Rice Pudding

Step 1

Heat oven to 300 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a 3- or 4-quart casserole or an ovenproof saucepan, stir a couple times, and place in oven. Bake for 30 minutes, then stir. Bake 30 minutes more, then stir; at this point the milk will have developed a bubbly tan surface (stir this back into the liquid), and rice will have begun to swell.

Step 2

Cook for 30 more minutes. The surface will have redeveloped, darker this time, and kernels of rice will begin to predominate in mixture. Return mixture to oven and begin to check pudding every 10 minutes, stirring gently each time you check.

Step 3

Remove pudding from oven when rice kernels are very swollen and mixture is still quite fluid. As it cools, it will thicken considerably. If you remove custard when mixture is thick, it will harden when it cools (though it will still be quite good to eat). Serve pudding warm, at room temperature or cold, alone or with whipped cream.