Ingredients
- Tomato confit
- 6 large, ripe and firm tomatoes
- 180g sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1 strip orange zest (coloured part only)
- 1 cardamom pod, bruised
- Creamy rice pudding
- 1 litre milk
- 100g sugar
- pinch salt
- 1 vanilla bean, split
- 160g short-grain rice
- 2 cups cream, softly whipped
Method
For tomato confit
Remove calyx from tomatoes. Cut a cross in the opposite end and plunge into boiling water for a few seconds. Lift out with a wide skimmer and plunge the tomatoes into very cold water. Drain, remove skins, quarter, and cut out the jelly and seeds to leave 4 well-shaped tomato sections from each tomato.
Dissolve the sugar in the water. Add the vanilla bean, orange zest and cardamom pod, and bring slowly to simmering point. Drop in the tomato quarters and keep the syrup just below simmering point for about 15 minutes. Cool for a few minutes in the syrup and then lift the tomatoes out on to a paper-lined rack resting over a plate to catch any drips.
For creamy rice pudding
Bring milk to the boil with sugar, salt and vanilla bean, then tip in rice and stir until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until rice is completely cooked. Allow to cool somewhat. Fold the cream into the rice and serve while still faintly warm.
To serve
Serve the tomato quarters in the centre of a plate of warm, creamy rice, with a little of the tomato syrup drizzled over and around.
