Bay Leaf and Brown Sugar Rice Pudding with Roasted Plums
A pudding and plum love story
When I moved to London a few months ago, I did what I often do in unfamiliar places: I walked. I wandered for hours, choosing a new direction each day and discovering my new neighbourhood, and surrounding ones, on foot.
Early on, I came across the canal and Hackney Marshes. This wild and wonderful park was so unexpected that it nearly brought me to homesick tears. Unlike many of the beautifully manicured parks that dot London, the Marshes offer something wilder, unruly. I found sprawling fields of long grass and cow parsley swaying in the breeze, brambled bushes of wild roses blooming path side, and crystal clear streams. The sense of abundance was almost overwhelming. Large, fragrant fig trees canopied pathways and patches of white and pink yarrow filled otherwise grassy fields. In the spring, I watched as ruby-red gooseberries and cherries ripened, followed by sweet mulberries and face-puckeringly sour blackberries during peak summer. Now, as Autumn sets in, rose hips and plums ripen in the cool air.
Rice pudding is a dessert much loved here in the UK and something I rarely ate in Canada. It’s been transformed for me, especially when paired with the beautiful roasted fruit that England’s seasons offer and plums are a perfect accompaniment, roasted and jammy.
Ingredients:
120g pudding rice (or arborio rice)
300mL milk
130mL heavy (double) cream, plus another splash to serve
60g light brown sugar
3-4 bay leafs (fresh if you can find them)
1 tsp vanilla extract or seeds from 1 pod (optional)
Pinch of salt
300g plums (or damsons), halved and pitted
2 tablespoons honey
120mL white wine (or orange juice)
20g roasted almonds, chopped (optional)
Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 375°F/190°C and bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add your rice to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes, then drain fully.
In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the milk, cream, brown sugar, bay leaves, vanilla, and salt. Bring to a simmer and stir to dissolve the sugar, then add in the drained rice.
Bring the mixture to a simmer again and cook over low heat, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until the rice is tender and the mixture has thickened nicely. Stir every few minutes to ensure that the rice isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pot and to help develop the starches in the rice.
Meanwhile, combine the plums, honey, wine, and a pinch of salt together in a roasting tray. Roast the plums for 20-25 minutes until jammy and caramelized and most of the wine has evaporated. If necessary, add another splash or two of wine as they cook to prevent the honey from burning.
Once the rice is tender, remove the bay leaves and transfer the pudding into serving bowls. Spoon the roasted plums and any juices from the pan and another splash of cream overtop, then garnish with chopped almonds.
-The sweet syrup left in the plum roasting tray is perfect for spooning over your pudding. If it’s hard to scrape up, add a small splash of water to loosen it slightly.
-Depending on your preference, this rice pudding can also be served chilled. To do so, transfer it to a container and chill it in your refrigerator for a few hours before serving. Loosen it by whisking in a splash of milk or cream before spooning into serving bowls and garnishing.
I love the way you describe the marshes, they're such a special place! Have you explored daubney fields by there? It might be a bit late in the season now, but in late summer it's full of big plum trees bearing the sweetest fruit. This recipe looks great, look forward to trying it <3