loaded brown rice

my husband loves to load up on gluten free grains like brown rice and quinoa. so to feel better about it, i always cook vegetables in with the grains and then serve the finished product with marinated vegetables or marinated greens. this is a super easy, non-confrontational, non-threatening and absolutely delicious way to "force" veggies on your loved ones;) so here's a great recipe to give veggies a good reputation at your house.

LOADED BROWN RICE

i first got the idea for making this rice from my sister, when i was cooking at her house about two years ago. she went on a cloves "kick" and put cloves in everything! and everything always tasted amazing! so i made brown rice the way she instructed me to, with a "pinch of cloves." well i didn't realize that she meant ground cloves, so i put in a heaping pinch of whole cloves. cloves aren't too forgiving little creatures...and let's just say their intensity was "interesting." (note: my brother in law probably ate the whole pot anyway.) however, when used the right way, cloves give a little boost to the background of other spices, and leave your guests still trying to pinpoint your secret ingredient. so, if you're not too acquainted with cloves, now is the time to start a relationship with this wonderful warming spice. 

LOADED BROWN RICE
2 1/4 c organic chicken broth
1 c brown rice
2 carrots
2 stalks celery
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sea salt
pinch ground cloves
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter

*chop the carrots to a little bigger than bite size. finely chop the celery, onions and garlic.

* sautee the carrots for five minutes on med  heat. stir in the celery and sautee for five more minutes. stir in the onions and garlic and cook for about two minutes.

*pour rice, broth and seasonings in the pot and bring the mixture to a boil. once it boils, put a lid on it, turn the heat to low and let that do it's thing for forty five minutes. warning: don't lift the lid at all during this process...the rice won't cook right.

*after forty five minutes, take the pot off the heat and let it sit for ten minutes with the lid still on.

*take the lid off and fluff the butter in with a fork.

*serve alongside a delicious salad or marinated veggies...or stuff inside romaine leaves:)


Comments

  1. The Grecian GardenJanuary 29, 2011 at 10:27 PM

    I think I'm still on a cloves kick!

    I'm pretty sure niko and chaz are obsessed with this rice!

    ReplyDelete
  2. EleniFebruary 3, 2011 at 9:28 AM

    i cant even do rice any other way.

    and you are the cloves fairy.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

tips for transition/maintaining a healthy lifestyle

with the experience that i've had over the last five-ish years sticking to a whole foods diet, i thought why not just throw some things i've learned on to a nice and neat little blog post for your inspiration. enjoy:) 1. READ, READ, READ!! the moment i found out that there were some serious issues going on with my health at age 18, i was mortified and had a desperation to find answers. the herbalist i was working with at the time suggested two books to read to help me understand the concept of healing the body. i can't even remember the name of either of the books, but for the first time in my life, i enjoyed reading! after that i decided to plow through every book i could find on health and nutrition. i had to immerse myself in the work of these authors, to remind myself that i wasn't in fact insane like everyone else around me perceived...i was regaining control of my body and mind by leaving the status quo of western eating. if you are interested in your health, r
Read more

roasted butternut squash and tzatziki

Image
well after all the holidays have come and passed, i finally have time to sit down and write these recipes. and i have to tell you, its been a week and a half since i made this, and i havent stopped thinking about it! sometimes your greatest successes can be found in your mistakes...and that's exactly what happened on this night for dinner. i knew i was making roasted squash with steamed asparagus and carrots. the squash has an incredible flavor, but i needed to boost the steamed vegetables just a bit. so my greek mind decided on tzatziki (pronounced: tat-zee-kee). for those of you who don't know what that is, wake up and get yourself to the closest greek festival and you'll discover it's the most delicious condiment in the form of a yogurt cucumber sauce. but i remember being intimidated watching my older sister make this when i was a kid, because with every greek recipe you have to cook like a superhero...or grecian goddess...and multitask for at least six hours stra
Read more

chocolate mousse

Image
growing up in a greek family we were always traveling somewhere to see family...and on our way we always stopped to see more family. i think i was in about second grade on this particular vacation in new york when we went to an upscale restaurant with my cousins for dinner. never being shy about ordering dessert, i decided to give this strange sounding thing, "chocolate mousse" a try. it came to me in a martini glass with dark chocolate shavings on the top. and thus, my love affair with sweet creamy desserts began. accustomed to eating desserts like my grandma's homemade pies or harvey wallbanger cakes (look it up kids!), i had never had anything like this before! the decadence! the smoothness! the chocolateyness! over the years, this bond with sweet creamy desserts would grow even deeper as i watched my dad and his greek mustache devour endless lines of gallatoboureko (a sweet creamy greek pastry) and any other sweet creams he could get his hands on. so imagine my deligh
Read more