Risalamande

Wikipedia can lead you in so many interesting directions. A friend was browsing Wikipedia and came across the entry for Risalamande and begged me to make it for him. I was intrigued, so I did. And I'm glad that I did - it is definitely worth repeating - in fact, a week later I did.

It's essentially a rice pudding made with risotto rice, a good amount of almonds, and has whipped cream folded in. Oh, and a cherry topping. It's not sweet due to very little sugar, but it is quite rich. Fair warning: Rice pudding is not the sexiest thing to photograph.

The ingredients: 
200g Arborio rice (I suspect a substitution would be bad)
1l milk (whole or low fat - your choice. I've used both)
4tbs sugar
1/2tsp salt
1 vanilla pod or 1-2tsp vanilla extract (or essence, if you don't have the extract on hand)
100g almonds, coarsely ground (easier to buy this)
50g flaked almonds, optional
250ml fresh/whipping cream

For the topping:
1 can pitted black cherries in syrup
1tbs cornflour/cornstarch
1/4 cup water

The method: 

This is time-consuming, but really simple.

The Arborio rice, milk, sugar, salt and vanilla bean (split and scraped) all go in to a pot. Bring it to boil, then lower to a simmer. Just give it a stir whenever you remember (to make sure that nothing is sticking to the bottom). When the rice is soft to your liking, it's done - I would provide a time, but it differed for the 2 times I made it. Check around the 30-40 minute mark.

 Remove from heat, and stir in almonds. If using vanilla essence instead of bean, stir in too. Let it cool down completely (I find sticking it in the fridge and stirring every 10 minutes speeds this along).

Whip the cream. Remove the vanilla bean if used, and fold the whipped cream in to the cooled rice pudding.

Spoon in to individual bowls for smaller desserts, or one big bowl for everyone to dish out. If you're going with the Danish tradition, put a whole almond in there too and have a prize standing by for whomever gets the whole almond :)

You can eat this as is, but the cherry topping just makes it so much better. Prepare it while the rest is cooling. The cherries + syrup in the can go in to a pot. Bring to boil, then add the cornflour slurry (cornflour + water, mixed till all lumps gone). Just stir until preferred thickness reached, and let it cool. Reheat when serving - warmed cherry topping on the cool rice pudding makes for a delightful winter treat.

If you have fresh cherries, or prefer to use raspberries (fresh or frozen) instead, follow the following method:
300g-500g cherries/raspberries, 250ml water, 1/2 cup sugar go in to the pot. Bring this to boil, then add the cornflour slurry and get it to the thickness you like. You can use less water if using frozen berries.

You can also serve it sans any topping, or with some heated berry jam. I do suggest making the cherry topping, as it works incredibly well together.