Slow Cooker Rice Pudding with Cherry Sauce - Easy

This month's Kosher Connection challenge is to prepare "the best thing I ever ate." Sounds way easy, no? But think about it. How many times have you eaten something so delicious that you practically had to hold yourself back to keep from licking off the plate? I bet it's more than just a couple. Same for me. Except I didn't hold back.  Luckily I was home and the kids weren't watching.

So I made a list of all the every dish that really blew me away.  Then narrowed the lot down to those I liked as a kid, as a young adult, and finally as an alte cockeh mature individual.

From this now very short list, rice pudding with cherry sauce was far and away the winner. Oh, yum!   As a kid, my family used to occasionally eat at the local Jewish dairy restaurant.  You can read more about the rice pudding of my youth along with a recipe clone here.  This version today is a slight adaptation of the one in my cookbook.  Takes a little longer, but just as yummy.

Slow Cooker Rice Pudding with Cherry Sauce
Slightly adapted from The Everything Kosher Slow Cooker Cookbook
Yields 8 polite servings

cooking spray
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk (regular is best, but low- or no-fat is still delicious)
2 Tbl. unsalted butter, melted
2 cups cooked rice
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 (15 ounce) cans sweet cherries in heavy syrup, undrained
4 tsp. tapioca starch

Spray the insides of a 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.

Combine beaten eggs, 1/3 cup sugar, vanilla, salt, evaporated milk, butter, rice and raisins (if using) in the slow cooker; mix well.

Cover and cook on high for 1 hour. Uncover, sprinkle cinnamon evenly over surface, then recover and cook on low for 2 more hours or on high for 1 more hour (pudding will not be completely set in center). Turn off slow cooker. Let stand, covered, for 1/2 hour to let pudding firm up.

While pudding is firming up, combine remaining sugar, cherries and their syrup, and tapioca starch in a 2-quart saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Allow to come to a boil, stirring occasionally, then remove from heat.  Cover and let stand until ready to serve.  Syrup will be thin, but will thicken upon standing or chilling.

To serve, divide rice pudding among 8 serving bowls. Ladle cherry sauce over pudding. Serve warm.