Light rice pudding

The comfort dessert of childhood, in a lighter version: a creamy rice pudding made with semi-skimmed milk and little sugar, flavoured with vanilla. Comforting and inexpensive, it offers a reasonable sweet treat, rich in calcium, to enjoy warm or cold. A simple indulgence the whole family likes.

Preparation: 5 min  |  Cooking: 35 min  |  Servings: 4  |  Difficulty: Easy

Calculated per serving from the Anses Ciqual 2025 values for each ingredient, based on the quantities in the list. Household measures (spoonfuls, pieces) use average weights. 162 kcal · 7 g protein · 25 g carbohydrate · 3 g fat

Ingredients

• 120 g round-grain rice
• 750 ml semi-skimmed milk
• 2 tbsp sugar (or agave syrup)
• 1 vanilla pod

Method

1. Rinse the rice briefly. Bring the milk to a simmer with the split vanilla pod.
2. Add the rice and cook over a low heat for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring often, until the rice is tender and the mixture creamy.
3. Stir in the sugar at the end of cooking.
4. Remove the vanilla and serve warm or cold.

Nutritional benefits

This lighter version of rice pudding sharply reduces the sugar compared with traditional recipes and uses semi-skimmed milk, which limits calories and fat while keeping the creaminess. The milk provides calcium and protein (useful for children’s growth), and the rice comforting carbohydrate. A homemade dessert you stay in control of, far healthier than shop-bought dessert creams, which are often very sweet, to enjoy in moderation.

Variations and substitutions

• Lactose-free: use a plant-based drink fortified with calcium (the texture will be a little runnier).
• Even less sugar: rely on the vanilla and a pinch of cinnamon, and reduce the sugar.
• Indulgent: a little orange zest, orange blossom water or red berries.
• Higher in protein: serve with Greek yoghurt or flaked almonds.

Storage and making ahead

Rice pudding keeps for 3 days in the fridge, covered. It thickens as it cools: loosen it with a little milk if needed. Perfect to make ahead for desserts through the week.

💡 Good to know

For a creamy rice pudding, choose a round-grain (pudding) rice and stir regularly towards the end of cooking: it is the released starch that gives the creaminess, with no need to add cream.

Read also

Discover more healthy & balanced recipes · recipes for children · vegetarian recipes.

The foods in this recipe: rice · semi-skimmed milk · sugar · vanilla pod.

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