rijstevlaai — Netherlands

Rijstevlaai is a round, shallow tart built from a soft yeasted dough pressed into a wide pie tin and filled with a thick rice pudding, baked until the filling sets and the edges of the dough turn golden. It is served cool or at room temperature, cut into wedges, usually dusted with powdered sugar. The dish is reported from the former Principality of Liège and is now baked across the neighboring provinces of Belgian Limburg, Dutch Limburg and Liège itself, where it is a fixture of local bakeries. It is listed on AllGastronomy under two countries, Belgium and Netherlands, since it is baked in both without either page being singled out. The dough is a light, slightly sweet yeast dough, left to rise before being pressed thinly into a tart tin with a raised edge. The filling is made by cooking rice slowly in milk with sugar and a little vanilla or cinnamon until it turns thick and creamy, sometimes enriched with egg yolk or cream. The filling is poured into the raised dough shell and the tart is baked until the rice sets and the crust colors. What marks this version apart from other rice-based pastries is the wide, shallow tart format with a distinct dough rim holding a soft filling, rather than individual pastries or a covered pie. The filling stays pale and custard-soft rather than caramelized, and the tart is eaten cold, sliced like a cake, typically with coffee.