Chocolate with Francois - Chocolate Rice Puddings with Cherries

Francois Payard is the author of the cookbook Chocolate Epiphany that our group uses each month.  This month was my pick and I thought this pudding with cherries looked delicious and interesting.

I halved the recipe since there are only two of us here eating and we already had been chowing down on Big Bill's Carrot cake for the first part of the week.  Not to mention I bought a few doughnuts yesterday at the store.  Walmart is now selling Tastycakes here in the south, something I have really missed since we left Ohio.  I could get addicted to those!

This is not a difficult recipe, but as many of Payard's are, it is a bit time consuming.  Risotto is not a quick rice to prepare first of all.  But the smell coming from your oven as this is baking is worth the effort.  My kitchen smelled of chocolate and oranges!

The pudding is lighter than most chocolate pudding recipes because whipped cream is added into it after baking.  And you could substitute another fruit for the cherries, but we do like cherries.  It is a wonderful ending to a meal, not too sweet.  The cherries are delicious with the browned sugar on them.  Check out CWF and see if any of the other ladies in the group made this month's recipe.

First you make the rice pudding:
Cook the rice in water for five minutes, drain, set aside.

Combine the milk, sugar, vanilla and orange zest in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Whisk in cocoa powder.  Romove from heat and stir in rice.  Pour into 9x13 baking dish, cover with foil, and bake for about an hour stirring every 20 minutes or so until the rice is tender.  Immediately whisk in the egg yolks, cover with saran wrap and press down on top of the pudding, then chill for an hour or a day.

Make the cherries:  Melt the butter over medium heat until it begins to brown.  Add the brown sugar stirring until melted.  Add the cherries and cook for 6-8 min.  Add the lemon juice and let cool.

Cream:  Whip the cream until soft peaks form.  Add vanilla extract.  Fold half the whipped cream into the pudding and spoon into ramekins.  Add whipped cream and cherries on top to serve.
Ingredients:
1 cup risotto rice
1 quart whole milk
2/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean or 2 T pure vanilla extract
Grated zest of one orange
1/3 cup cocoa powder
6 large egg  yolks, lightly beaten
2 cups plus 1 T heavy whipping cream
2 T unsalted butter
2 T light brown sugar
1 pound cherries, pitted and kept whole
Juice of one lemon