Baked Rice Pudding Recipe
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Creamy rice pudding is a timeless dessert that brings a sense of nostalgia and comfort with every bite. It’s a simple recipe that fuses creamy rice with rich and velvety milk and cream. The dash of vanilla adds depth to the recipe, while sugar gives it just the right amount of sweetness. Furthermore, the cinnamon and nutmeg elevate pudding to greater heights.
The baked version of this classic dish has a delightful, slightly crispy top and a creamy interior that’s perfect for cozy evenings or special occasions. Learn how to make an absolutely delicious old-fashioned rice pudding in this article.
Baked Rice Pudding Recipe Ingredients
This great recipe is pretty easy to make! To cook this delicious baked rice pudding recipe, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked rice (long-grain or short-grain rice)
- 4 cups of whole milk
- 1 cup of heavy cream
- 3/4 cup of granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup of raisins (optional)
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 3 large eggs
- Butter (to grease)
- Dried or fresh fruit or whipped cream for garnish (optional)
Baked Rice Pudding Recipe Directions
Prep time: 10 minutes
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Use the butter to grease a shallow oven-safe dish or casserole dish.
- Crack eggs in a large bowl. Beat well with a whisk.
- Stir in sugar, then add milk to the eggs and sugar. Stir again.
- In the same large mixing bowl, add vanilla, salt, and cinnamon.
- Add the cooked rice and raisins. Stir until combined.
- Pour the rice mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Place the baking dish inside a larger baking pan filled with hot water. This water bath will help the rice pudding to have a custard-like texture.
- Bake uncovered in the oven for 30 minutes, then gently stir the rice pudding mixture.
- Bake the rice pudding mixture for another 30 minutes then gently stir again.
- At this point, the baked rice pudding will have a crust that may have puffed up. Simply stir the crust back into the rice pudding.
- Bake an additional 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or until the rice is al dente.
- Add nutmeg and cinnamon on top if desired.
- Serve warm or cover and refrigerate for about 3 hours.
- Serve with optional toppings such as whipped cream or fresh or dried fruit.
Homemade Rice Pudding Recipe Tips
- For this Baked Rice Pudding recipe, short-grain rice was used but you may also use long-grain rice. You may use either white rice or brown rice.
- Cooked rice is the best for baked rice pudding. If you have leftover rice, you may use that as well.
- You can also make Baked Rice Pudding with uncooked rice but the cooking time will take slightly longer.
- You don’t have to add raisins if you aren’t fond of them. Swap the raisins with chopped dates, chopped pecans, blueberries, apricots, cranberries, cherries, walnuts, and others.
- Drizzle honey or maple syrup over the pudding for an even sweeter taste.
- Baked Rice Pudding is already a creamy dish but if you want to make it even creamier, use a combination of milk and half-and-half cream or evaporated milk.
- For a vegan or vegetarian version, use your preferred plant-based milk like coconut milk, almond milk, soy milk, or oat milk.
- Top the cooked Baked Rice Pudding with more cinnamon if you desire.
- To give this Baked Rice Pudding recipe a caramel flavor, stir in brown sugar with the cinnamon.
- If you don’t have an oven to bake your rice pudding in, you can also make stovetop rice pudding! Stove-top pudding is slightly creamier than oven-baked pudding. To make this, simply combine milk, rice, and salt in a pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the rice is tender. When the grains are tender, remove from heat and add sugar, raisins, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Return to heat until the pudding mixture starts to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Serve hot, warm, or cold.
Final Note
Old-Fashioned Rice Pudding is comfort food at its finest. The combination of rice, milk, vanilla, raisins, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg makes for a sweet and truly delicious recipe. Bake this sweet treat today!
For more rice pudding recipes or dishes that use rice, check out our recipe collection!
