Baked Turkish Rice Pudding

To make Turkish rice pudding sütlaç, first rinse the rice under cold water until it runs clear. Place in a saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes until the rice softens and absorbs most of the water.

Pour the milk into the saucepan with the par-cooked rice. Split the vanilla pod lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and add both pod and seeds to the pan. Stir constantly and cook over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes until the pudding thickens to a silky creamy consistency.

Add the sugar, stir well and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove and discard the vanilla pod.

Preheat the oven grill to 250 °C. Ladle the hot pudding evenly into ceramic bowls or small baking dishes.

Place the bowls under the grill and bake for 5 to 8 minutes until the surface turns golden and a lightly caramelised crust forms.

Remove from the oven, leave to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Before serving, dust the top of each bowl with ground cinnamon.