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Rice, Sweet Casserole of
INGREDIENTS for 2 casseroles.-1½ lb. of rice, 3 pints of milk, sugar to taste, flavouring of bitter almonds, 3 oz. of butter, the yolks of 3 eggs. AVERAGE COST, 1s. 6d.
This is made in precisely the same manner as a savoury casserole, only substituting the milk and sugar for the stock and salt.
Put the milk into a stewpan, with sufficient essence of bitter almonds to flavour it well; then add the rice, which should be washed, picked and drained, and let it swell gradually in the milk over a slow fire. When it is tender, stir in the sugar, butter and yolks of eggs; butter a mould, press in the rice, and proceed in exactly the same manner as in preceding recipe. When the casserole is ready, fill it with a compote of any fruit RICE MILK. that may be preferred, or with melted apricot-jam, and serve.
TIME. From to 1 hour to swell the rice, 1/2 to 3/4 hour to bake the casserole.
SEASONABLE at any time.
This is not a baked casserole in the American sense. A Victorian casserole of rice is an edible case: rice cooked soft, pressed into a mould, unmoulded, hollowed and baked firm, then filled at the last moment. The stray opening line about dipping the mould in hot water belongs to the savoury version on the preceding page and is the unmoulding step.
- The hinge: the rice must be pasty, not fluffyThe grains have to break down enough to knit together when pressed into the mould, or the case collapses when turned out. Use a short-grain pudding rice, keep the heat very low, and stir often; the finished mass should hold a spoon upright.
- Bitter almond flavouringNineteenth-century essence of bitter almonds could carry traces of hydrocyanic acid, and home-distilled versions were genuinely dangerous. Use a commercial almond extract, which is regulated and cyanide-free, and use it sparingly — a teaspoon or so for this quantity of milk, not enough to "flavour it well" by Victorian standards.
- MeasuresBeeton's pints are imperial, 20 fl oz each, so 3 pints is about 7¼ US cups. With 1½ lb of rice that is a tight ratio; you may need to add more hot milk as it swells. The quantities are stated for two casseroles — halve everything for one.
- Oven heatThe book gives no temperature, only a time of ½ to ¾ hour. A moderate oven, around 350°F, suits the purpose; the point is to dry and set the outside of the case, not to colour it.
- The egg yolksTake the rice off the heat before stirring in the yolks, or they will scramble in threads through the pudding. Beat them with a ladleful of the hot rice first, then return the mixture to the pan.
- Butter and press wellButter the mould heavily and pack the rice down hard with the back of a wet spoon — air pockets are where the case cracks. Let it cool completely in the mould before turning out; a warm case will slump.
- The fillingFill only at the moment of serving. The book calls for a compote of any fruit preferred, or melted apricot jam; anything wet added early will soften the case from the inside.
- YieldThe book gives no number of servings; the quantities are stated for two casseroles.
The casserole au riz came into English cookery from French practice, where a bordure or case of rice served as a container for a salpicon of meat, game or sweetbreads — the savoury recipe this one is told to imitate. Mrs Beeton's book, and the many enlarged editions issued after her death in 1865, kept the technique in the repertoire; at one shilling and sixpence for two casseroles it was an inexpensive showpiece. The sweet version is essentially a rice pudding rebuilt as architecture, and it belongs to a period when moulded food — jellies, creams, timbales, rice borders — was a common mark of an ambitious cook. Bitter almond flavouring was a common note for such puddings, giving the marzipan-and-cherry-stone taste that Victorians associated with almonds.