Vanilla Baked Rice Pudding with Hazelnuts, Blueberries, and Blackberries
Welcome to a flavorful adventure featuring the bountiful goodness of hazelnuts paired with the luscious sweetness of blueberries and the deep, rich allure of blackberries! This recipe is a celebration of the Pacific Northwest’s finest produce, combining the nutty crunch of Oregon Hazelnuts with the vibrant burst of flavors from sweet berries.
Picture yourself surrounded by the serene landscapes of Oregon, where hazelnut orchards thrive alongside abundant berry patches, offering nature’s finest treasures. Now, envision those elements coming together in a harmonious blend that tantalizes your taste buds and warms your soul.
The hazelnuts, with their distinctively robust and buttery profile, form the perfect complement to the juicy sweetness of blueberries and the bold, slightly tart essence of blackberries. This harmonious fusion of textures and flavours creates a symphony of taste that’s both familiar and wonderfully surprising.
Ingredients
½ cup medium grain rice
1 cinnamon stick
½ nutmeg grated
1 vanilla pod
1/3 cup golden castor sugar
3 cups milk
¼ cup mascarpone cream
2 tbsp hazelnut paste
2.5 oz sliced hazelnuts
For the compote
½ cup blackberries
½ cup blueberries
½ cup sugar
½ cup lemon
Directions
Rinse the rice under cold water until the water runs clear, this helps remove excess starch, giving you a creamier pudding.
In a medium-sized saucepan, pour in the milk and add the rinsed rice.
If you’re using a vanilla bean, split it open lengthwise with a knife and scrape out the seeds. Add both the seeds and the pod into the milk and rice mixture along with the cinnamon stick and freshly grated nutmeg.
Sprinkle in the sugar and a pinch of salt, then stir everything together gently.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. Be sure to keep an eye on it to prevent the milk from boiling over.
Once it starts simmering, reduce the heat to low and let it cook uncovered for about 30-35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
The rice will absorb the milk, and the mixture will thicken.
Meanwhile to make the fruit compote, simply scatter the berries into a pan with the sugar and squeeze over the lemon juice.
Heat the berries gently until it comes up to a simmer, turn the heat down and cook for 5 minutes, don’t be tempted to stir the fruit as you don’t want to break up the berries.
Test the rice by tasting, it should be tender yet slightly firm, and the pudding should have a creamy consistency. If needed, cook it a bit longer until you achieve the desired texture.
Once the rice is cooked and the pudding has thickened, remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the mascarpone cream for a little extra creaminess.
Remove the vanilla pod and cinnamon stick from the mixture as it has done its work.
Pour the rice pudding into serving bowls or a larger bowl if serving family-style and top with the fruit compote, scatter with sliced hazelnuts and drizzle with nut butter.
You can enjoy it warm or let it cool to room temperature before serving.