Sunday, February 13, 2011

Great Meals Begin With Love

Wild Rice Pilaf
Broccoli Salad
Luscious Carrots


















We had a delicious meal a few weeks ago- Broccoli salad, Rice pilaf and steamed carrots dressed with sauteed onions!
La Principessa gave the rice dish a perfect rating, so I'd like to share it with you here.
This rice dish was originally a recipe from Bon Appetit magazine- but of course I had to Middle Eastern it up a little further!
Here is a link to the original recipe:
Bon Appetit Wild Rice Stuffing With Pine Nuts


And here is my tarted up Syrian Girl Cooks it up version!

*1/4 cup olive oil
*2 Teaspoons ground cumin
*2 big Spanish onions, chopped
* 8 large garlic cloves, mashed
* 2 tablespoons tomato paste
* 2 teaspoons dried thyme
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
* 1 cup wild rice
* 2 3/4 cups water
* 1 cup brown rice
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
* 1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
* 1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted

Directions:

Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add cumin; stir until toasted and fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add onion and garlic; sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste. Stir in thyme, pepper, and salt. Add wild rice; stir 2 minutes. Take a moment to realize how delicious this smells. Add the  water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until wild rice is almost tender, about 40 minutes.

Mix brown rice into wild rice; cover and simmer until most of liquid is absorbed and all rice is tender, about 40 minutes. (This is a good time to toast your pine nuts, just dump them in a pan and stir them about for a few minutes on your stove top and they should get nice and toasty.) Then stir in lemon juice; cover and continue to simmer until liquid is absorbed and all rice is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in parsley, then pine nuts; serve.Trust me, my tweaks bring this from good to PERFECTION- my daughter couldn't keep her spoon away from this!
I've just finished a month of daily spot radiation on most of my "spots" and then a week of having "strep throat" - I'm BACK and will do my best to post a few blogs over the next month to entertain you all!

8 comments:

  1. Oh, MY!!! This is just the BEST post to greet me with First Cup!!! I've know you were a marvelous cook, and it's so good to see you in action---these look absolutely scrumptious.

    And they're PERFECT for this snowy weather---even the bright green of the broccoli lends a note of longed-for Spring.

    And I can just smell the aromas from your kitchen---all the onion and garlic in its gentle sizzle, and the moment each spice hits the pan, then the long, tantalizing simmer, filling the house with such gracious goodness.

    I'm just delighted to see your cooking again---I've missed it so much, and am SO glad you're better and BACK!!

    love and,

    rachel

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  2. Thank you, Rachel, I've missed being here.

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  3. Yummy, that looks and sounds delicious! I'll have to remember to try making it. Glad you are feeling better Rebecca!

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  4. Yeah!!!! I can post a comment!!!
    I can finally post how much I enjoy this blog.:)

    Another delish Rebecca dish. I love the way you cook.

    Glad you are feeling some better. That's a tough schedule at any time of year, but at this time of year - oh my!

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  5. Debi- so good to 'see' you, I am so excited for your move to NJ!
    KA- I think of you and your singing hubby and precious little one often- I miss you!
    I splurged for Thanksgiving and bought a small packet of pine nuts- La Principessa ADORES them! It was a big extra, but such a welcome treat! I still have a tiny bit of the nuts left- I'll make some Syrian style pizzas with them for her for Friday night dinner once, in the next month or so.

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  6. Hey, Miss! So good to 'see' you! I got very excited when I saw that you had a new post. And everything looks delicious! That rice is GORGEOUS! We love pine nuts, too, and wince at the price. Every so often I find them on sale and pop a jar in the freezer to toast and top a dish with. Love to you and yours, dear!

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  7. Wow, Kim, you're fortunate to EVER find pine nuts on sale. I waited all year, watching the bags(the jars HERE are all OLD!)for even a tiny dip in price- no such luck! They are US$19.98 a pound!

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  8. This looks divine! Happy to see you posting!
    Love,
    Earth Girl

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