“I love a rice dish.”
It’s not a mantra, or slogan, or personal motto (though I guess it could be), but for Nik it is an oft-made statement. Certainly rice is a starchy side dish, but more often than not, at our house, it becomes the bottom of the one bowl meal. Chicken mole on rice, Vegetable curry on rice, Pipian on rice, stir-fried vegetables on rice, Indonesian Spiced Rice, etc etc etc on rice.
It’s not a mantra, or slogan, or personal motto (though I guess it could be), but for Nik it is an oft-made statement. Certainly rice is a starchy side dish, but more often than not, at our house, it becomes the bottom of the one bowl meal. Chicken mole on rice, Vegetable curry on rice, Pipian on rice, stir-fried vegetables on rice, Indonesian Spiced Rice, etc etc etc on rice.
But last night I realized that rice might be an indicator of yet another of the great distinctions between people…the Savory/Sweet Division. You know what I mean, it’s the classic battle…the chips people vs. the cookies people.
“I don’t usually eat dessert” vs “Is there any more of that chocolate cake?” A quick screening to determine which you are…at the movies, which do you tend to buy…popcorn or candy? I’m not implying that we all don’t cross to the other side on occasion, but more often than not I find that we are quite loyal (or are we trapped?) in our snack preferences.
I am a Sweet. I admit that and see nothing wrong with it.
Nik is a Savory. And yet we have nearly 2 decades of snacking together under our belts (literally) and all is well with our world.
I suppose there are those evolutionary biologists who might suggest that these preferences are DNA based, but for the life of me I can’t think how nachos vs. M & M’s might have saved only one of us from a hungry velociraptor. (I know – epochs apart, but I like the imagery.)
Anyway, at dinner with Martie last night, we were discussing the shameful yet common sin of throwing away perfectly good food (more on that at another time), and the topic of rice came up. She commented that she often uses leftover rice as the basis of a delicious warm breakfast cereal, adding warm milk and raisins and nuts. A kind of a quick rice pudding. I said, yum. Nik said, yuck. Hmmm. Which led, obviously, to the broader rice pudding conversation. Love it/Hate it – guess who was who.
Well, it just so happens that I had baked quite a conundrum just the day before...
An Almond Rice Tart. 
I found it to be a little plain, but Nik said he liked it…hmmm. Not surprisingly, last night Martie liked it too – but then, she, like this tart, is a crossover. Think of Venn Diagrams – it’s possible that this tart is the intersection of the Sweet Circle and the Savory circle – even though it isn’t really savory at all. Yes, this is the tart that could have saved ALL of us from the jaws of velociraptor.
Ok, enough is enough, here’s the recipe…
I found it to be a little plain, but Nik said he liked it…hmmm. Not surprisingly, last night Martie liked it too – but then, she, like this tart, is a crossover. Think of Venn Diagrams – it’s possible that this tart is the intersection of the Sweet Circle and the Savory circle – even though it isn’t really savory at all. Yes, this is the tart that could have saved ALL of us from the jaws of velociraptor. Ok, enough is enough, here’s the recipe…
Almond Rice Tart
Crust:
AP Flour..................1 ½ cups
Sugar.....................1 tbl
Salt.......................1/2 tsp
Baking Powder..........1 tsp
Butter....................10 Tbl
Cold Water..............3-6 Tbl
1. Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in food processor.
2. Add butter and pulse a few times but break up butter.
3. Sprinkle in 3 Tbl water, pulse a few times. Adjust with more water if too dry – dough will not come together.
4. Turn dough into large bowl or on counter. Knead briefly until it comes together. Pat into a disc, wrap well, and chill for at least an hour.
5. After dough has chilled, roll into circle, place in 9-inch tart pan. Chill.
Crust:
AP Flour..................1 ½ cups
Sugar.....................1 tbl
Salt.......................1/2 tsp
Baking Powder..........1 tsp
Butter....................10 Tbl
Cold Water..............3-6 Tbl
1. Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in food processor.
2. Add butter and pulse a few times but break up butter.
3. Sprinkle in 3 Tbl water, pulse a few times. Adjust with more water if too dry – dough will not come together.
4. Turn dough into large bowl or on counter. Knead briefly until it comes together. Pat into a disc, wrap well, and chill for at least an hour.
5. After dough has chilled, roll into circle, place in 9-inch tart pan. Chill.
Filling:
Jasmine Rice..................½ cup
Water..........................1 ½ qts
Milk.............................3 cups
Butter..........................1 Tbl
Sugar...........................½ cup
Salt.............................½ tsp
Lemon Zest....................2 tsp
Almond Meal...................½ cup
AP Flour........................1 Tbl
Eggs............................3 large
Vanilla Extract................1 tsp
1. Bring water to a boil. Add rice and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and return rice to pan.
2. Add milk, butter, sugar and salt to rice. Bring to a boilm reduce heat and let cook until thickened, approx. 35 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and let cool to room temp. Preheat oven to 350°.
4. Puree in food processor. Add lemon zest, ground almonds, and flour. Pulse briefly.
(I didn't add any nutmeg or mace to this filling...but I think I will next time.)
5. Add eggs, one at a time, pulsing briefly after each addition.
6. Pour into prepared crust.
7. Bake 35-45 minutes, until filling is set and beginning to brown.
8. Cool before serving.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, pulsing briefly after each addition.
6. Pour into prepared crust.
7. Bake 35-45 minutes, until filling is set and beginning to brown.
8. Cool before serving.
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