Brown Rice Pilaf and Salad: Cook Once; Eat Twice!
Summer! (Maybe the sun will shine here today?!?!)
Salads! (We eat lots of them on warm, late summer evenings.)
Cooking? (On the barbecue if possible, minimal in the kitchen.)
We try to eat a bit lighter in the summer and with the abundance of fresh garden herbs and vegetables this is usually pretty easy. It's even easier if you plan and cook ahead.
Cook once; eat twice! Who wants to be in the kitchen working when one can be on the terrace sipping a chilled glass of rosé and watching those monstrous stag beetles try to fly. (They're so huge and so slow our big white dog stands on her hind legs and tries to snap them out of the air - after a glass or two of said wine this can be very funny!)
When the word 'salad' is mentioned most people immediately picture greens or pasta. A little more thought will conjure up various versions of potato salads. What about rice? Even (gasp!) brown rice? Why not?
Okay, we have the rice, now we need the herbs. This is Weekend Herb Blogging, after all, started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen and hosted this week by Astrid of Paulchen's Food Blog?!
Basil! I am waging a war with the snails over my basil, and if they don't stop munching they are going to be munched! As a few bloggers have pointed out: basil-fed snails ought to be pretty tasty! Be warned you slow-moving little eating-machines....
To keep me happy until I win and my basil is allowed to grow enough to start harvesting I bought a huge basil in a pot at the nursery. (I've discovered mid-June is a good time to go to the garden centers: their stuff is huge and desperately needing to be sold off!).
Basil! It has a rather interesting history: it's a symbol of love in modern Italy, hate in ancient Greece and used to ensure a safe journey in/to the afterlife in many cultures.
It's absolutely essential to my kitchen for summer cooking. Tomatoes without basil? Unthinkable!
And it I like it...lots of it. How about a tomato and basil sandwich?
Back to the rice:
Brown Rice Pilaf 2 servings
3/4 cup brown rice brown Basmati if you can get it
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup celery, finely chopped
1/3 cup onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup green pepper, finely chopped
1/3 cup mushrooms , finely chopped
1/3 cup carrot, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp soy sauce
2 tbs snipped fresh basil
Put all ingredients, except basil, into a saucepan and cook according to package directions for brown rice. Mine takes about 20 minutes. When done, fluff with a fork, add basil and serve half; refrigerate the other half for salad.
Rice Pilaf Salad
leftover brown rice pilaf
1 can red kidney beans 15oz (450gr jar)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbs snipped fresh basil
1 tbs snipped fresh chives
Creamy Herb Dressing
Drain the beans and mix with the Rice Pilaf. Stir in herbs and tomatoes. Add half of the Herb Dressing and taste. Add more until your happy. Serve.
Creamy Herb Dressing
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs fresh snipped chives
3 tbs olive oil - the good stuff
In small bowl whisk yogurt, mustard and lemon juice. Add oil, a bit at a time and whisk well. Add herbs. This will keep a week.
Two easy recipes for the effort of one: perfect for summer... and even a little on the healthy side, eh?
Be sure to stop by Paulchen's Food Blog?! on Monday for the complete recap of all the wonderful recipes!
