to sub almond extract for the spices in Ellie's version.

Vanilla-Almond Rice Pudding
Adapted from Ellie Krieger's Very Vanilla Rice Pudding in The Food You Crave cookbook

My Note: You can definitely taste the soy milk in this recipe, so if you don't like soy milk, you may want to try the recipe on smitten kitchen (link above) instead.  I happen to really like soy milk, so I enjoyed this quite a bit.  I also found a recipe for a blueberry compote on foodnetwork.com (click for direct link to recipe) that she apparently used to top the pudding with when she made this on TV.  I'll have to try that next time.  Additionally, here's a slightly different version of the rice pudding recipe on foodnetwork.com (click).

Ingredients

2 cups water
1 cup Arborio rice
3 cups vanilla soy milk
1/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
3 raspberries, optional

Directions

• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Bring the water to a boil in a medium, heavy, ovenproof saucepan.  Add the rice, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the rice is nearly cooked, about 20 minutes.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the soy milk, sugar, and salt.  When the rice is cooked and still hot, add the soy milk mixture.  Cover, place in the oven, and cook for 45 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and uncover.  Stir in the vanilla extract and almond extract.  The pudding will be slightly liquidy; the liquid will continue to absorb into the rice and thicken as the pudding cools.  Distribute into 8 bowls.  Serve warm or room temperature.  If you'd like, garnish with the raspberries.  The pudding will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for about 3 days.