Emilia-Romagna / Bologna · Italy by Taste

Torta di Riso Bolognese: A Home Version

Bologna’s rice cake is associated with the Festa degli Addobbi. This smaller home adaptation keeps the milk, rice, almonds and citrus combination, with optional almond liqueur.

Recipe at a glance

Serves / makes8 small pieces

Prep20 minutes, plus cooling

Cook25–35 minutes for the rice; 45–55 minutes in the oven

SkillEasy

Ingredients

500 ml whole milk
100 g short-grain rice
80 g caster sugar
3 medium eggs
50 g finely chopped blanched almonds
30 g finely chopped candied citron
Finely grated zest of ½ untreated lemon
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon almond liqueur, optional
A pinch of salt
Butter and a little plain breadcrumb for a 20 cm baking tin

Method

Bring the milk just to a simmer with the rice, lemon zest and salt. Cook gently for 25–35 minutes, stirring often, until the rice is tender and the mixture has thickened. Add a little extra milk if the rice is still firm and the pan is drying.
Transfer to a shallow bowl and let it cool until no longer hot. Heat the oven to 170°C conventional, or 150°C fan. Butter the tin and dust lightly with breadcrumbs.
Beat the eggs with the sugar and vanilla. Stir in the cooled rice, almonds, candied citron and optional liqueur.
Pour into the tin and bake for 45–55 minutes, until the centre is set and the top is golden. If it colours too quickly, cover loosely for the remaining cooking time.
Let the cake cool completely before cutting into small pieces or diamonds. Keep refrigerated once cool.

The technique that matters

Cool the rice before adding the eggs, and let the baked cake settle before cutting. A warm cake is more fragile than a fully cooled one.

Ingredient notes

Contains milk, egg and almonds; breadcrumbs add wheat. Optional liqueur adds alcohol. The sugar quantity and scale differ from the published Bologna recipe; this is an adaptation for a home kitchen.

Italy by Taste home adaptation, guided by published regional references. Not kitchen-tested for this edition.