Whew, what a week. From pub crawling to shivering on the beaches of Bray, I have been going out of my way to be much more social than is typical of me. Meeting new people from all over the world is fantastic, but I accidentally slept for 12 hours Saturday night, which I guess was my body's way of telling me to reign it in a bit? But there's no time for that! Classes have just begun, and next weekend I'll be taking a weekend trip to Cork (by the way, can we pause and think about how it's almost February? Sheesh). Time flies, and I have to do my best to keep up!
I've been surprisingly less homesick than I thought I would. Being able to Skype, facebook chat, and use Google Hangouts to make phone calls has been really helpful. It's kind of astounding that only 5 years ago I went to Europe and was totally fine without internet access, and the only way to call home was with a phone card that may or may not work with the temperamental Italian telephone at the front desk of a hotel.
One thing I do miss? The oven. Oh man, I really, really do. But I'm trying my best here. The other night I made some rice pudding to relax. It turned out suuuuuper thick and creamy, which I attribute to the use of a bit of Irish cream. Country of magical dairy. This pudding is only slightly sweet, and best eaten hot, since when refrigerated, it becomes a solid chunk. Still delicious as a late night snack though!
Rice Pudding
580ml milk ( I used a mixture of milk and cream)
1 tsp vanilla paste (or extract, or a bean, whatever you have)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp sugar
4 tbs basmati rice
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
In a pan, heat the milk. As the milk heats, split down in the middle vanilla pod, scrape the seeds and add to the warming milk. Just as the milk comes to the boil, turn off the heat.
In a large, wide saucepan, melt butter with sugar. As soon as the butter is melted and bubbling, add the rice and stir for 1 minute. Begin adding the milk to the rice, one ladle full at a time. Cook over medium-low heat, being careful not to scorch the rice. Stir constantly. As the milk is absorbed, add another ladle full of milk and continue cooking the rice, continue with adding milk.
After about 20-25 minutes, taste the rice. If it’s plump and soft, then you know it’s cooked. If not, continue adding milk and cooking until the rice is done. If you need more milk, warm up some more, sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve hot.
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| This is Wicklow Jail. It was cold and kinda spooky. |
I've been surprisingly less homesick than I thought I would. Being able to Skype, facebook chat, and use Google Hangouts to make phone calls has been really helpful. It's kind of astounding that only 5 years ago I went to Europe and was totally fine without internet access, and the only way to call home was with a phone card that may or may not work with the temperamental Italian telephone at the front desk of a hotel.
One thing I do miss? The oven. Oh man, I really, really do. But I'm trying my best here. The other night I made some rice pudding to relax. It turned out suuuuuper thick and creamy, which I attribute to the use of a bit of Irish cream. Country of magical dairy. This pudding is only slightly sweet, and best eaten hot, since when refrigerated, it becomes a solid chunk. Still delicious as a late night snack though!
Rice Pudding
580ml milk ( I used a mixture of milk and cream)
1 tsp vanilla paste (or extract, or a bean, whatever you have)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp sugar
4 tbs basmati rice
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
In a pan, heat the milk. As the milk heats, split down in the middle vanilla pod, scrape the seeds and add to the warming milk. Just as the milk comes to the boil, turn off the heat.
In a large, wide saucepan, melt butter with sugar. As soon as the butter is melted and bubbling, add the rice and stir for 1 minute. Begin adding the milk to the rice, one ladle full at a time. Cook over medium-low heat, being careful not to scorch the rice. Stir constantly. As the milk is absorbed, add another ladle full of milk and continue cooking the rice, continue with adding milk.
After about 20-25 minutes, taste the rice. If it’s plump and soft, then you know it’s cooked. If not, continue adding milk and cooking until the rice is done. If you need more milk, warm up some more, sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve hot.
I eat rice pudding whenever I'm home during the winter! I'm glad you can make some in Ireland - it's a very cozy snack/meal. An alternative to the cinnamon and sugar topping is making a fruit soup (I suppose it would be called in English) to pour over it. It's basically fruit juice and dried fruit cooked on the stove with a thickener (we always use potato starch flour). It's my favorite!
ReplyDeleteInteresting! I'll have to investigate.
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