When I land in the nursing home, I want you all to do me a big favor (I’m looking directly at my nephews Bennett and Harrison) and please make sure you give this recipe to the cooks.  In my diapered, toothless state of decay I would much rather eat this glorious version of rice pudding than the gelatinous instant garbage I would otherwise be fed.  Rice pudding is one of those desserts that is mostly just okay 99% of the time and I will never understand how that weird place in SoHo, Rice to Riches is still in business.  In fact, I’m partially offended that I have to see it out the window when I’m having morning beers at The Spring Lounge; a constant reminder that NYC dive bars are dying because people would rather pay $8 for a cup of pudding than sit next to a toothless old man drinking beer and regaling days of yore.  All this complaining aside, I do think rice pudding deserves better than it is mostly treated.  It is an extremely economical way to use up leftover rice and with a few jazzy ingredients like rose water and cardamom, it becomes almost elegant considering it’s still a pudding.  It can also be made ahead of time, served at room temperature or cold, and it’s great for all ages, especially for our dentally challenged young and old.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked rice

½ cup whole milk

½ cup heavy cream

1 can coconut milk

1 tbsp rosewater

¼ cup sugar

½ tsp cardamom, ground

¼ tsp cinnamon, ground

Pinch salt

½ cup golden raisins

½ cup mango, diced

Directions:

In a medium pan, add the rice and milk and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down and add the cream, coconut milk, rosewater, sugar, cardamom, cinnamon and salt.  Simmer, stirring frequently for 10-15 minutes or until the rice has thickened.  Remove from the heat and stir in the raisins.  Transfer the pudding to individual serving bowls.  Garnish with the mango.

*Note:  This pudding can be served at room temperature or cold.  If you are planning on chilling the pudding, make sure that you put a layer of plastic wrap on the surface of each pudding to prevent a film from forming.