Chocolate Rice Pudding

2 cups whole milk

1/2 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

1 cup arborio rice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 ounces dark chocolate (80 percent cacao preferred), broken into small pieces

Into a medium saucepan, pour the milk, sugar and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat.

Add the rice and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the milk is absorbed. (If the mixture becomes sticky, add a bit more milk to keep the rice creamy.) Stir in the vanilla.

Pour the rice pudding into 4 ramekins and, using a spoon, insert the chocolate pieces in the middle of each mold and push them into the rice.

Leave the pudding at room temperature. The chocolate will slowly melt and mix with the pudding.

Let your guests play with the way they want to eat it: Mix the whole thing together or start by eating the rice laced with melted chocolate and the chocolate center separately -- a matter of taste and mood and a tough decision.

Serves: 4 / Preparation time: 5 minutes / Total time: 30 minutes

From "French Women Don't Get Fat" by Mireille Guiliano