Rice Pudding Cake

This is every bit as wonderful as it sounds: an Italian torta di riso, refracted through the prism of someone who loves a bowl of very British rice pudding. The Italians like to stud their rice cake with candied peel, bake it in a tin lined with breadcrumbs or crushed amaretti, and eat it cold; I sprinkle mine with nutmeg, and serve it warm, most frequently with a jewel-bright jam sauce. But it's also lovely with poached fruit and I can't help thinking it would be fabulous with a bit of golden syrup drizzled on top, too. I'm very happy to eat leftovers cold, should I be lucky enough to get them (very much recommended for breakfast) but first time out, I feel, it must be warm, by which I mean to indicate a gentle warmth, rather nearer room temperature than hot. This means the cake is still quite tender, so I should caution you against trying to remove it from its base. I'm afraid this is not always advice I take myself: aesthetic considerations lead me to risk ruination by slipping my comedy cake lifter — which is like a ping-pong bat fashioned into a kitchen utensil — under it so that I can transfer it to a serving plate with nothing to mar its simple beauty. For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet