Maple Rum Rice Creme with Chocolate Sauce

Short grain rice cooked slowly in soy milk, water, and maple syrup for over an hour until mushy, then pureed with vanilla and dark rum into a silky, custard-like creme. No eggs, no dairy, no gelatin. The rice itself becomes the thickener.

Short grain rice is essential here. Its high starch content is what makes the pureed result creamy and smooth rather than grainy. Long grain rice stays distinct and separate even when overcooked, which would give you a gritty texture no amount of blending can fix.

Cooking covered for 75 minutes breaks the rice down almost completely. By the time it’s ready for the blender, most of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice has turned into a thick, porridge-like mass. Pureeing until “absolutely smooth” is the key instruction. Any remaining grain texture will be noticeable in the chilled creme, so blend longer than you think necessary.

The chocolate sauce is just cocoa powder, water, honey, and vanilla simmered down to one cup. It’s intentionally simple so the maple-rum flavor of the creme stays front and center. The cocoa’s bitterness plays off the maple sweetness, and the honey bridges the two.

Chef Tips

• Use pure maple syrup, not pancake syrup. The creme depends on real maple flavor to taste like more than sweet rice pudding.
• Blend in batches if your blender is small. Hot rice expands and can blow the lid off if the blender is overfilled.
• Chill for several hours or overnight. The creme thickens significantly as it cools and sets.
• Stir the chocolate sauce often while simmering. Cocoa and honey scorch quickly on the bottom of the pot.

Variations

• Coconut version: Replace soy milk with coconut milk for a richer, tropical-flavored creme (no longer low-fat, but worth it).
• Bourbon swap: Use bourbon instead of rum for a warmer, more caramel-forward flavor that pairs beautifully with maple.