Yesterday, as Scott and I were fixing lunch in the kitchen, we overheard T. reading out loud to herself in the other room. She's all about reading out loud this summer--I'm not sure she's ever read a book silently to herself since her reading skills took off this past spring.
"I'll miss hearing her read out loud when she goes back to school," Scott said, giving voice to my very thoughts. Hearing T. read out loud has been such a part of our lives this summer. She reads in her room, the family room, the kitchen, even in the bathroom. I don't think I could ever tire of hearing the sweet excitement that creeps into her voice as we hear her "discover" the story unfolding in front of her, the carefully pronounced words, the way she's learning to give characters different voices and the dialogue intonations.
I have no clue if all this reading out loud is developmentally the norm or not for new readers like T. This is all new for us. L. never read out loud--to himself or to others, once he entered kindergarten. Yet both by kids are turning into avid readers, something that always makes me feel proud and happy--whether I"m listening to T.'s sing-songy voice coming from her room, or if I catch sight of L. reading in his bed, buried under a blanket of books.
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The day after I put up this post, a friend e-mailed me. "Hey! Where's that rice pudding recipe?"
I'm always torn about posting rice pudding recipes, because I've tried a dozen and none of them ever come out tasting like my Greek grandmother's rice pudding--melt-in-your-mouth creamy, delicious, and utterly heavenly. I tried and posted another recipe last year and, while it was delicious in its own right, it just wasn't my grandmother's pudding.
The recipe I used this week isn't her pudding, either, but I'm getting closer--I can taste it.
And I got to use the set of charming clay ramekins I found at my favorite thrift store.
Not My Grandmother's Rice Pudding but Getting Closer
or
Quick and Easy Rice Pudding (Adapted from here)
Here's what you'll need:
3/4 cup uncooked SHORT or MEDIUM grain white rice
2 cups milk
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Honey to taste
Cinnamon to taste
In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. When I first embarked upon my obsessive hunt for the right rice pudding recipe, I didn't realize that using a short or medium grained rice would make a huge difference over long grain. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
In another saucepan, combine the cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups of the milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve warm.
Not My Grandmother's Rice Pudding but Getting Closer
or
Quick and Easy Rice Pudding (Adapted from here)
Here's what you'll need:
3/4 cup uncooked SHORT or MEDIUM grain white rice
2 cups milk
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Honey to taste
Cinnamon to taste
In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. When I first embarked upon my obsessive hunt for the right rice pudding recipe, I didn't realize that using a short or medium grained rice would make a huge difference over long grain. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
In another saucepan, combine the cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups of the milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve warm.