Denmark: Risalamande

Name: Denmark: Risalamande
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Denmark
Ingredients: short grain rice: 1 cup; water: 1/2 cup; milk: 4 1/4 cup; vanilla bean: 1-2; sugar: 2 tbsp; heavy cream: 2 cups; slivered almonds: 5 oz; cherry sauce; whole almond: 1; small gift: 1

Cuisine:

Denmark

Ingredients

1 cup short grain rice
Like Arborio
1/2 cup water
4 1/4 cup milk
I used whole milk
1-2 vanilla bean
You can also use 1-2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp sugar
2 cups heavy cream
5 oz slivered almonds
skinless
cherry sauce
I used cherry pie filling
1 whole almond
optional
1 small gift
optional

Directions

Man, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve made any progress on my mission to cook a recipe from every country in the world. But this week we changed that. Our international working group hosted a potluck where everyone brought a dish from a country that means something to them: where they’re from, someplace they’ve been, or a place they’d like to go (Yes, my work is the best).

Anyways, it was the prefect excuse to get back on the train. Since we’re headed to Copenhagen for Christmas, I thought I’d get a little preview of Denmark. Risamalande (also ris a la mande, Ris à l’amande or Ris ala mande) is a creamy rice pudding with almonds topped with a warm cherry sauce that’s traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve. In Denmark, as in most Nordic countries, Christmas Eve is the big celebration. The typical Danish Christmas Eve dinner is a roast duck or pork with potatoes and red cabbage, finished off with this dessert. Sweden and Norway enjoy similar versions.

It was traditionally made from leftover rice pudding (risengrød) that was eaten the day before Christmas Eve. The name comes from the French riz à l’amande meaning “rice with almonds.”

There’s a little tradition that goes along with this dish. Amongst the slivered almonds, one whole almond is stirred into the pudding. Whoever finds the whole almond get a special little gift!

Recipe Source: Nordic Living

Steps

1 Done	In a sauce pan add the rice and the water. Boil it for about 2 minutes. Add the milk to the pudding and let it boil while stirring. Cut the vanilla bean in half and scrape out the vanilla into the boiling milk. Also add the empty vanilla beans to the pudding, they still have a lot of flavor. (If using vanilla extract, add that now).
2 Done	Cover and let it boil lightly for about 35 minutes over low-heat. The rice have a tendency to burn to the sauce pan, especially at the bottom, so remember to stir regularly. Remove the vanilla beans and let cool in the fridge.
3 Done	In a mixing bowl, whip the heavy cream and the sugar into a whipped cream.
4 Done	Once the rice pudding is completely cooled, stir in the whipped cream, the slivered almonds, and a single whole almond.
5 Done	Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve topped with warmed cherry sauce. You can make your own, but I used a cherry pie filling .