Salty rice cake: the typical recipe of the Genoese tradition

The salty rice cake It is a typical recipe of Genoese cuisine, known and appreciated far beyond regional borders. It’s a rustic of peasant origin based on rice and dispense (local name to indicate milk curd): a fresh cheese produced in the Genoa area, with an acid flavor and a creamy consistency halfway between yogurt and ricotta, also used for the filling of the famous Easter cake.

To make it, you just need to cook the rice so that it soaks up in hot milk, add it to a creamy mixture of cheese and beaten eggs, and then pour it all into a homemade pasta matta shell. The result will be a salty, tasty and fragrant cake, excellent to serve as a antipasti during the Easter period, to kick off the luxurious festive banquet, or serve for a family lunch as a hearty single dish.

To savor it in all its splendor, the rice cake must be eaten warm or cold, all the more reason to take advantage of the times and bake it in advance. If you later want to reduce them even more, it will be enough to replace the crazy dough, which is quick to make, with a ready-to-use brisée or puff pastry roll.

If you can’t find the prescinsêua, which is not always readily available, you can replace it with dello stracchinoas we did, to be stirred possibly with a drop of milk, or with cow’s milk ricotta well drained from the whey.

If desired, as some variants require, you can add 40 g of dried mushrooms soaked in warm water, a few teaspoons of Ligurian pesto, diced cooked ham or bacon a listerella.

Find out how to prepare a salty rice cake by following the step-by-step procedure and tips. If you liked this recipe, also try the fried rice cake or try its sweet version.

How to make salty rice cake

Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan along with a pinch of salt, add the rice and cook until absorbed, stirring frequently; then transfer it to a bowl 1 and let it cool.

Collect the eggs in a bowl along with the cream cheese and grated nutmeg 2.

Add the Parmesan cheese and mix with a few rods, until obtaining a smooth and homogeneous consistency. 3.

Pour the mixture into the bowl with the cold rice 4.

Mix with a spoon 5Perfume with some marjoram leaves and reserve.

Prepare the crazy pasta: collect the sifted flour in a bowl with the extra virgin olive oil, warm water and a pinch of salt. Knead for at least 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and homogeneous, then form into a ball. 6cover with a sheet of transparent film and let rest for about 20 minutes.

After the resting time, roll out the crazy dough in a not too thin layer and cover a well buttered mold with high edges, 24 cm in diameter. Then prick the bottom with the tips of a fork, pour the prepared filling 7 and spread it evenly with the back of a spoon.

Fold the dough over the filling, being careful to remove the excess with a smooth wheel, and seal the edges by pressing them with your fingertips. Decorate the cake with the leftover cutouts as desired. 8 and take to a static oven at 180 °C for about 50 minutes. Once the cooking time has elapsed, remove from the oven and let cool.

Unmold the tasty rice cake on a serving plate 9bring to the table and serve.

storage

The salty rice cake can be kept in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 2-3 days Maximum.