We got our love of rice pudding from our mom, who made it from scratch, with lots of raisins and cinnamon. Before she put it in the fridge to chill, we got to eat some warm.

If your Valentine—or your mom—loves rice pudding, try this special recipe*. The coconut flavor comes from coconut milk, which is much more subtle than flaked coconut. The raisins are soaked in coconut rum.

If you don’t have coconut-flavored rum and don’t want to buy it (you can look for miniatures), add a bit of coconut extract to plain white rum.

However, if you do buy a bottle of coconut rum, you can use it in Piña Coladas and other rum drinks, with after-dinner coffee, in baking (cakes, cupcakes, brownies) and other recipes.

If you’re a real DIY cook, you can make your own coconut rum.

And then, this sophisticated recipe adds the heavenly, crunchy top of crème brûlée. The passion fruit is spooned over the top. If you don’t like the tartness of passion fruit or can’t find any, substitute a fresh mango.
 
 
PASSION FRUIT RICE PUDDING BRULÉE

Ingredients For 8 Servings

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the raisins and rum in small bowl. Let stand at room temperature while preparing pudding.

2. PREPARE the coconut broth: Combine the nonfat milk and the next 4 ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Scrape in the seeds from vanilla bean; then add the vanilla bean. Bring to a simmer, remove from the heat and allow to steep, uncovered, for 1 hour. Then strain and put 1 cup of broth in a heavy medium saucepan to cook the rice.

3. RINSE the rice in a medium bowl of cold water. Drain and repeat 2 more times. Add the rice to the pan with 1 cup of the coconut broth. Cook the coconut broth and rice over medium-high heat until almost all liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes.

4. ADD the remaining coconut broth; cook over low heat until the rice is tender, stirring frequently, about 13 minutes. Remove from the heat; the mixture should be thick. Stir in 6 tablespoons sugar, transfer to large bowl and cool.

5. WHIP the cream in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Fold half of the whipped cream into the cooled rice.

6. DRAIN the raisins and stir along with the lime peel into the rice. Fold in the remaining whipped cream. Divide the mixture among eight 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups.

7. PREHEAT the broiler (or use a kitchen torch). Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon sugar over each pudding. Place the ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet. Broil until sugar caramelizes, watching closely to prevent burning, about 3 minutes.

8. SPOON the passion fruit over the puddings and serve; or chill for later.

[1] If your Valentine loves rice pudding, try this Rice Pudding Brûlée recipe (photo © Epicurious.com)*.

[2] Personally, we’d like a larger serving, but some will prefer smaller ramekins like these (photo courtesy Epicurious).

[3] Some passion fruits have have smooth skins; this variety has wrinkled skins (photo courtesy Good Eggs).

[4] Coconut rum can be variously used in other puddings, cakes and brownies, after-dinner coffee, gelatin shots and a broad variety of cocktails (photo courtesy Malibu Rum).

*We received this recipe, called Warm Jasmine Rice Pudding with Passion Fruit, from Savor California, crediting rice farmers Rue & Forsman Ranch. We found the identical recipe on Epicurious.com. Condé Nast did not respond to our inquiry requesting clarification, but we’re guessing the copyright goes to Condé Nast Digital, Inc.

We have a passion for red grapefruit, deep in flavor and always refreshing. We try every recipe that comes our way.

Most recent is this Red Grapefruit Collins, which we adapted from one by Elegant Affairs Caterers in the greater New York area.

The original Tom Collins recipe is a mixture of gin, lemon juice, sugar and soda water, in a tall (a.k.a. collins) glass filled with ice. The classic garnish is a maraschino cherry and a lemon wedge.

Here, grapefruit juice substitutes for some of the lemon juice, plus the garnish; and the glass is rimmed Margarita-style, with coarse salt and grapefruit zest.

(BONUS TIP: Try mixing lime zest with the salt for your next Margarita rim. It really elevates the experience.)

(FOOD 101: types Of red grapefruit and the history of grapefruit.)
 
 
RECIPE: GRAPEFRUIT COLLINS

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. RIM the glass with a grapefruit wedge and dip the moist edge into the grapefruit zest-salt mixture.

2. ADD the gin, lemon juice, grapefruit juice and simple syrup to a shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into the glass.

3. Add the sparkling water and stir gently. Garnish with grapefruit wedge and mint leaves.

In the 19th century there were numerous drinks that, like the Tom Collins, were made with gin, lemon juice, sugar and soda.

There are numerous claims to the origination of the Tom Collins, one of the most popular of the classic cocktails.

The most reliable is that the recipe for the Tom Collins first appeared in the 1876 edition of Jerry Thomas Bar-Tender’s Guide. The drink was heavy on the gin (one large wine glass of it!).

Here’s the recipe from Thomas’ book:

(Use large bar-glass.)
Take 5 or 6 dashes of gum syrup*.
Juice of a small lemon.
1 large wine-glass of gin.
2 or 3 lumps of ice;
Shake up well and strain into a large bar-glass. Fill up the glass with plain soda water and drink while it is lively [source].

The drink got its name from The Great Tom Collins hoax of 1874. A practical joke was making the rounds, wherein one man told another that a man named Tom Collins was saying defamatory things about him. The “victim” didn’t know a Tom Collins, but went off in search of the rascal—who of course was fictitious.

This became known as “The Great Tom Collins Hoax of 1874.” Eventually, a bartender caught on and named a drink “Tom Collins,” so that if anyone came into his bar looking for Tom Collins, he would [unknowingly] have ordered a tall gin drink.

According to Business Insider, the lame joke went viral in New York and Philadelphia. Newspapers printed stories of false sightings of Tom Collins, songs were written that memorialized the joke.

By 1878, the Tom Collins was being served in the bar of New York City and elsewhere, identified as among “the favorite drinks which are in demand everywhere” [source].

It still is!

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*Gum syrup (gomme syrup in the U.K.) was the pre-Prohibition sweetener in many classic cocktail recipes. It has been replaced by simple syrup. True gum syrup contains gum arabic, an emulsifier that it adds a silky texture and softens the alcohol’s flavor. You can buy it online or make it.
  

You don’t have to turn on the oven to make this no-bake cake from FAGE Total, but you do need to refrigerate it for 12 hours to set.

The fudgy chocolate is accented with coffee liqueur: Illy, Kahlúa, Tia Maria or whatever you have on hand.

If you don’t like coffee liqueur, substitute orange liqueur (Cointreau, Grand Marnier, Gran Gala, Triple Sec), rum, whiskey or spirit of choice.

The recipe allows for even more personalization:

Your choice of ingredients is mixed into the chocolate: broken cookie pieces, dried fruits (including coconut), nuts, etc. It’s an opportunity to go through the cupboard and toss in whatever you like.

Prep time is 30 minutes, refrigerator time is 12 hours.

Given the sweetness of the cake, a dollop of plain Greek yogurt or crème fraîche is a nice counterpoint.
 
 
RECIPE: NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE KAHLÚA CAKE

Ingredients For 10 Servings

 
Preparation

1. MELT the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water. In another bowl…

2. LIGHTLY WHIP the heavy cream, then fold in the yogurt and set aside.

[2] Crème fraîche: the consistency of yogurt with the flavor of sour cream. You can buy it or make it.

4. POUR the melted chocolate has into the coffee mix, then fold in the mixed nuts/dried fruit/broken biscuits.

5. START to fold the cream and yogurt into the chocolate mixture. When they are fully mixed into the chocolate, pour the mixture into a 10-inch-round cake tin. Refrigerate for 12 hours.

6. TO SERVE: Turn the cake out onto a board, cut into 10 portions, and serve each on a dessert plate garnished with a sprig of mint and a dollop of plain Greek yogurt.

[2] Chop or break up chocolate bars to create a “broken heart” (photo courtesy Hebert Candies).

If your Valentine’s Day will be more doleful than joyful—or if you simply have a twisted sense of humor—express your feelings in broken-heart chocolate.
 
HOW TO MAKE BROKEN-HEART CHOCOLATE

 
PLUS

 
HOW TO CREATE THE HEARTS

Use an existing form:

 
…Or create the shape freestyle (photo #2).

…Or do all of the above!

If you want to lay it on thickly:

We recently published an article on pairing cheese and chocolate, but it was limited to certain types of cheese.

To put together a Valentine cheese plate, pick your favorite cheeses and build the accompaniments around them from the lists below. Use red and/or pink accents.

1. CHEESES
We love the goat cheese family and soft-ripened goat’s, sheep’s and cow’s milk cheeses in general.

 
If these are not your cheese tastes, here are some suggestions that pair with chocolate—since of course, the ideal Valentine’s Day cheese plate includes some chocolate.

 
Feel free to customize the cheese plate with spices, fresh in-season herbs or dried fruits to taste. It’s a fun and easy way to experiment with your favorite flavors.

Don’t be afraid to ask your local cheesemongers for recommendations; they’re a wealth of knowledge!

Take cheeses out of the fridge one hour prior to serving, allowing them to come to room temperature.

2. BREADS & BISCUITS

This special occasion demands ore than the usual baguette. Look for:

 
3. FRUITS

Go for red fruits for Valentine’s Day:

 
4. CHARCUTERIE

Charcuterie is often red or pink in color, or has a pink tinge.

 
CHOCOLATES & CONFECTIONS

Artisan chocolatiers sometimes make special treats, like chocolate-covered goat cheese truffles. They’re heavenly, but these are more readily available.

[3] The works: cheeses, crackers, berries, chocolate truffles and caramels. You can press pink peppercorns or dehydrated raspberries into a fresh cheese, or add a sprinkle of red chile flakes (photo courtesy Vermont Creamery).

[4] Party time! (photo courtesy Cheeses Of France)

[5] Heart-shaped cheeses for Valentine’s Day are popular in the U.K. and France, but harder to find in the U.S. (photo courtesy Cheeses Of France).

And to guild the lily, might we suggest a chaser of…chocolate cheesecake, milk chocolate cheesecake or white chocolate cheesecake?
 
CONDIMENTS & GARNISHES

 
 
The History Of Cheese

The History Of Chocolate

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*You can’t tell from the outside if the flesh of the guava is pink or white. Ask the produce manager.