Bea Tollman's rice pudding

Loved by guests and staff alike, Beatrice Tollman's rice pudding features on many of our restaurant's menus, including Cheneston's Restaurant at The Milestone and Azure Restaurant at The Twelve Apostles. 

In a Life of Food, Bea Tollman explains how the recipe became a staple, 

'We had enjoyed a similar pudding while travelling in France, and were struck by its extraordinary lightness and balance. I was determined to recreate it, working from scratch, and in this case the proof of the pudding is definitely in the eating. I confess that I often ‘force’ it on guests who insist that rice pudding is not for them – too rich, they protest, too heavy: almost invariably they are converted before tasting the second spoonful.'

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Ingredients:

Serves 4 - 6 people.

• 75g jasmine rice
• 100g sugar
• 1 vanilla pod
• 4 strips of lemon peel
• 500ml whole milk
• 250ml double cream
• 500ml double cream (whipped)

For the salted caramel sauce:

• 250g sugar
• 50g butter
• 250ml double cream
• 1 teaspoon sea salt (add more if necessary)
• For the caramelised nuts
• 250g nuts, including pecans, pumpkin seeds, almonds and walnuts
• 125g sugar

Method:

1. Put all the ingredients except the whipped cream into a saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring often to prevent burning, until the rice is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed and has thickened to a pouring consistency. This takes about 30 minutes.
2. Pour onto a flat dish and cover with cling film to prevent a skin forming, then let it cool. When the rice pudding has cooled, fold in the whipped cream.
3. For the caramel sauce, put the sugar into a saucepan, add enough water so it resembles wet sand, and boil until a light caramel colour is reached.
4. Remove from the heat and carefully whisk in the butter and cream, then return to the heat, bring back to the boil, and add sea salt.
5. Toast the nuts in the oven. Put the sugar in a wide saucepan, add enough water so it resembles wet sand, and cook until the sugar is on the verge of caramelising.
6. Turn off the heat and add the nuts, stirring vigorously. The nuts will crystallise, turning white and coated in sugar. Turn the heat back on and stir continuously to re-caramelise. The nuts should be individually coated in a crusted caramel sugar.
7. Serve a small bowl of rice pudding with a little caramel sauce drizzled on top and the warm caramel sauce and nuts on the side.