Risalamande, Danish Rice Pudding, is often eaten on Christmas Eve in Denmark. But we've decided it's delicious enough to serve anytime!
One of my favorite desserts of all time is rich and creamy rice pudding. I hadn't made this pudding before, so when I was asked to make Risalamande for Anna and Vince’s Danish Christmas dinner, I was excited to try this new dessert recipe.
Risalamande (riz à l’amande) is probably the most famous Danish Christmas dessert and is traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve.
The name comes from the French, meaning “rice with almonds.” The base of this dessert is basic rice pudding with added vanilla, whipped cream and crushed almonds.
It isn’t overly sweet, and the richness of the silky cherry sauce makes it irresistibly delicious.
When making the dessert in Denmark, it is customary to hide a whole almond somewhere in the pudding and the person who finds it in his or her serving wins a prize.
The person who finds the almond keeps it in the corner of the mouth until everyone is finished so that everyone thinks that they might win.
The prize is traditionally a small marzipan pig or chocolate heart.
Our winner…….Phil!
This dish is traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve, but don’t wait until Christmas. Once you've tasted this Danish treat, you'll definitely want to enjoy it year round!
Can Rice Pudding be Made in Advance?
Yes! Make the rice pudding portion of this recipe a day before serving. Cool it down, cover and refrigerate.
You can either serve it chilled with the cherry sauce or let it sit until it's room temperature, if desired.
More Gr8 Danish Recipes
- Smørrebrød
- Caramelized Potatoes - YUMMY!
- Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Danish
Keyword: Risalamande (Danish Rice Pudding)
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Jurga
Ingredients
Rice Pudding Ingredients
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3 cups skim milk
- ⅔ cup sugar, divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup Arborio rice, risotto rice
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon good quality almond extract, divided
- 1 cup blanched almonds, finely chopped and slightly toasted (see Gr8 Tip below)
- 1 whole blanched almond
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste , or 1 vanilla bean split lengthwise and scraped (do not use vanilla extract)
Cherry Sauce Ingredients
- 1 24-ounce jar Morello cherries in light syrup, available at Traders Joe's or specialty stores
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ cup water
- 3 Tablespoons butter
Instructions
Rice Pudding Recipe
Bring the two kinds of milk, 5 Tablespoons of the sugar, salt and rice to a boil in a large pot.
Turn the heat to low, cover and simmer, until rice is tender, stirring every 3-4 minutes for approximately 35 minutes, to prevent the rice and milk from burning. It can burn very quickly.
Once rice is thickened and cooked, pour rice mixture into a large bowl to cool.
While rice is cooling, in a medium well-chilled bowl (stainless works best) add whipping cream, ¼ teaspoon almond extract and 2 Tablespoons of the sugar.
Using an electric mixer, beat the cream, extract and sugar until the cream is stiff and has formed peaks. Set the bowl aside.
Add the chopped almonds, the one whole almond and vanilla paste to the rice mixture and mix well.
Gently fold the whipped cream into the rice mixture.
Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours (may be made the day before).
Divide the rice pudding either chilled or room temperature into 8 individual bowls.
Top with warm cherry sauce and serve.
Cherry Sauce Recipe
Using a colander, drain the cherries in a bowl and reserve the liquid.
Combine the cornstarch with the water and stir until completely combined.
In a medium saucepan, add the reserved cherry liquid, the remaining 2 Tablespoons of sugar, the cornstarch mixture, and butter and bring to a boil, stirring constantly for 1-2 minutes.
Reduce heat to low.
Add the drained cherries and ¼ teaspoon almond extract and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes or more until sauce is slightly thickened.
Notes
Gr8 Tip:
- If blanched almonds are not available, blanch regular whole almonds by filling a saucepan with ⅔ water. Bring to a boil. Place the almonds in the water. Blanch for 1 minute. Drain, cool and squeeze the skin off.
- Before chopping the almonds, bake them in a 350°F oven for a few minutes to soften the almonds and increase the nutty flavor. Keep your eye on them so they do not brown.
Gr8 Do Ahead Tip:
The pudding can be made one day ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to serve.
« Smørrebrød - A Danish Traditional Sandwich
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FAQs
This traditional Danish rice pudding dessert is served at Christmas dinner and Julefrokost. On Christmas Eve, the cook hides one whole almond among the slivered ones; whoever finds it receives a gift!
What Danish version of rice pudding containing one almond is actually a game where the finder of the almond gets a prize? ›
Serve the Risalamande with warm cherry sauce. If you want to play the traditional Danish almond-game (mandelgave), leave a whole almond without the peel in the Risalamande – who ever gets the whole almond, wins a small prize.
How to make Jamie Oliver's rice pudding? ›
Method. Put the rice, milk, 200ml of water, half the maple syrup or honey and the vanilla into a large pan. Give it a good stir, then place the pan on a very low heat. Cook gently for around 45 minutes, or until thick and creamy, stirring regularly.
What nationality eats rice pudding? ›
Though we may never really know exactly where rice pudding first originated, from what we do know, it has its roots in India and China many thousands of years ago. It's thought to have come to Europe around the 14th century.
What is the national breakfast of Denmark? ›
Typical Danish breakfast is bread (white or rye bread) with cream or soft cheese, sausage, cured cold meat or jam with coffee or tea. Among popular breakfast dishes are also cereals and porridge. One of the most interesting things and a very traditional Danish food you can eat in Copenhagen is øllebrød.
What is the strange tradition in Denmark? ›
Hitting the cat out of the barrel at Fastelavn. In February, we celebrate Fastelavn which is a mash up of Halloween and carnival. Children dress up in costumes and hit a cat out of a barrel. It's similar to a piñata, though instead of sweets we traditionally had a black cat inside the barrel.
Why do Norwegians put an almond in rice pudding? ›
It is traditional for families to place a single, blanched almond inside the rice porridge or pudding. Whoever finds the almond will have good luck, and often gets a prize (usually a small marzipan pig or chocolate), and the distinction of getting to open their presents first!
What is risalamande made of? ›
Risalamande (Danish pronunciation: [ˌri:salaˈmɑŋ] also spelled as ris à l'amande) is a traditional Danish dessert served at Christmas dinner and julefrokost (Christmas lunch). It is made of rice pudding mixed with whipped cream, sugar, vanilla, and chopped almonds.
What nut is hidden in rice pudding? ›
I didn't know that hiding an almond in rice pudding is a Swedish, Norwegian, Danish and Finnish custom. Some say that finding the almond means you'll be married before next Christmas. In Denmark, the rice pudding was traditionally left out to appease mischievous elves and then later it became a game.
Which rice is better for rice pudding? ›
Rice - I've tried all sorts of rice types and uncooked medium grain is by far the best for rice pudding, followed by risotto rice. Risotto rice (arborio) - needs extra liquid, add 1 cup (250ml) water into the saucepan with milk, and cook for 1 hr 20 minutes.
While we've mentioned before that this dessert gets its perfectly creamy texture from the starch that is released when the grains are cooking, we do suggest a rinse for this recipe in order to wash off excess debris and added starch.
Why does my rice pudding get hard? ›
It also ensures that the rice in the pudding will not get crunchy (retrograde) when refrigerated." Retrogradation, they explain, is the process in which cooked rice becomes hard again under refrigeration. It happens to rice that is high in the starch called amylose, such as U.S. long-grain rice.
What is rice pudding called in America? ›
Although rice pudding is part of many cultures ranging from Latinamerica to Asia and everywhere in between, our recipe is inspired by the traditional South American version of Arroz con Leche — rice pudding, in English.
Do Muslims eat rice pudding? ›
Stick to brown rather than white varieties for iftar, served with meat or fish. For sahur, make a tasty rice pudding with rose water (a great mood enhancer) topped with pistachio nuts – another food great for digestion.
Who eats rice pudding at Christmas? ›
In Norway, it is commonly served as lunch or early dinner on Christmas Eve or the day before, lillejulaften 'Little Christmas Eve'. In Sweden and Finland, it is more commonly done with a rice porridge dinner, sometimes a few days before Christmas Eve.
What is hidden inside the rice pudding eaten in Sweden and Norway at New Year what will happen to the person who finds it? ›
In Sweden and Norway, meanwhile, rice pudding with an almond hidden inside is served on New Year's Eve; it is said that whoever finds the nut can expect 12 months of good fortune.
What is Denmark known for in sweets? ›
Typical Danish pastries include a snegl, a cinnamon roll-style pastry, a spandauer, a pastry with a dab of custard cream in the middle (you probably know this as a 'Danish pastry'), and a tebirkes, a pastry with remonce in the middle and poppy seeds all over the top.
What is unique in Denmark? ›
Denmark became the first country to legalise same-sex unions in 1989. And same-sex marriage was granted in 2012. If you want to celebrate love in all its forms, you ought to join in the annual pride celebrations happening throughout the country.
