Mastic Rice Pudding — Oven-Browned Milk Pudding with Mastic

Rinse the rice, add it to a pot with 250 ml of water and cook over low heat for 20 minutes, until all the water is absorbed. Press a grain between your fingers; the center should still be slightly firm, not completely broken down. This step releases the surface starch into the water so it does not mix into the milk.

Pound the mastic with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of the remaining sugar in a mortar until powdered; without sugar, it will stick to the mortar. Slurry the starch with 100 ml of cold milk and strain it. Slowly pour the starch mixture into the simmering pudding while stirring, and cook for 4 minutes. Add the mastic sugar and the remaining sugar, then stir for 2 more minutes.

Divide the mixture among oven-safe bowls, filling each to a finger’s width below the rim. Do not fill them to the top, as the pudding will rise in the oven. Smooth the surfaces with the back of a spoon.

Arrange the bowls in a deep baking pan and pour a finger’s depth of hot water into the pan; it moderates the heat and keeps the edges from drying out. Preheat the oven to broil at 220°C / 430°F and cook for 15 minutes, until dark brown spots appear on the surface. Stay by the oven during the final 5 minutes.