Well, this was definitely an experiment. There were many inspiring suggestions for this Cupboard Challenge, but I had a tart lodged firmly in mind, with a creamy or chewy rice filling and crispy pecan crust. I did some reading, and was intrigued by torta di riso, or rice pie, a Northern Italian Easter tradition.

I substituted coconut milk for the cream, and left out the usual ricotta. I did, however, follow a couple recipes' instructions, separating the egg whites from the yolks and beating them into soft peaks, then folding them into the milk at the end. This gave the rice custard a lighter texture and a golden puffed top.

I also used short-grain sticky rice, boiled like regular long grain rice, and, overall, I was very happy with the coconut custard. It was not too sweet, and creamy and light with specks of fresh cinnamon.

I had high hopes for the crust, a buttery mix of pecan meal and sugar. I pre-baked and it seemed suitably firm and crispy, like a nutty cookie. But after baking the rice custard the crust turned soggy and soft. I suspect this is because I did not let the crust cool at all before pouring in the milk and eggs. I did leave it in the fridge to cool today; it may firm up with a thorough chilling.

Now, in hindsight, even though I liked the custard perhaps I should have done something else with this particular array of ingredients; mango out of a can is not nearly as good as the real thing when eaten on its own or as an uncooked topping like this. A rum cocktail did sound awfully good by this point in the week - maybe I should have opted for that! But the custard recipe itself is solid and I look forward to playing with it again.

Coconut Rice Tart with Mango
1 9-inch tart

2 cups pecan meal
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground cinnamon
1 egg white, beaten until frothy

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Mix all these ingredients and press into a lightly oiled 9-inch tart pan. Bake for about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.

1/2 cup short grain rice
1 1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1 can coconut milk
2 tablespoons rum
3 egg yoks
2 egg whites beaten to soft peaks
1 can mango, or 1 fresh mango, sliced into strips

Cook the rice for about 20 minutes or until done. Mix with the cinnamon and sugar and press into the prepared tart crust.

Beat the egg yolks with the rum and coconut milk. Beat the egg whites to soft peaks and fold them in to the egg yolk mixture and pour over the rice.

Put the tart pan on a larger baking sheet to avoid any overflow spilling into your oven, and bake at 350ºF for about 50 minutes. Loosely cover with foil about halfway through to keep it from burning. Let cool completely and lay mango on top before serving.