À Table 04 — Marie Holm, food writer, cookbook author and radio host

À Table 04 — Marie Holm, food writer, cookbook author and radio host

Meet Marie Holm, food writer and cookbook author of several books on cakes, desserts, and the sweet kitchen. She is also a presenter, radio host, and public pudding speaker.

For this À Table, Marie welcomed us into her beautiful kitchen on Amager to prepare her take on the Danish Christmas classic risalamande – with rose water and lemon peel. We spoke about food, tradition, and the pleasure of gathering around the table.
Which dish tastes most like home to you?
I grew up on a farm in the Funen countryside, so all things apple! Æbleflæsk, bondepige med slør, baked apples with cinnamon and whipped cream. The taste of my childhood.

What is your go-to Christmas dish?
Risalamande with my secret ingredient: rose water. It pairs beautifully with the vanilla and almonds and adds a subtle layer of flavour. Not like a rose garden — more like a hidden note that makes the risalamande taste even more like… risalamande! 

Do you have a piece of porcelain you always reach for — and why?
An old Swedish faience platter with a beautiful green botanical border. It is oval and quite large – making it perfect for spreading out all kinds of salads. Or for holding a mountain of pasta. It makes everyday meals look especially inviting.

How do you set the table for Christmas?
I always have a tablecloth on the table for Christmas. Old white damask if I want a clean “canvas”, and otherwise a beautiful patterned one from Akka Unika. And white damask napkins with a red-and-white candy cane at each place setting. I have a thing for swans, so there are always small white porcelain swans as salt cellars on the Christmas table. Do you have any memories related to tableware?
I remember that I loved looking into my grandmother’s china cabinet and seeing the different dinnerware sets, and getting her to tell me which ones came from the refined cloth-manufacturer family and which were the everyday porcelain from my great-grandmother’s time as a community hall manager.

What has been your tableware journey? 
I have always been fond of beautiful objects, and I guess I was an early starter – I remember bringing home crystal liqueur glasses as a souvenir from the Czech Republic as a pre‑teen, and a vintage saucer from the USA when I was ten. I’m still a big fan of vintage china and porcelain. And of all things glass. It works beautifully for food styling, with all the rays of light.
Where is your favourite place to eat?
Paris – I never get tired of eating my way through the 10th and the 11th arrondisement; modern Lebanese, bistronomie hotspots, or old world Parisian restaurants – there is no end to Paris. 

Which cup are you. A small, large, with handle?
I’m definitely a no handle kind of person! I prefer my (black) caffeine in small ceramic cups. And my (green) tea in large ones. Either way I like to warm my hands on the cup – hence the no handle situation.





Marie, thank you for the risalamande – definitely December’s first and finest, and perhaps the best one too.

Until next time!

 

 

Imagery by All the way to Paris

Risalamande with Vanilla and Rose Water

Serves 6

130 g short-grain rice
1 liter whole milk
1 vanilla pod (or 1½ if it’s dry and thin)
1 strip of untreated lemon peel
3 g sea salt (about 1 small teaspoon)
60 g sugar
110 g almonds
2 tsp rose water
400 ml heavy cream

Pour the rice and milk into a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod and add both the seeds and the pod to the pan along with the lemon peel and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to prevent the rice from sticking.

Once it boils, reduce the heat and simmer gently, covered, for 35–40 minutes, until the rice is creamy and tender but not overcooked. The rice will continue to soften as it cools. Remember to stir occasionally.

When the porridge is cooked, stir the sugar into the hot rice, thentransfer it to a bowl or container. Cover the surface directly withplastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Chill in the refrigerator until cold; the porridge can be prepared the day before serving.

Blanch and chop the almonds – not too finely. Remember to save one whole almond for the “almond prize.”

Remove the vanilla pod and lemon peel from the porridge, then stir in the rose water.

Whip the cream to a light, soft peak. It should be slightly loose, asit will be folded into the rice pudding and stiffen further. Fold the whipped cream and chopped almonds into the rice porridge, then portion the risalamande into beautiful serving glasses. Chill for at least a couple of hours before serving.

Serve with cherry sauce. Enjoy!

Cherry Sauce with Amaretto

Makes about 800 ml

500 g pitted frozen cherries
125 g sugar
1 vanilla pod
100 ml amaretto
100 ml water
20 g cornstarch

Combine the cherries, sugar, split vanilla pod, scraped seeds, amaretto, and water in a saucepan. If using frozen cherries, pour them into the pan with the sugar and let them sit until they release their juice before adding the rest of the ingredients (except the cornstarch).

Bring to a boil and let the cherries simmer gently for 10–15 minutes.

Dissolve the cornstarch in a little cold water, then stir it into the cherry mixture while stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.

Cook for a few more minutes. Let the sauce cool slightly before serving.