Rice Pudding with Raspberry Jam

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 150 g pudding rice
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 900 ml whole milk
• 150 ml double cream
• 75 g caster sugar
• 15 g butter, for greasing
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 150 g raspberry jam
• 75 g fresh raspberries (optional)

Method

1. Heat the oven to 160°C (140°C fan) and butter a 1.2–1½ litre ovenproof dish generously.
2. Tip the pudding rice, milk, cream, sugar and cinnamon into a saucepan and bring gently to a simmer, stirring often so nothing catches on the base. Let it bubble softly for 3–4 minutes until the milk has thickened slightly and the grains are starting to plump.
3. Trickle a ladleful of the hot milk into the beaten eggs, whisking as you go to temper them, then stir the eggs and vanilla back through the rice. Pour into the buttered dish and level the surface.
4. Bake for 50–60 minutes until the top is pale gold and lightly freckled, with a soft wobble at the centre; it will firm as it rests.
5. Spoon generous dollops of raspberry jam over the warm pudding and drag the back of a spoon through to create thick ruby streaks; the jam will sink into sticky pockets through the custardy rice.
6. Rest for 10–15 minutes so it sets to a spoonable creaminess, then scatter over fresh raspberries if using. Serve warm; the spoon should slip through with a soft, custardy give.