Photo credit: Mahatma – https://mahatmarice.com/es/recetas/arroz-con-leche-tradicional/
Traditionally, arroz con leche is cooked by combining white rice with whole milk, sugar, cinnamon, butter, and vanilla. But as mexiconewsdaily.com points out, there are numerous secrets involved in creating this dessert. Perhaps it’s the length of the cooking time, the amount of rice and milk involved, or the secret ingredient your grandmother likes to use. You can even create a warm and sweet arroz con leche by using a rice cooker. Just combine all the ingredients in the device, switch on the ‘porridge setting’, and you’ll get a taste of your favorite dessert in a few minutes.
Indeed, you can add ingredients or include extra steps to make your own version of arroz con leche. Here are some twists that you can add to make your arroz con leche even more special!
Vegan Arroz Con Leche
To make this dessert even more nutritious, exclude the butter and use an alternative for whole milk. Soy milk is one of the best alternatives you can try because soy contains isoflavones that can help prevent cognitive impairment and bone loss, according to hispanicnutrition.com. On top of that, soy milk also has a low carbohydrate content and unsaturated fat. This addition makes your arroz con leche healthy and earth-friendly!
Ingredients:
• 1 cup white rice
• 1 cinnamon stick
• ground cinnamon
• 3 cups water
• 4 cups soy milk
• ½ cup of your chosen sweetener
Instructions:
1. Place the rice in a pot and combine it with the cinnamon stick and water. Cook slowly for about 15 minutes.
2. Add the soy milk to the mixture and let it cook for ten additional minutes.
3. Add the sweetener and allow it to cook until it has reached your preferred consistency.
4. Take the mixture out of the heat and let it cool.
5. Sprinkle a bit of ground cinnamon over the top and serve your vegan arroz con leche.
Chocolate Arroz Con Leche
For a more indulgent dessert, add chocolate bits to your arroz con leche. Mexican chocolate is the ideal ingredient to use, so that you can still honor the tradition. To create this recipe, you’ll use the same ingredients as above in combination with these additional ingredients.
Additional Ingredients:
• 2.5 oz Mexican chocolate disk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• a pinch of salt
Instructions:
1. Place the rice in a pot and combine it with the cinnamon stick and water. Cook slowly for about five minutes.
2. Add the milk, salt, and cinnamon stick to the mixture. Let it cook for ten additional minutes.
3. Add the sweetener and the chocolate, and allow it to cook until it has reached your preferred consistency.
4. Take the mixture out of the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and ground cinnamon. Let it cool before serving.
Pumpkin Arroz Con Leche
Pumpkin arroz con leche is perfect for the fall season. This combines one of the staple ingredients for the season with the Mexican comfort food. For this dish, you’ll need the same ingredients as the vegan recipe in combination with these additional ingredients. While you’re at it, try out some other pumpkin desserts from this list by thespruceeats.com.
Additional ingredients:
• 12 whole cloves
• 2 star anise
• 1 tsp salt
• 15 oz pumpkin
• 2 tbsp butter
Instructions:
1. Place the rice in a pot and combine it with the cinnamon stick, cloves, star anise, and two cups of water. Soak it for an hour.
2. Place the pot on heat and add the salt and rest of the water. Boil for three minutes before removing all the spices.
3. Add the milk, sweetener, and pumpkin to the mixture. Let it cook for twenty minutes.
3. Stir in the butter and sprinkle the ground cinnamon before removing it from heat. Let it cool before serving.
There are many twists that you can try to make this dish your own! Which one of these recipes are you most excited to try?
exclusively written for hispanicnutrition.com By Muriel Doyle
