This Salted Caramel Pear Rice Pudding is the perfect marriage between salty sweet pears and creamy, dairy free rice pudding. Plus it’s SO easy to make!
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Hiya guys, happy Tuesday! I hope you had a good weekend. I know we’re a bit limited as to what we can do, but I’m loving spending some time at home with my husband.
We binge watched Emily in Paris and then finished off season one of Designated Survivor on Netflix. More of the same this weekend!
Today I have this delicious Salted Caramel Pear Rice Pudding to share with you. It’s also dairy free, since I found out earlier this year I’m allergic to dairy. I used oat milk, but you can use whichever milk you prefer. Plus, you can make it with dairy milk too.
Last year I made Baked Rice Pudding and this Strawberry and Lemon one with dairy milk.
I love oat milk as I find it the most inoffensive. I use the Minor Figures brand and it’s definitely my favourite. It’s a barista one, but it’s not as creamy as the Oatly Barista. I find that one a bit rich, even though it tastes nice. For day to day, minor figures is where its at. I drink coffee every single day without fail, so I needed to find another milk that tasted good in coffee once I cut dairy out!
Luckily I’ve found the oat milk bakes and cooks the exact same as dairy milk. I make sauces, rice pudding, cakes, milkshakes, smoothies etc. It performs great, which I love as it means I don’t have to alter recipes I’ve made for years!
I’ve now been trying dairy free chocolate and my favourite so far is Moo Free. Their “Bunny Comb” bar is amazing!! And I’ve got their milk chocolate advent calendar this year too.
It is a whole new world being dairy free! I’m constantly testing new things I find in the shops to see if I like them. The best cream substitute I’ve found is the Elmlea Plant Based one. It tastes the same as cream and performs well.
The Oatly Creme Fraiche is great too, but it does perform slightly differently to normal creme fraiche. It’s a bit more watery in sauces, but the taste once cooked is very similar.
Now let’s talk about this Salted Caramel Pear Rice Pudding and how to make it…
Homemade rice pudding is so easy to make! I’m glad because I’ve been missing it! I haven’t found a dairy free rice pudding in the shops yet. I’m sure they’re out there, but not in my local shops!
It takes about 30 minutes to make this rice pudding on the hob. Of course, you can use this rice pudding recipe alone and not do the salted caramel pear sauce. I will certainly be making the rice pudding again and having it with different toppings/mix ins.
I just could not resist making a salted caramel pear version because I had some ripe pears and I knew they would taste amazing cooked in salted caramel sauce and spices.
To begin with I put pudding rice, sugar, vanilla, salt and oat milk into a big pan and set it on a medium-high heat. I brought it to the boil and then turned the heat down to medium for 15 minutes, before turning the heat right down to the lowest setting. You have to stir it frequently, but it’s so worth it because you’ll end up with creamy, delicious rice pudding.
Most of the milk is absorbed by the rice, but it also creates this thick sauce. You can decide when to stop in terms of how soft the rice is. Some people prefer al dente, I prefer my rice pudding softer, so I cooked for an extra 5 minutes. I had to add a tiny bit more milk for the last 5 minutes.
Whilst the rice pudding was cooking, I peeled, cored and sliced 2 large conference pears. Then I placed them in a small, deep saucepan and added the salted caramel sauce, ground cinnamon and ginger.
Place that over a medium heat, bring to a boil and then turn down to simmer until the pears are soft and tender. The pear mixture takes about 15 minutes. I like to leave it to cool slightly before I use it, so it thickens up a bit.
Once the rice and salted caramel pear mixture is ready, I spoon half of the pear mixture into the rice pudding and swirl it through the rice. I don’t mix it in fully.
I then serve the rice pudding in small bowls and top with a spoonful of the remaining salted caramel pear sauce. Dig straight in and prepare to go to heaven! I can’t tell you how delicious these flavours are together!
Do you love homemade rice pudding? I am so glad I get to enjoy it again without the dairy milk! I hope you get to try my Salted Caramel Pear Pudding and if you do, tag me on Instagram. My handle is @anniesnomsblog
Salted Caramel Pear Rice Pudding {Dairy Free}
Ingredients
- FOR THE RICE PUDDING:
- 1 cup (230g) pudding rice
- 1/2 cup (100g) caster sugar
- 4 cups (960ml) non dairy milk, I used oat. You can use your favourite.*
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- FOR THE SALTED CARAMEL PEARS:
- 2 large ripe pears, I used Conference. Peeled, cored and sliced into small chunks
- 1/2 cup (120ml) salted caramel sauce, I used Jude's, but have used Sainsbury's taste the difference in the past. Works just as well.**
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
Instructions
- Place the pudding rice, sugar, milk, vanilla and salt into a medium sized, deep saucepan. Place over a medium-high heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
- Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium and leave to bubble away while you make the salted caramel pears. Stir every few minutes, just to make sure the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. After 15 minutes of simmering, turn the heat down to low until the rice is tender. You may need a little bit of extra milk. I added another 40ml for the last 5 minutes of cooking as I like my rice soft. If you prefer yours al dente, you won't need the extra milk.
- To make the salted caramel pears: Place the chunks of pear, salted caramel sauce, cinnamon and ginger into a small, deep saucepan over a medium heat. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until the pears are tender, around 15 minutes. They will go a little translucent when they're ready. Leave the salted caramel pears to cool and the sauce to thicken slightly.
- Once your pear mixture has thickened slightly and your rice is thick and creamy, spoon half of the pear mixture into the rice mixture and swirl through gently. You can fully mix it in if you want, but I prefer not to as I like to see swirls of caramel.
- Divide the rice pudding between 4 bowls and then spoon the remaining salted caramel pear mixture, equally, on top of the rice pudding.
- Salted Caramel Pear Rice Pudding is best eaten warm. It will keep in the fridge for 3 days. If you are making this ahead of time, don't mix the salted caramel mixture into the rice pudding. Store the rice pudding and caramel mixture separately, in airtight containers until you're ready to serve. Heat up, then swirl half of the caramel mix through the rice, and top it as above.
Notes
Annie is a self-taught baker, recipe developer and food photographer, who has an obsession with dessert and beauty! 
