Earl Grey Spiced Rice Pudding

With pear compote and spiced brown butter-sugar drizzle

I know, rice pudding needs no introduction. The epitome of comfort food, it’s also incredibly international, with most cuisines having some form of it in their repertoire, be it the perfumed Thai sticky rice with coconut milk or the British version with a dusting of nutmeg.

The type I knew best and grew up with was just a plain creamy version with vanilla sugar in it and a spoonful of jam on top. I still deem that as one of the best foods in the world.

However, with autumn slowly creeping up on us, the shorter days and cooler temperatures put me yet again in the mood for this delicious pudding. I did feel the need for some flavourings that were equally comforting, if more exotic. It’s how I sealed the fate of a few pears that were just oh too ripe to eat and took out a jar of tonka sugar I absolutely love. I would sprinkle it on anything and everything if I could.

If you don’t have tonka available, which is absolutely the case for most people, you can just use cinnamon, this spice marries beautifully with pears.

The rice is extremely aromatic, courtesy of vanilla and earl grey. Earl grey is my favourite tea, its slight bergamot flavour and bitterness pairing perfectly with the sweet compote. I’ve previously made this recipe with jasmine green tea (but without the pears, I would think a spoonful of raspberry jam would complement it better) and that one is also incredibly perfumed.

Lastly, I used brown butter to toast the rice (à la risotto), as well as in the drizzle at the end. You may skip this step but I strongly believe it adds a wonderful nuttiness that shouldn’t be missed.

Should you make this recipe do let me know in the comments and don’t forget to subscribe for more recipes weekly, straight to your inbox!

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Ingredients (serves 6-8)

For the rice pudding

• knob of butter (50g or 2 tbsp)

• 150ml (3/4) cups water

• 140 (3/4 cup) arborio rice (use any short grain rice, the ones for risotto work best)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 750ml (3 cups)whole milk

• 3 bags of Earl Grey Tea

• 250ml (1 cup) heavy whipping cream

• 100g (1/2 cup) sugar

• 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the pear compote

• 900g (2lbs) pears, peeled and cored, chopped into chunks

• 30g (2 tbsp) brown sugar

• 1/4 tonka bean, grated

For the butter-sugar drizzle

• 50g (3 tbsp) butter

• 30g (2 tbsp) sugar (brown is preferable)

• a dusting of grated tonka bean

Note: I make my own tonka bean sugar by mixing a grated tonka bean with 1-2 cups (200-400g) light brown sugar and keeping the mix in a sealed jar. If you would like to do the same you can use that sugar directly for the compote and the drizzle, as I did.

Start by making the compote. In a large pan add the cubed pears, sugar and tonka bean. Allow to cook on a medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes until pears are softened and turning to mush. You can either use a hand blender or a potato masher to puree the pears (or you can leave them as such, with bigger chunks in).

For the rice pudding start by browning the butter in a large cast iron pan. When it’s golden brown and smells amazing, add the rice and toast it in the pan, making sure it is well coated. Add the water and stir, in oder to let it absorb.

In a separate pan warm the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla pod and tea bags (cut off the labels!). Let it come to a boil and take off the heat. Let the tea steep for about 10 minutes.

When the rice has absorbed the water, add the milk/cream mixture. Turn the heat to low and stir well. The rice will take about 35-40 minutes to cook but your best bet is to come check on it occasionally, give it a good stir (this will make it even creamier as it helps release the starch) and check on doneness. Bear in mind that when it is done it should still be rather creamy and liquid, as it will set more while cooling down.

Finally, make the brown butter-sugar drizzle. Warm the butter in a small pan until beginning to brown and the smell is nutty and heavenly. Take of the heat and add the sugar and tonka bean, stir well to combine.

To serve, top the rice pudding with a generous helping of compote and a drizzle of the butter mixture. I always eat this rice pudding warm but you can, of course, also have it cold if that’s more your thing. The earl grey flavour will be more prominent then.

Your kitchen will smell of pear orchards and pure bliss. Enjoy!