Arroz con Leche, or Spanish rice pudding, is prepared all over Latin America. This rice-based dessert is cooked slowly and is known to be much sweeter than the rice pudding popular in the United States. The cinnamon and cloves in this recipe bring out a wonderful flavor and aroma to the dish.
- Soak the rice, cinnamon sticks, lemon zest and whole cloves in the water in a large saucepan for 1 hour.
- After soaking, bring the rice mixture to a boil on high heat, uncovered. When it starts to boil (about 5 minutes), lower the heat to medium and cook for another 10 minutes until the water has evaporated.
- While rice is cooking, beat the egg in a bowl. Add the milk and stir well to mix. Add the egg mixture, brown sugar, vanilla extract and condensed milk to the rice and cook over medium-low heat, stirring carefully, until it thickens slightly or until desired consistency, for about 20 minutes.
- Serve warm or cold. Garnish with powdered cinnamon.
