Risalamande ( also spelled as ) 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

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

s. It is served cold with either warm or cold cherry sauce (''kirsebærsovs'').

Etymology

The name is based on French meaning , although the dessert has a Danish origin. Today ''risalamande'' is the spelling documented by the Danish Language Council.

History

According to a rumor, the invention of risalamande came about when a French cook or chef at the Hotel d'Angleterre in Copenhagen had to improvise a dessert. Risalamande was inspired by the classical French dessert of riz à l'impératrice (empress rice) which is more solid, shaped in moulds and decorated with

raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of several plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the Rosaceae, rose family, most of which are in the subgenus ''Rubus#Modern classification, Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Ras ...

jelly. As a tradition, rislamande is known from around 1900, meaning it was probably invented in the 19th century. Here, the kitchens of bourgeois homes began to serve risalamande with cherry sauce for Christmas instead of rice pudding. Before then, rice pudding was a more exclusive food, being made of imported rice, cinnamon and almonds. It was not until the rationing times during and following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

that the rice pudding became the most common Danish Christmas food, that is in the first 50 years of the 20th century, and became more common as rice became both more cheap and common in the nation.''Information'' and food historian Caroline Nyvang on Rislamande
(Danish) At some point, a tradition of giving a special additional prize to someone who found one whole almond hidden in the pudding, called ''mandelgaven'' "the almond present" was created, with the prize usually being in the form of a pink marzipan pig. It is believed that this tradition came from a French custom of the 1500s where on the Epiphany, also known as "Three Kings' Day", you would bake and serve a "Three Kings cake" or simply "

king cake A king cake, also known as a three kings cake or a baby cake, is a cake associated in many countries with Epiphany (holiday), Epiphany, the celebration of the Twelfth Night (holiday), Twelfth Night after Christmas. Its form and ingredients are va ...

" in which one whole bean was hidden, and whoever got the bean was "king" for the night with all his privileges. In general, the bourgeois of Denmark was rather " francophilic" and viewed French culture as one of the most sophistiated and fine ones. By eating rislamande for desert, they could distance themselves from the more common Danish people who instead ate rice pudding as a starter. The almond present is believed to have come about in Denmark around 1800 where the bean was replaced with an almond and the Holy Three Kings cake with the rice pudding.Ris á l'amande – fra Dansk Historisk Fællesråd
(Danish)www.sa.dk
(Danish)

Use in Christmas tradition

Simple rice pudding (''risengrød'') can be served all year in Denmark, but is also often seen as a Christmas dish. It is served hot and topped with cinnamon and butter, often along with malt beer (''hvidtøl'').

Some families make a large batch of rice pudding for dinner on December 23 ( meaning ) and keep a part of it for preparing risalamande as a dessert after the big Christmas dinner. Others eat hot rice pudding as part of the Christmas dinner, usually as a starter and more rarely as a dessert. This is often regarded as an older tradition than the risalamande. According to tradition, hot rice pudding is also the dish eaten by '' nisser'', the Christmas elfs, which is common in other Nordic countries too. As such, children may put out a bowl of rice pudding, and if eaten (possibly by a cat, or more often, the parents), it will demonstrate the existence of the ''nisse''. This usage is derived from the ancient belief in house spirits. On Christmas Eve, a whole almond is added to the dessert, and the person who finds it wins a small prize such as a marzipan pig, a chocolate heart or a small board game. The finder may conceal their discovery as long as possible, so that the rest of the partygoers are forced to eat the entire dish of risalamande, even after they have already devoured a large Christmas dinner.

In Sweden, Finland, and Norway

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, this dish is called ''ris à la

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

''. Typically it is made of chilled leftover rice pudding, whipped cream, sugar and vanilla, with or without almonds. By tradition, the person finding a hidden almond in the dessert is expected to get married before the next Christmas. A variety containing diced oranges is called ''apelsinris''. The dish is mostly served with either a smooth cordial, jam or semi-thawed frozen berries. In

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, this dish is called '' Maltan riisi'', Typically it is made of chilled leftover rice pudding, whipped cream, sugar and vanilla, with or without almonds. By tradition, the person finding a hidden almond in the dessert is very lucky whole year. In Finland, it can be served with puree made of

(or even lingonberry) or raisin compote.

Norwegians Norwegians () are an ethnic group and nation native to Norway, where they form the vast majority of the population. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegians are descended from the Norsemen, Norse of the Early ...

have a similar dish called and, as in Denmark, the person finding a hidden almond in the dessert wins a ''mandelgave'' ( almond present) in the form of a marzipan pig or the like. The dessert may contain almonds for flavour, but mostly chopped on top as decoration. In Norway, the sauce is also normally made of

(or even

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

) rather than cherry.

Risifrutti

Risifrutti is a ready-to-eat snack product inspired by risalamande, sold in the Nordic countries since 1993. Various sauces exist, such as strawberry, cherry, blueberry, and raspberry. However, ready-to-eat products marketed as risalamande (and more similar to the actual dessert) also exist.

References