Author Notes: For this dessert, I began with the idea of using brown butter and arborio to make a risotto-style rice pudding. But the original version wasn’t that exciting. That’s when the idea of starting with a brown butter caramel worked its way into the pudding, along with the addition of creme fraiche, which I thought would cut the sweetness nicely. After a few more test runs, I also decided that the rice had a nicer texture when it was simmered with all of the liquid than it did when cooked like risotto, adding the liquid bit by bit. The bonus is that this also means less work for you! —Merrill Stubbs
Serves: 6 to 8
Ingredients
-
2
tablespoons unsalted butter
-
1/4
cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
-
2
tablespoons creme fraiche, plus more for serving
-
6
cups whole milk
-
seeds from 1/2 a vanilla bean
-
1/4
teaspoon sea salt
-
3/4
cup arborio rice
Directions
- Put the butter in a 3 quart heavy saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter stops foaming, and you see orangey brown specks start to appear, stir gently with a wooden spoon. After a minute or two, when the specks are nut brown and the butter smells nice and toasty, sprinkle ¼ cup of sugar over the butter and stir to combine. (It will clump up a little, but don’t worry!)
- Switch to a whisk, and cook the butter and sugar, whisking all the time, until the sugar has melted and the mixture becomes a smooth, rich brown caramel, about 5 minutes. (Early on, the butter and sugar will separate, and the butter will pool around the edges of the sugar, but never fear! Once the sugar has fully melted, the two will start to come together again, and you’ll have a nice smooth caramel.)
- When the caramel is a rich nut brown and starts to smoke, remove the pan from the heat and quickly and carefully whisk in the crème fraiche and about 1/2 a cup of the milk. Don’t worry if the mixture bubbles up when you do this – it’ll settle down again quickly. (This step cools off the caramel and keeps it from cooking further.) Return the pan to the heat and whisk in the rest of the milk, the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, the vanilla seeds and the salt. If the caramel seizes a little, just keep whisking until the mixture becomes smooth again.
- Switch back to the wooden spoon and stir in the rice. Turn up the heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat so that the milk is simmering steadily and cook the rice pudding uncovered for about 25 minutes, stirring frequently to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan, especially towards the end. The rice should be tender but not mushy, and the pudding should thicken but still be quite loose – remember that it will thicken a lot more while it’s cooling. Transfer the pudding to a container, cover and refrigerate until cold. Serve in individual bowls with a dollop of crème fraiche.
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Photo by James Ransom
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This recipe calls for the seeds from half a vanilla bean — I didn't want the vanilla to be too strong, considering all the other sweet flavors.
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The risotto starts with brown butter. It's best to use a nice, heavy saucepan for this to guard against burning. I used my favorite of Amanda's Le Creusets.
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"Brown butter" actually starts off with sort of orangey or rust-colored specks, which then darken to a nut brown.
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To make the caramel, you stir the sugar right into the brown butter. It will clump up until the sugar starts to melt, but don't let this deter you!
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This is perhaps the most alarming stage, when you'll probably think you've ruined everything: the butter and sugar start to separate, making an oily, clumpy mess. Fear not! Keep whisking…
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See?
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Once the sugar has fully melted, you'll get a nice, smooth caramel, which will darken even further. It's up to you how far to take it, but be careful not to let it burn.
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Here, I'm showing Amanda how what appeared to be a disaster just a minute ago is now looking pretty darn good.
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Whisking in the creme fraiche and some of the milk stops the caramel from cooking any further.
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Be careful adding the milk, as the mixture will bubble up initially. Molten sugar is serious business.
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Once you've whisked in all of the milk, and the mixture is smooth, in goes the arborio.
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It's a good idea to return to your wooden spoon at this stage — better for making sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.
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The mixture simmers gently and thickens as the rice cooks.
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The pudding may get a funny, puffy-looking skin from time to time as it simmers away. Don't worry: you can just stir it right back into the pudding and be on your merry way.
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A dollop of creme fraiche makes it look elegant and cuts the sweetness with a bit of tang.
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