Almost everytime I read a rice pudding recipe, the author splits the entire human population into two camps: those who love rice pudding, and those who hate it.  By some masterful fate, I must have surrounded myself with only people who love it, and of course I do too.

Here, I've played on my love of rice to incorporate three forms of the wonder-grain in one dish.  Jasmine rice pudding creates a bed for forbidden rice ice cream and crispy Japanese brown rice.  To accentuate the Asian-ness of it all, rosettes of thinly sliced mango and cilantro freshen it up.

Here is my favorite rice pudding recipe.  Feel free to change out the aromatics to your taste.

100 g jasmine rice

100 g sugar

2 g     kosher salt

15 g  butter

1 qt   whole milk

1/2     vanilla bean

grated zest of 1/2 lemon

1 stick lemon grass

Everything goes into a medium pot on the stove on medium heat.  Stir occasionally until it starts to simmer.  From here on, keep it at a simmer and stir often until rice is cooked, about 20-25 minutes.  Cool on an ice bath and remove vanilla pod and lemongrass stick.  You may need to add a little more fresh milk to adjust the consistency to your liking.