Almond Rice Pudding (tart)

I'm not sure why this is called a tart, but it is good. A twist on your traditional rice pudding, my mom found this recipe after starting a diet program. We made it the other night, and I'm making it again right now, and oh my goodness is it delicious!
We actually ended up changing the recipe around a bit to fit what ingredients we had, so here it is:

Ingredients

	3 tbsp slivered or shopped almonds, toasted
	4 cups) low-fat milk
	1 cups uncooked white, long-grain rice
	1/8 tsp ground cinnamon, or 1 cinnamon stick
	1/2 cups sugar
	1/2 tsp almond extract
	1/2 cup raisins
	cherries for garnish (optional)

Instructions

• Coat bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray. Spread almonds in a single layer in bottom of pan. Set aside.
  
  
• In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat milk to boiling. Stir in rice and cinnamon. Reduce to simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes. Add sugar, raisins, and almond extract and cook, stirring often, 12 to 15 minutes longer or until rice is cooked through and mixture is thick.
  
  
• Gently spoon rice mixture into pan and spread evenly, keeping almonds intact on bottom. Cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate just until firm, about 40 minutes.
  
  
• To serve, remove sides of pan and invert tart onto serving plate. Lift off bottom of pan (almonds will now be embedded on top of tart). Garnish with fresh cherries if desired, and serve.