Rice Rice Rice

So, did I hear someone needs some rice recipes? Well, you're in luck, I love rice, I experiment with it all the time and have a rice for every occasion. Here are some I hope you'll like. 

Orange Coconut Cashew Rice
1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil or olive oil
1 1/2 cups white rice uncooked
1 can (14 ounce) coconut milk (I used lite)
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter 
3/4 cup roasted cashews whole or chopped
1 orange segmented


 
Toast your cashews in a dry pan until it smells nutty and they are slightly browned. Set aside. 
Heat oil in pan and add the rice and stir to coat with the oil.
Add the coconut milk, orange juice, water, and salt and bring to a boil.
Cover and reduce the heat to low.
Simmer until all the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes.
Remove the rice from the heat and fluff with a fork.
Place a clean, dry dish towel over the pan, cover with a lid, and let the rice steam for an additional 5 minutes. Stir in the butter and cashews. Cut each orange segment into thirds.
Toss the orange pieces into the rice. 




This is Persian Yellow Rice, it's so so so tasty. I first tasted this rice at a Persian restaurant called Rosewater. I hurried home and found a recipe. This is the best recipe I found. You try it and let me know what you think. Here are the step by step instructions.

Tahdig
2 cups white rice
1 large pinch of saffron
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 tsp turmeric 

In a large bowl, rinse rise several times until the water drains clear.
Fill bowl with water again and add a large pinch of salt. Allow rice to soak for about 20 minutes while you boil water. Reserve 3 tablespoons of boiling water for later use.
Bring a large pot with 4 cups of water to a boil. Drain rice and add to boiling water. Allow to cook, uncovered on medium-high heat for exactly 8 minutes (Set your timer.) Skim the foam off the top.
When rice is done, it should begin to puff up, be soft on the outside and hard on the inside. Drain rice and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.
Using the back of a spoon, grind a large pinch of saffron until it becomes powdery. Dissolve saffron in reserved 3 tablespoons hot water and stir with a spoon. Set aside.
Heat a medium size non-stick skillet on medium high heat and add oil, 3 Tb plain water, turmeric and saffron liquid. Gently swirl pan around so bottom is fully coated.
Add rice back into the pan, making sure the entire bottom is covered. Using the back of your large spoon, poke holes into the rice mound being careful not to go all the way down. Allow to cook on medium-high for 10 minutes, you should see steam coming out.
Cover pan lid with a kitchen towel and close pan. The towel will catch any moisture from the rice. Allow to cook for another 35 minutes. When it's done, you should hear a sizzle and crackling sound.
To serve: remove lid and place plate on top, carefully inverting the pan so the bottom of the rice is up. Or you can scoop the rice out and break the tahdig apart and scatter around the edges.


Arancini with Spinach (Fried Rice Balls)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3/4 cup uncooked white rice
2 1/4 cups chicken broth
Ground pepper to taste
1 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
24 (1/2 inch) cubes mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup all-purpose flour or corn starch
1 1/2 cups crispy bread crumbs like panko
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
Vegetable oil for frying


Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper. In 3-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook about 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add garlic; cook and stir 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Stir in rice and 1/4 of stock, cook 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until liquid is absorbed. Add 1 cup broth; cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broth is absorbed. Add remaining 1 cup broth; cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broth is absorbed.
Season with pepper. Stir in spinach, butter and Parmesan cheese. Spread onto cookie sheet. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 1 hour or until firm. (Mixture can be refrigerated overnight.)
On cookie sheet, shape rice mixture into 12×8-inch rectangle. Cut into 6 rows by 4 rows to make 24 squares. Place 1 mozzarella cheese cube in center of each square; shape rice around cheese cubes to make balls.
Place flour and bread crumbs in separate bowls. In another bowl, beat egg and water until blended. Coat each ball with flour, then dip into egg mixture and coat with bread crumbs. Place coated balls on unlined cookie sheet; refrigerate 30 minutes.

Heat oil in a deep pot on medium. Flick a little flour or bread crumb into the oil to check if it sizzles. Drop about 2 arancini rice balls into the oil and fry moving the balls around so they evenly brown. Remove to a paper-towel lines plate and sprinkle with salt. Serve with your favorite marinara sauce or pesto. 



This next recipe tastes just like the lime rice from Cafe Rio...no kiddin!


Cilantro Lime Rice
1 cup uncooked white rice
1 teaspoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 (15 ounce) can vegetable broth
1 cup water
1/2 tsp cider vinegar
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
2 teaspoons granulated sugar/splenda
4 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
salt to taste

In a a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 2 teaspoons of lime juice, vinegar, broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low 15-20 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, whisk together lime juice, sugar, and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.



I admit me and my family eat this sitting around the TV with tortilla chips. It's that good. 

Cheesy Spicy Chicken & Rice
2 cups shredded pre-cooked chicken
1 8oz box Zatarain’s Yellow Rice, prepared
1 can whole kernal corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup herdez verde salsa
1/2 cup red salsa
1 cup cheddar cheese + more for top
*feta is also a great choice to sprinkle on top
 
Prepare rice as packaged 
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, mix well 
Transfer to 9×13 casserole dish (I split into 3 foil loaf pans, and froze 2 for future meals) 
Top with additional cheddar cheese 
Bake at 350 for 25-30 min or until hot and bubbly

It's a stuffed chicken thing

Cheesy Broccoli Chicken
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 
3/4 cup thawed from frozen broccoli florets
2 slices each of cheese
               mozzarella cheese, sharp cheddar or any combination you like
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup Panko (I used van's gluten free)
1 tablespoon cornstarch 
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Italian herb seasoning blend
paprika
salt and pepper

Pound your chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic until they are thin enough to roll. Make sure they are all the same thickness. Slice and stack the cheese. If your cheese is really thin, you'll need probably 2 slices of each kind. Lay your chicken flat, season with salt and pepper, layer with cheese and broccoli. Roll chicken up tightly. Season outside of the rolled chicken with paprika and Italian seasoning. Wrap each roll in plastic tightly and place all chicken rolls into the fridge for at least and hour or up to over night. 

When you're ready to cook. Preheat oven to 350o. Line baking sheet with parchment or non stick foil. Combine your panko, dash of paprika and parmesan cheese together. Remove plastic wrapped chicken and sprinkle your chicken rolls with cornstarch, dip into egg wash and then into your panko crumbs. Lay each chicken roll, seem side down onto your baking sheet and cover with tin foil, making sure the foil is not touching the chicken tops. Bake for 15 minutes, remove tinfoil cover and keep cooking until the panko crumbs are golden brown.  



Bacon Wrapped Spinach & Feta
4 chicken breasts (thick)
1/2 cup feta crumbles
1 cup spinach leave, hard stems removed
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic (I used garlic in a jar)
4 small pats of butter to be divided among each chicken breast

12 slices of bacon
onion salt, pepper and paprika

Cut a deep slit in the top of the chicken breast and hollow out the hole with your finger. Make sure you don't poke a hole through the side. 

Lay your spinach leaves on top of each other and roll like a cigar, slice to make ribbons. Mix spinach, olive oil with crumbled feta, pine nuts, and garlic. Stuff each chicken cavity with 1/4 of the mixture, and then stuff a small pat of butter inside. You can close the end of the chicken with a toothpick. 

Lay bacon slices out on a cutting board. I used 3 per chicken breast. Season your chicken with paprika, onion salt, and pepper. and roll the chicken up with the bacon. Lay your chicken, seems side down inside your baking dish. Bake at 350o for 25 minutes or until after inserting a knife the juices run clean. 

Here are some alternative items to stuff in chicken.

Sun dried tomatoes, mozzarella and kalamata olives
Brie, walnuts and cranberries
Pepperoni, parmesan and black olives
Swiss, apples and ham slices
Zucchini and goat cheese
Wild rice, golden raisins and celery
Stuffing mix and mushrooms
Blue cheese, almonds and apples

Ingredient of the Week-Spinach

Spinach is a powerhouse of nutrients:

• High in protein – go figure!  The highest vegetable protein around!  This was a big surprise to me.  One cup spinach = 12% DV protein.
• Super duper high Vitamin A
• High Vitamin K – second only to cauliflower
• Great source of folate/folic acid, particularly important for pregnant or nursing women
• Over 25% DV of magnesium, iron, potassium, Vitamin C and manganese
• Decent source of fiber

Lutein is a carotenoid antioxidant. It is found in eggs as well.  It is crucial for eye health, which is why eating lots of spinach (and even more eggs) will help you see better throughout your life and avoid eye diseases. It is more available to the body when paired with fat, and even more with choline (in egg yolks), so having fat-full dressing or olive oil on your spinach is a great idea. Pairing spinach and eggs makes a powerful one-two punch out for eye degeneration!

I went searching for helpful foods that could boost my nutrient intake as well as help me detox and help lower my risk for diabetes. I'm slowly, but surely taking back some control and beginning to get back on a healthy track. I can do it with spinach. I eat it almost every day and it's my go to when I'm craving a filler. Seems strange, but it really takes great mixed with a handful of almonds a handful of black berries and a sprinkle of salt and olive oil. Simple solutions! 

Spinach Fights Diabetic Heart Disease!

Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin C and vitamin A, the latter notably through its concentration of beta-carotene. These two nutrients are important antioxidants that work to reduce the amounts of free radicals in the body; vitamin C works as a water-soluble antioxidant and beta-carotene as a fat-soluble one. This water-and-fat-soluble antioxidant team helps to prevent cholesterol from becoming oxidized. Oxidized cholesterol is able to stick to and build up in blood vessel walls, where it can cause blocked arteries, heart attack or stroke. Getting plenty of vitamin C and beta-carotene can help prevent these complications, and a cup of boiled spinach can provide you with 294.8% of the daily value (DV) for vitamin A along with 29.4% of the DV for vitamin C. Spinach is also an excellent source of folate. Folate is needed by the body to help convert a potentially dangerous chemical called homocysteine that can lead to heart attack or stroke if levels get too high, into other benign molecules. In addition, spinach is an excellent source of magnesium, a mineral that can help to lower high blood pressure and protect against heart disease as well. A cup of boiled spinach contains 65.6% of the daily value for folate and 39.1% of the daily value for magnesium. Pretty amazing!

Cooked or Raw?

Both!

Benefits to cooking spinach:  cooking releases beta-carotene and lutein, and it also neutralizes oxalic acid or oxalate, a compound that inhibits the absorption of both calcium and iron.  This is why you don’t reuse the cooking water from spinach.

Benefits to raw spinach: Vitamin C and folate are both very heat-sensitive, so to obtain the maximum benefits of these compounds, eat spinach in your salads. One important CAUTION. If you are prone to kidney stones, you may want to focus more on cooked spinach. There is an enzyme in raw spinach called oxalic acid that causes stones to form. Also remember: use up your spinach within 8 days. It will lose it's nutrients if you let it sit in the fridge and why let it sit when there are so many things to do with it. Not to bag on bagged spinach because let's face it we all use it. We love the little stems, we love the smaller baby spinach of which only comes in bag form, but....and this is a huge thing, bags of spinach have been sitting on the shelf after being processed, then shipped and then days later being placed on your shelf at the grocery store. We're talking about 4-6 days sitting inside that bag where it continues to lose it's nutritional value. If you're not in it so much for the nutrients, then by all means use the bag because it is convenient and it does taste good. If you're at the end of the spinach bag and it doesn't look good to eat raw, cook it and gain back some of those vitamins and don't waste the bag. It's a win, win. 

                                                                     Source:  World’s Healthiest Foods

Spinach Salad with Mandarin Oranges Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 can mandarin oranges
1/8 cup (2 tablespoons) Craisins
2 tablespoons dried or pomegranate seeds
1/2 bag baby spinach leaves refreshed in water, drained well, and spin dry or fresh bunch of spinach, washed and dried.
1/4 cup lite extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon orange juice + 1tsp zest

2 tablespoons champagne vinegar (sub white wine vinegar)
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons whole, lightly-salted cashew nuts
Coarse or sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste

Into a mason jar with a tight-fitting lid, add the olive oil, vinegar, orange juice and zest, Dijon mustard, cashews, salt, and pepper. Shake until oil is emulsified; set aside. 

Combine all salad ingredients and mix gently with dressing. Don't over dress your greens, you can always add more after the salad has been mixed together. 

yields 2 heaping servings

prep time: 10 minutes


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