Torta Turchesca: A Venetian Rice Pudding Tart for Shavuot

Part pie, part rice pudding, this luscious Venetian tart is 100% delicious.

Hailing from Venice, the main trade hub connecting Europe and the Middle East in the medieval and Early Modern periods, this tart developed sometime after the sixteenth century, when rice became popular in Italy. At the time, all things exotic tended to be credited to the Turks, accuracy notwithstanding—hence the name of this tart.

That said, Turkish Jews are fans of rice pudding in their own right. The Turkish version would be a straight rice pudding, the addition of the delicious shortbread crust is a distinctly Italian spin.

Now for some rice pudding history. The practice of adding milk (goat or almond—no, it’s not just a hipster vegan trend) and sweetener to rice probably originated in early medieval Persia, where the rice porridges that were consumed throughout the ancient world from China to Rome transformed into rice puddings.

Through Turkish influence after the fall of Byzantium, rice emerged as a more important part of European Mediterranean cuisines. The Greek rizgalo was typically flavored with citrus zest and cinnamon, while Italian budino di riso was commonly with citrus zest and raisins. During the Renaissance, the arrival of custard in Europe (via the Arabic world), Europeans began adding eggs to their rice puddings, yielding a firmer consistency, and baked variations emerged in Europe in the seventeenth century.

While rice never really took off as a mainstay of Ashkenazi cuisines, central European and Romanian Jews did eat baked rice puddings and pareve rice kugels, as well as stovetop rice puddings.

On the other hand, rice pudding became a standard Sephardic dessert, served both hot and cold, and, variously, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Arroz con leche is typically flavored with citrus zest and cinnamon. Dairy rice puddings are traditional on Shavuot, and, in honor of the tradition of decorating synagogues with rose petals for the holiday, rose water is a common addition.

This delicious tart, which I have slightly adapted from Joyce Goldstein’s The New Mediterranean Jewish Table, contains all the best add-ins: rosewater, raisins, cinnamon, citrus zest, and even dates, in a nod to its Middle Eastern origins.

Rice Pudding Tart (Torta Turchesca)

For the pastry

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons sugar

Grated zest of one lemon

11 tablespoons well-chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes

¼ teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons water

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the filling

2 ¾ cups milk

½ cup Arborio rice

½ cup heavy cream

1/3 cup sugar

¼ cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained

¼ cup chopped pitted dates

¼ cup pine nuts or almonds, coarsely chopped (optional)

Grated zest of one orange

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 egg yolks

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon rose water

For serving

Whipped cream flavored with rose water or cinnamon, or dried rose petals, optional

To make the pastry, in a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and lemon zest, and process briefly to mix. Add the butter and salt and process until the mixture begins to come together in a rough mass. Add the water and vanilla and pulse briefly. Gather the dough into a ball and then allow it to rest for 10 minutes. Flatten the ball into a thick disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the dough disk between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and roll out into an 11-inch round about 1/8 inch think. Peel off the top sheet of plastic wrap. Using the bottom sheet, invert the dough round over a 9-inch tart pan or pie dish. Peel off the bottom sheet and press the dough onto the bottom and into the sides of the pan. Trim any excess dough so the pastry is even with the rim of the dish. Line the pastry with foil, allowing it to overhang the dies, and fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice.

Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, remove the pie weights and foil, and return the crust to the oven. Continue baking until golden brown, about 14 minutes longer. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

To make the filling, in a heavy saucepan, combine 2 cups of the milk and the rice, place over medium heat, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining ¾ cup milk, the cream, sugar, raisins, dates, nuts, orange zest, and cinnamon and bring to a gentle simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, vanilla and rose water. Gradually whisk ½ cup of the warm rice mixture into the egg yolk mixture to temper the yolks, then gradually whisk the warmed yolk mixture into the rice mixture, combining thoroughly.

Pour the filling into the cooled pastry shell and smooth the top. Bake the tart until the top is lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Cut into slices and serve warm, or refrigerate for up to 2 days and eat cold or at room temperature. If you like, serve with whipped cream, or sprinkle dried rose petals on top of the tart.

Sources: Encyclopedia of Jewish Food (Gil Marks, 2010); The New Mediterranean Jewish Table: Old World Recipes for the Modern Home (Joyce Goldstein, 2016)

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