Mango Coconut Rice Pudding Pops and Ice Cream

I've had this recipe bookmarked for a while now, but it wasn't until I found some cute, cheap popsicle molds at Ikea that I was able to make them.   The original recipe made 12 large popsicles, so I adapted the recipe for 6, but even that was way too much for my tiny popsicle molds.  So I decided to add some cream and throw it into my ice cream maker to see how that would turn out.

Considering how much water there is in the mixture, the ice cream came out surprisingly well.  It freezes a little harder than I'm used to, but I was more than satisfied with the taste.  If I were to make this as an ice cream again, I'd try switching out the water for whole milk or half and half.  And I'd probably add a little sugar to the coconut milk so that the rice absorbs some sweetness, and it'd probably also help the rice stay a little softer once frozen, too.

As a popsicle, it's perfect. The creamy coconut milk and bright mango bits complement each other, and the rice gives it a nice chewiness.  My favorite part, though, is the sweetened condensed milk that kind of floats to the top of the mold (and therefore ends up at the bottom of the popsicle) giving it the perfect ending. 

Mango Coconut Rice Pudding Pops and Ice Cream (adapted from The Kitchn)
makes six 2 oz. popsicles and about a quart of ice cream

One 15-ounce can coconut milk, shaken
1/2 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
1/2 cup short-grain or arborio rice
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon coconut extract (optional)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup fresh or frozen mango, diced
1/4 cup heavy cream (for the ice cream)

Add the contents of the can of coconut milk into a large saucepan. Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla bean and stir in. Stir in the rice, and bring the whole mixture to a simmer over medium heat.

Turn the heat down to low and cook for about 25 minutes, or until the rice is tender.  Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk, water, vanilla extract, coconut extract (if using), and salt. 

Fold the mango into the rice mixture.

Transfer the rice and mango mixture to six 2-ounce popsicle molds. Insert sticks and freeze until solid — 3 to 4 hours.  To release the pops from the molds, run the molds briefly under warm water.

Add the rest of the mixture to an ice cream machine and churn according to the manufacturer's directions.  Transfer the ice cream to an air-tight container and freeze for at least 4 hours to harden.

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