Cinnamon wild rice pudding
Instructions:
-
Wild rice, another all-American grain, was introduced to us by the Indians. It is indigenous to the northern part of our country, along the Canadian border. Wild rice, which is not really a rice at all, but a grass that grows in lakes and marshy areas, is harvested in the late summer. In the areas where wild rice is harvested, it is an important part of all meals. Served simply cooked with a topping of maple syrup (also a product of the north), wild blueberries, and cream, it is a delicious dessert or breakfast dish. Settlers in the area quickly learned that wild rice is delicious served many ways, and that when baked into a pudding with raisins, maple syrup, and cinnamon, it made still another variation to classic rice pudding.
- 3⁄4 cup golden or dark raisins;
- 1⁄2 cup maple syrup;
- 2 eggs;
- 1⁄2 teaspoon cinnamon;
- 1⁄4 teaspoon nutmeg;
- 1 teaspoon vanilla;
- 2 cups cooked wild rice;
- 2 cups hot half-and-half;
- Cinnamon sugar.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Combine raisins, maple syrup, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, rice, and half-and-half. Turn into a 11⁄2-quart casserole. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake11 hour, or until pudding is set. Serve warm or chilled.
- NOTE: To make 2 cups wild rice, measure 2⁄3 cup uncooked rice. Rinse in hot tap water three times to remove dust. Put rice in a saucepan. Add 2 cups water and bring to a boil, stir, cover, and simmer 35 to 45 minutes, or until the rice is tender. Drain off any extra liquid that has not been absorbed.