“It was the sight and sweet smell of the dish of rice pudding which took me back to Grandma’s rice pudding cooked on the coal oven range.”
Of rice and Romans
During a visit to Normandie a few years ago, we chanced on an amazing archaeological site in the village of Vieux La Romaine. Our visit coincided with Les Journees du Patrimoine which is the September Heritage weekend across Europe. There was a special Salon de The, set up by the members of the Comité de Jumelage de Vieux et Otterton offering a tempting array of savoury and sweet flans to visitors, all served up with a smile and a cheerful explanation of each dish. But it was the rice pudding which tempted me the most.
What is La Teurgoule?
This impressive dish is the famous local Norman speciality – La Teurgoule – a rice pudding flavoured with cinnamon. It’s absolutely luscious to taste with its creamy texture and mild spice flavour. The locals explained that they make it in a large pot for special community festivities and the crusty topping is the best bit. I loved scraping the crusty bits around the edge of Grandma Abson’s rice pudding too!
La Teurgoule
600ml/1 pint milk (whole not skimmed)
75g/3 oz pudding rice
2 tbsps sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Knob of butter
Grease an ovenproof dish with butter. Mix the rice, sugar and cinnamon in the dish. Add the milk and stir around. Dot the top with butter. Place in a preheated oven (150C/Mark 2/300F) for about 3 to 3½ hours. Test with a knife to see if the mixture has thickened and is creamy. Allow to cool and serve ‘tiede’ i.e. slightly warm.
Vieux -la -Romaine
If you have ever wanted to imagine life in the Roman Empire and are interested in all things Roman, then this place is a ‘must see’. With its major excavation sites and a well-designed museum containing a huge number of artefacts, this location deserves a prestigious place on the Roman archaeology trail. It features in the Journees du Patrimoine programme which runs between 10 and 18 September.
September Heritage days
European Heritage Days is a joint action of the Council of Europe and the European Commission involving all 50 signatory states of the European Cultural Convention under the motto, Europe: a common heritage. And if you can’t make it there, there is a wealth of heritage days across the UK to consider.
You can read more about Grandma Abson’s life, her passion for baking and recipes HERE and head over to Instagram @grandmaabson to see Meryl baking with her grandchildren.
