Teurgoule
A thick, caramelized rice pudding, perfumed with cinnamon, baked very slowly until a golden skin forms. Eaten warm or cold, it keeps for several days.
A thick, caramelized rice pudding, perfumed with cinnamon, baked very slowly until a golden skin forms. Eaten warm or cold, it keeps for several days.
Teurgoule, we slipped it into the oven after the bread, when there was still heat left, and it baked for hours without anyone touching it. Rice, milk, sugar, a little cinnamon: almost nothing, but the smell filled the whole house. We ate it for days, cold, straight from the dish, with a spoon. It was the luxury of those who had none, a dessert that cost only time.
- •Whole farm milk — full terrine (base)
- •Short-grain rice — a large handful (thickener)
- •Sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- •Cinnamon — a little (perfume (the signature))
Teurgoule
A thick, caramelized rice pudding, perfumed with cinnamon, baked very slowly until a golden skin forms. Eaten warm or cold, it keeps for several days.
Why this dish? Teurgoule, a Norman rice pudding baked for hours with cinnamon, is the dessert of modest people: almost nothing in ingredients, a lot of time. A 'luxury of the poor' that resonates with Ernaux's view of her class origins.
Teurgoule, we slipped it into the oven after the bread, when there was still heat left, and it baked for hours without anyone touching it. Rice, milk, sugar, a little cinnamon: almost nothing, but the smell filled the whole house. We ate it for days, cold, straight from the dish, with a spoon. It was the luxury of those who had none, a dessert that cost only time.
Ingredients (period version)
- Whole farm milk — full terrine (base)
- Short-grain rice — a large handful (thickener)
- Sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- Cinnamon — a little (perfume (the signature))
Ingredients
- Whole milk — 2 liters (base)
- Short-grain rice — 150 g (thickener)
- Sugar — 150 g (sweetness)
- Ground cinnamon — 1 teaspoon (perfume)
- Pinch of salt — 1 (balance)
Method
- Mix the rice, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a deep earthenware baking dish.
- Pour the cold milk over and stir just once.
- Bake in a very low oven (150 °C) for 5 to 6 hours, without stirring.
- A brown, wrinkled crust forms on the surface: that's the sign that the teurgoule is ready.
- Let it cool slightly and serve warm or cold. Keeps for several days in the fridge.
How it was made : Born in the 18th century when rice and cinnamon arrived through the Norman ports, teurgoule took advantage of the residual heat of the bread oven: it was left there for hours. Its endless cooking and good keeping made it a batch dessert, prepared in large quantities for the week.
The contemporary twist : Serve a portion with a thin slice of grilled brioche — the Norman 'fallue' — as they did on the farms of the Pays d'Auge.
Annie Ernaux · Charactorium