The Romantic Side of Rice

February is the month of love and who knows love better than taste buds that crave something sweet? Often, when people think of rice, they think of a staple that goes alongside your main dish. Rice is mostly seen as the savoury dish that we enjoy but don’t necessarily think of when we’re having negotiations with “The Sweet Tooth”!  But did you know that rice can be exciting, romantic and even seductive too? 

You didn’t, did you!

Well we’re here to tell you that it can be, it’s all up to you and what you do with it. Imagine this- a hot summer’s eve and at the end of dinner, your loved one opens the fridge to find a delicious sweet pudding, with a tangy flavour that happily marries the pure indulgence of pistachio nuts. Or, an appetising “Fruit meets Chocolate” dish to seduce even the finickiest of dessert lovers!

Mmmmmm! Cook your way to the romance level 10!  #Spekkolicious #4xTheLove

Recipe 1:

Rice pudding with pomegranates and pistachio nuts

Ingredients

• ¾ cup Spekko Saman White Rice
• 250 ml (1 cup) milk
• 1/3 cup castor sugar
• ¼ tsp elachi (cardamom)
• 7,5 ml butter
• 1 X 400 ml can coconut cream
• 1 egg, whisked 
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) pistachio nuts
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) pomegranate seeds

Method

1. Cook the rice in lightly salted water according to instructions on the pack and drain.
2. Heat milk, castor sugar, elachi, butter and coconut cream.
3. Stir in cooked rice and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring, until thick and creamy.
4. Reduce heat to low, add beaten egg and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly.
5. Serve topped with pistachios and pomegranate seeds.

Recipe 2:

Strawberry and white chocolate rice pudding

Ingredients

• 375 ml (1½ cups) Spekko Saman White Rice
• 200 g white chocolate, chopped
• 1 vanilla pod, slit open
• 3 egg yolks
• 250 ml (1 cup) castor sugar
• 300-500 g ripe strawberries, halved
• 500 ml (2 cups) cream

Method

1. Cook Spekko White Rice according to the instructions on the pack. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat cream in a pot over medium heat and stir in chocolate and vanilla pod until chocolate has melted and cream just comes to the boil. Remove from the heat.
3. Beat egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy. Whisk a small amount of the warm cream into the eggs, taking care not to scramble the eggs. Add remaining cream while whisking.
4. Return mixture to the pot and allow to simmer gently, until the cream mixture has a thicker, but smooth consistency. It should easily coat the back of a metal spoon.
5. Stir the rice into the cream. Add half of the strawberries to the rice mixture, serve in bowls and garnish the remaining strawberries.

 What would you cook when the days are dark and everybody needs a lifting of the spirits?