Basmati rice medley

Dad and I went to Trader Joe's on our anniversary celebration day. We found this rice to make. Sorry I didnt incorporate rice into a recipe I guess I ran out oI time. But next month I will make sure to get some recipes together. Its going to be chick peas, or ceci. But try this it was very good.

Rice Pudding

I felt a little silly since I made a batch of rice specifically for this recipe and I'm pretty sure the point of rice pudding is to use up leftover rice...but that's ok because it was really tasty. We almost had a disaster when I started sprinkling chili powder on instead of cinnamon but I noticed before I had stirred it in:) Very yummy! I used crushed pineapple instead of chunks like the recipe suggested and cut the size down significantly since I didn't want 10-12 servings. The recipe combined rice, vanilla pudding, raisins, pineapple, cinnamon and vanilla.

Recipe Here

Another Variation on Insalata Caprese

On the weekend of the 13th, we were in Cincinnati, so, of course, we had to go to Jungle Jim's and get the best fresh mozzarella in the (known) world (of cheese). We had the idea to make a Caprese salad, since, well, we always do. But how to incorporate rice? The answer: risotto (of course). This risotto is made with olive oil, red onion, garlic, vegetable stock, salt, pepper, white wine, and a heavy dose of fresh basil. We used the risotto in lettuce cups (that were difficult to eat as such) that had the mozzarella and a tomato slice each. The basil in the risotto served as the basil for the salad, and a touch of balsamic glaze brought it all to the next level. Lisa still says she would like the basil fresh, but we thought this was a clever way to work Caprese salad into the rice challenge.

Italian Rice and Beans

I didn't bother taking a better picture of this since it wasn't all that great. Not bad. Not great though (Lisa and Alex's look much tastier!). The number of beans was much too high. I had prepared some tomatoes from our plants to make tomato sauce but ended up using them in this recipe instead of canned tomatoes. It was a combination of rice, beans, tomatoes, oregano, basil and italian seasoning. I have one more recipe I hope to try before the end of the month!

Recipe Here

Mexican-Italian Fusion Risotto

This is a risotto made with the usual Italian Arborio rice—and this is where the Italian part ends. The herbs and spices are along the lines of what you might find in taco seasoning—chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne. The rice was sauteed in olive oil with onion and garlic, then vegetable stock was added along with the herbs and spices. Instead of finishing with wine and Parmesan, we added lime juice and queso chihuahua. We ended up with a sort of Mexican-style risotto. It could have been better, but it was still tasty, and the leftovers will disappear in short order.

Jambalaya!

I apologize since this picture will not look very appetizing to some of you but this jambalaya was super fantastic. I'm sure someone out there would yell at me for calling this jambalaya since I didn't put in the shrimp or ham but I thought that was just too much stuff. I would even make this dish without the sausage and just use it as a side dish, that's how good it was. So, you vegetarians should make this with the shrimp instead of the sausage and you will love it. The recipe is from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook but I found it online here too.

Rice Cereal!

I put this on my other blog and then realized that this could count towards Rice month! This was the first time Paige got to participate!

Recipe: 1 Tbsp rice cereal + 4 Tbsp formula
Verdict: Paige was interested but let a lot of it dribble out of her mouth.

Brown rice, mexican style!

I rely on this dish a lot because it's easy to make and I'm very hungry and impatient when I get home from work. Brown rice, veggies and cheese on the inside. Cheese, salsa and olives on top. Yum!

Shrimp and Broccoli Packets

Here's a before and after shot of the shrimp and broccoli packets that Lisa thought of as a rice dish. They were all sealed up in foil and baked, and a little water and a few ice cubes provided the moisture to cook the (instant) rice. The recipe called for two teaspoons of seafood seasoning (we used Old Bay), but Lisa missed that and only put a little, so the end product was a little bland. We added more, but it didn't really add enough flavor. The shrimp was properly cooked, though, and the rice was really good, so, mission accomplished! More to come.

August Ingredient - Rice!

Sorry if the image is grainy! Get it?! Go!!