Easy Rice Kollyva

This is a variation of the rice kollyva recipe I began developing while I was living in East Asia, with twists here and there inspired by the Venezuelan baking and desserts that my godmother might have enjoyed during her years living there after World War II. When I'm particularly short on time to prepare kollyva for an upcoming memorial this is my current go-to recipe, but it doesn't hurt that I love the taste as well. Give it a try whether it's for a service or not - memory eternal to all of our departed loved ones.

Easy Rice Kollyva

(16 servings*)

Ingredients

5 cups of cooked rice**

400ml / 13.5oz of coconut milk

1 cup of water

1/4 cup of unpacked brown sugar

Salt (to taste)

1 cup of sweetened shredded coconut (divided***)

1/2 cup of sultanas

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

2 teaspoons of rum essence

2 teaspoons of vanilla

1 teaspoon of nutmeg

Sultanas (if desired)

Roasted almonds (if desired)

*Assuming roughly half a cup is a serving.

**I usually only have jasmine brown rice on hand in my pantry, but a nice white rice would probably be more appropriate.

***Reserve three quarters of a cup for the end of the recipe.

Directions

1) Stir together the rice, coconut milk, water, brown sugar, and salt over medium heat, briefly bring everything to a boil, then turn the heat to medium low and simmer for about 10 or 15 minutes - stirring regularly to keep the bottom from burning - to thicken up the kollyva somewhat. (Go easy on the salt if you're not sure how much to use, you can always give the kollyva a taste once it's cooked down and add more then if necessary.)

2) Once the kollyva has thickened remove the pot from the heat and stir in the sultanas, a quarter cup of the shredded coconut, the spices, vanilla, and rum essence.

3) Place the kollyva in a suitable bowl, lightly press it down, smooth the surface as much as possible, cover tightly, and place in the fridge to cool. I try to make this kollyva the night before I need it so that it has all night to chill, but if you're shorter on time check the sides or bottom of the bowl with your hand every 15 minutes or so until it's cooled off enough to decorate.

4) Once the kollyva has cooled down sprinkle the top with the remaining shredded coconut (adding more if need be) to create a dry base for your decorations. You want all the rice to be covered, but it doesn't have to be under meters of coconut either of course!

5) Use more sultanas or some roasted almonds (or both!) to make whatever directions you like, provided they don't overflow what space you have on the top of the kollyva of course! I usually make a tree of life cross, but if I'm using a wider, shallower bowl (and thus have more surface space to decorate) I will also put the initials for "memory eternal" or of the particular loved one the kollyva is for around the cross.

6) Take the kollyva to the service your departed loved ones are being commemorated at, with a bottle of sweet red wine (if desired) to be blessed by the priest following the funeral or memorial.

7) Following the service - just prior to serving - stir everything together if it's lightly set, or slice into wedges if it's more firmly set. Place in whatever cup/bowl/serving utensil situation you're dealing with, then pour the remaining wine to serve with the kollyva. (If your parish doesn't pour a little of the wine into the kollyva at the end of the memorial, then pour a little in yourself before dividing the kollyva up.) The kollyva and wine are offerings in memory of your loved ones and gifts in their memory to those present, so it's good for as many people as possible to share in them.