Christmas porridge season is now in full swing.
Heart of Spain’s Christmas porridge is made with a Spanish recipe. Hear of Spain
Helsinki is not the only city where the market’s Christmas porridge has already become a real phenomenon. The porridge boom can also be seen in Tampere, where the delicatessen and tapas bar Heart of Spain sells Spanish Christmas porridge, arroz con leche, which is quite a traditional dessert in Spain.
– It differs from traditional Finnish rice porridge in that before the rice is cooked, the orange peel and cinnamon stick are boiled in water. They are removed and the rice is boiled in the same water. We also use cream in addition to red milk, and the porridge is boiled for a couple of hours, says the owner of Heart of Spain Hernán Martín González.
Spanish Christmas porridge is enjoyed cold, and Heart of Spain, located in Tampere’s Kauppahalli, is serving two different versions of it this year: asturiano and Christmas special.
Asturiano has a burnt sugar surface. This version of arroz con leche is particularly popular in the Astuaria region of Spain. The Christmas special version, on the other hand, is topped with pomegranate seeds, salty pistachios and homemade caramel sauce, seasoned with Christmas spices.
The popularity was already surprising last year
Heart of Spain served arroz con leche for the first time last year about a week before Christmas.
– Due to the great popularity, we decided to start earlier this year and also add a Christmas special version of the porridge to the sale, says González.
The porridges have got Tampere’s gourmands moving in droves.
– We have received a warm reception this year as well. At the Christmas holidays on 29.11. we sold out of porridge, and the week has also started really strong. We are really surprised by the popularity.
The secret of Spanish Christmas porridge is the preparation method, which requires time and patience.
– Some of the customers come only after the porridge, so clearly Christmas porridge is also becoming a hit in Tampere.