Risalamande Recipe

Danish Rice pudding in Danish serving ware

5 from 4 votes

The most traditional Danish Christmas Eve dessert, Risalamande, is a wonderfully creamy almond rice pudding served with a heaping topping of warm cherry sauce! The sweet rice is stewed in milk to create a creamy texture that is flavored with real vanilla beans. You fold in finely chopped almond and mounds of whipped cream. It is light, not overly sweet, and delicious!

Prep Time10

Cook Time40

Total Time50

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Danish

Keyword: danish dessert, Danish rice pudding, rice pudding, risealamande

Servings: -8 servings

Author: Elena Davis

Ingredients

For the Rice:

1 cup arborio rice
100 ml water
500 ml whole milk
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
4 ounces chopped blanched almonds

For the Whipped Cream:

2 cups heavy whipping cream
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla bean flicks from a vanilla bean pod OR, 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste *not extract

For the Cherry Sauce: Make homemade or use a 21-ounce can cherry sauce, warmed up before serving

15 ounces frozen cherries
3 tablespoon sugar
½ cup water
2 teaspoons corn starch
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Instructions

In a medium saucepan add water and put it on a medium heat. When water starts to boil, add the rice, vanilla extract, and salt stir the rice for a few minutes. Add the warm milk, reduce the heat to medium-low, and stir occasionally. Cook until rice is soft, about 30 minutes, and there is little milk left.
Increase the frequency of stirring during the last 10 minutes to prevent scorching. This will also thicken the rice mixture. Stir in the sugar during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Take off the heat and stir in the chopped blanched almonds.
Let the rice cool and then chill in the fridge for several hours, or overnight.
Beat the heavy cream until it starts to thicken. Add the sugar, vanilla bean, or extract, and beat until stiff peaks form. Stir the cream mixture into the rice pudding. Note: The rice will be very stiff after it is refrigerated. Stir it with a fork to loosen it up and then stir it more after the cream has been added to break up any clumps.
Serve the Risalamande cold or at room temperature with the warm cherry sauce. Enjoy!

Notes

Tips

DO NOT add the sugar while the rice is cooking. It will turn into a sticky gloppy mess. Instead, stir it into the rice when it is still hot and done cooking.
DO NOT cook the rice until all the liquid is gone. Make sure to leave a little bit of milk so it feels smooth when you remove it from the heat at the end of the cooking time. The rice will absorb that extra liquid as it cools.
Fluff the rice. After the cooked rice cools it will be very stiff. Fluff the rice to break it up a bit with a fork before folding in the whipped cream.

Nutrition