Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding with Crushed Golden Grahams

I've only  made rice pudding once before and it did NOT turn out well. I decided to give it one more go before I write the whole affair off as a lost cause. I discovered that I'm not big into rice pudding (other than my failed attempt, I'd never tried the stuff when made correctly) but my boyfriend loved it. I originally found this recipe on Epicurious then adjusted it to my own specifications (such as adding the rum extract AND vanilla extract with the crushed Golden Graham topping.) 

Vanilla Bean Rice Pudding with crushed Golden Grahams

Yield: Makes about 8 servings

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked basmati rice

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups of whole milk

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 tablespoon of rum extract

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and scraped of seeds

2 cups of crushed Golden Grahams

Preparation

Bring 1 3/4 cups of water to a boil in a large heavy saucepan. Add rice and salt. Reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer until the water is completely absorbed which should take about 10 minutes. Add milk, cream, sugar, vanilla extract, and rum extract. Scrape in vanilla bean seeds and add the bean. Increase the heat to medium and cook uncovered for 35 minutes stirring occasionally until the rice is tender. The mixture will thicken to a soft and creamy texture. Remove pudding from heat and discard the vanilla bean shell. Divide evenly among small bowls. Serve cold or warm. Top with the crushed Golden Grahams. Note: press plastic wrap over top of leftover pudding DIRECTLY on pudding surface to prevent a skin from forming on the pudding.

Source:
Bon Appetit, March 2009