orange rice

Serves 6.

Ingredients:
2 cups rice
4 cups water
1/4 tsp turmeric

Simmer until water completely absorbed and rice cooked thoroughly.

Gently stir in:

1 can mandarin orange slices

Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Bon appetit!

***

Reviews:

4 forks -- consensus after a little discussion among diners

***

Suggested (but untested) variations:

Variation 1:
To the original recipe above, add a zesty flavoring -- maybe cayenne pepper? Or Italian-style hot pepper flakes?

Variation 2:
Omit the cinnamon from original recipe.
Add cheddar cheese to hot, cooked rice and mandarin mixture.
Flavor with finely minced fresh dill

Variation 3:
Cook according to original recipe.
Add 1/2 tsp fresh mint leaves, chopped.
Chill in individual custard cups.
Invert rice from custard cups onto dessert plates.
Serve with dusting of raw sugar.

Baked plum chicken delicious!

We just had our first meal of Baked plum chicken. It is really good!

I accidentally cooked it longer than I had intended -- about one and a half hours. Tasted great!

Everyone had seconds and there was concern that leftovers be available for snacking later.

***

Review:

5 forks for flavor

Baked plum chicken -- In the works*

*"In the works" recipes are dishes I just made up and am cooking right now--

even as I write this blog entry.

• 
  

Half the fun of cooking is that delightful feeling of not knowing (yet) if a newly devised dish will work!

I just assembled something that I think will be tasty. It is baking right now, so here is how it is made:

• In a 9 x 13" baking dish, place:

2 pounds chicken breast, boneless and skinless (They were on sale this week!)
1 1/2 cups white rice
3 cups water
1 boy choy stalk, finely sliced
6 or 8 prunes, sliced
1 tablespoon butter or oil (omit if the chicken breast has skin)


My dilemma with this concoction was how to season it. I got out the curry powder and rediscovered the good old poultry seasoning. Opened each container and reminded myself of the flavors. Hmmmmmmmm . . . They both smell good!

I opted for the poultry seasoning this time because I think it will go with the prunes/plums better than curry powder. Maybe I will try this recipe next time with curry powder instead.

• Sprinkle with poultry seasoning.

• Bake at 350 degrees F for about an hour.

• 
  

(You can tell it is done when the chicken is not
pink inside and the rice has absorbed all the liquid.)

• 
  

I will keep you posted when I find out if the resulting meal is a success or not!

Fresh squash and tomato rice medley

Summer squash and zucchini squash are abundant this time of year.

So I made a simple meal (serves 3) of:

White rice (simmer, covered, 1 cup rice + 2 cups water until water is absorbed)

In a separate saucepan I cooked a couple small, sliced summer squashes and a small sliced zucchini squash in a little bit of water.

Also washed, sliced, and added a fresh tomato (from Canada, on the vine, hydroponically grown, to follow the CDC's recommendations on tomatoes this summer) to the cooking vegetables.

When all was cooked, I served the rice in small shallow bowls and put the cooked vegetables on top. As a decoration and a touch of dairy, I put small chunks of cheddar cheese on the hot rice and vegetables. Served with fresh plums and spicy tortilla crisps.

Ersatz beef stroganoff 2.0

So . . .




Ersatz beef stroganoff was well-enough received that I tried a different variation on the theme the next day.

*Recipe*

Ersatz Beef Stroganoff 2.0

Ingredients

Ground beef
onion
yogurt (ersatz replacement for sour cream)
rice (ersatz replacement for wide egg noodles)
oil
mustard

Saute

ground beef and onions in large skillet or until onions are transparent.

At the same time, cook in separate covered saucepan until all water absorbed and rice is fluffy:

1 part rice
2 parts water
1 tsp oil

After rice is cooked, turn off the heat and let saucepan stand covered.

Reheat skillet with the browned meat and onions.

Add

mustard and yogurt to the meat mixture.
Warm thoroughly, but don't boil. Remove skillet from heat.
This is the sauce.

Serve

rice onto plates and top with the Ersatz Beef Stroganoff 2.0 sauce.

Delicious!