SHF – Birthday Rice Pudding

Happy Birthday Friend. You know who you are. Thank you for the many times you’ve listened, the many times you have shared with me, the cups of early morning coffee and the many long drives. I wish I could be there to share your birthday with you. But since I cannot, I made you something special!

After spending two years in South America as a Christian Missionary, my friend has a special place in her heart for all things Latin: the salsa, the kiss-on-the-cheek greeting and so many of the foods. For her birthday, I knew I could not do something “regular.” She needed something that screamed “Feliz Cumpleaños!!!” and not just your everyday “Happy Birthday.”

Rice Pudding is a dessert that can be found all over the world with its own variations. It is generally created by combining rice with a sweetener and other ingredients often including milk. In South America, rice pudding is a very popular dessert. In Peru, it is typically served with Mazamora Morada or Purple Corn Pudding.

As a pudding, this post is being submitted for December’s Sugar High Friday hosted by Zorra of Kochtopf, originally created by Jennifer of Domestic Goddess.





Arroz Con Leche

1 cup of white rice
5 cups of water
8 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
2 1/2 cups of milk
Orange peel
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons of port wine


In a large pot, combine rice, water, cloves and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the water is absorbed. Add milk and orange peel and boil again until liquid is absorbed; stirring occasionally. Remove cinnamon sticks, cloves and orange peel. Add sweetened condensed milk and stir with a wooden spoon. Again, cook off liquid, stirring frequently. Once the mixture returns to a creamy rather than liquid state, remove from heat.

In a small bowl, combine the egg yolk and port wine. Temper the mixture by adding 3 tablespoons, one at a time, to the egg mixture, stirring after each addition. Add egg mixture back to creamy rice and stir to combine. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon when serving.

Serves 4-6. Adapted from La Cocina Criolla.