Home-Made Arroz Doce

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1. 1Step 1: Put 2 cups of water into a pot. Add a pinch of sea salt, the lemon rind and the butter. Let it boil for a minute or two.
2. 2Step 2: Then, add the rice and put the heat on low. Let the rice cook on a low heat – you can cover it if you like but don’t forget about it!
3. 3Step 3: On a separate heat (or even in the microwave!), take 2 cups of milk and heat them. Do not let them boil but make sure they’re very hot. Once the water has nearly boiled off, add the milk to the pot and turn up the heat.
4. 4Step 4: When it starts to boil, lower the heat again and wait for the rice to soak up the milk.
5. 5Step 5: While the milk and rice are cooking (making sure to stir once in a while so it doesn’t stick to the bottom) measure out your sugar. In a separate small bowl, separate an egg or two. Keep the white(s) for an omelette, a glaze, a face mask or whatever you normally do with egg whites! Add a dash of milk to the yolk and stir.
6. 6Step 6: Once the rice is super creamy and mushy (yes, that’s the correct culinary terminology), stir in the sugar. If your rice isn’t getting creamy, add a little more milk to it and let it cook longer.
7. 7Step 7: Take a spoonful of the rice mixture and add it to the egg yolk. Stir well. The idea is to not cook the yolk but to heat it gently. Then, turn off the heat for the rice. Add the yolk/rice mixture to the big pot and stir so it’s all the same color.
8. 8Step 8: Once you have a light yellow color, ten the heat back on, let it reach boiling temperature and you’re done with the cooking!
9. 9Step 9: Take out the lemon peel, and pour into either individual bowls or one big bowl/shallow tray.
10. 10Step 10: Decorate with ground cinnamon (see images below for inspiration). I like it this served warm, straight from the heat but it also keeps nicely in the fridge for a few days. You can always quickly re-heat it in the microwave at any time.