Slam Dunk Brown Rice Recipe!

Oh yeah!  It was a success!  My brown rice was perfect, tasty, and best of all, done in under an hour.  Okay, so I altered the recipe a teeny bit and it was delish!  I added some veggies and it was a healthy & tasty lunch.

Ingredients:

1. 1 Cup of brown rice.  I used long grain.
2. 12 Cups of water
3. 2 teaspoons of fine sea salt
4. 1 garlic head (optional)

Directions:

• Bring water (yes, all twelve cups) to a rolling boil in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over high heat. 
• Add rice, salt, and garlic (I grated it into the water). For a milder flavor just crush the head and put the entire thing into water and remove when you drain rice. 
• Remember: The garlic is optional. It gave it a nice taste. 
• Stir once.
• Boil for 30 minutes, uncovered. 
• Pour rice out over a strainer in sink. 
• Let the rice drain for about 10 - 15 seconds.
• Return it to pot, off of heat. 
• Leave it covered for 10 minutes.
• Uncover rice, transfer to serving dish, and fluff up with a fork.  

*Some of you may be concerned about the nutrients being drained out when you throw away the water, but this is not the case.  I did some research and bumped into many sites explaining this.  However, I found this one comment explained it best " The water rich material found in roots, stems and fruits do aid to the transfer of their fluid nutrients into the hot or boiling water around them. While you get the nutrients of the solid materials, varying amounts of water bound nutrients are lost. Most (not all) grains, however, act quite differently. The moisture bound nutrients in grain are found in the oils in the aleurone layer and the endosperm which are too dense to permeate the pericarp. Any nutrient loss from dumping the water is negligible. Of course, this does not apply to white rice or any other grain that has had its bran layer removed. Hope that helps," (www.sauver.com). 

Perfect Brown Rice?

So, I've been using this awesome brown rice recipe, and every time it has yielded awesome results.  However, it takes too long.  It bakes for about an hour, so I am now on a quest to find another awesome recipe with equally awesome results.  I bumped into this one from saveur.com:

1 cup short, medium, or long-grain brown rice
Kosher salt, to taste

1. Rinse rice in a strainer under cold running water for 30 seconds. Bring 12 cups water to a boil in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over high heat. Add the rice, stir it once, and boil, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Pour the rice into a strainer over the sink.

2. Let the rice drain for 10 seconds, then return it to the pot, off the heat. Cover the pot and set it aside to allow the rice to steam for 10 minutes. Uncover the rice, fluff with a fork, and season with salt.

After this post I am trying it for lunch with some veggies.  Keep your fingers crossed! 

Carrot Cake Recipe

Okay, so a few of you have asked me to post my carrot cake recipe.  I posted pics of the one I made on Father's Day a few years ago, but didn't want to put the recipe.  However, I've decided to stop being selfish and just share the wealth :)  So here goes:


2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or cake flour (I use what I have on hand)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3 sticks unsalted butter, softened (it's better when you let it get to room temp on it's own rather than microwaving)
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup appple juice (I use organic apples and juice my own, but store bought works fine)
1 1/2 cups peeled, grated carrots (about 3 to 4 medium carrots)
1 Golden Delicious apple, peeled, cored, and diced (about 1 cup)
1 cup finely chopped pecans
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Cream Cheese Icing
2 packages (8-ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
l 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 to 6 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and lightly flour three 9 x 2—inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with wax paper.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream the butter and the sugars on the medium speed of an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Then beat in the vanilla. 
4. Add the dry ingredients in thirds to the butter mixture, alternating with the apple juice. Beat for 45 seconds after each addition, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. 
5. Stir in the carrots, apple, pecans, and cream until all the ingredients are well incorporated.
6. Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. 
7. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. 
8. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.*
9. When the cake has cooled, frost between the layers, and then the top of cake. I like to to also frost the sides, but you don't have to. 

Cream Cheese Icing:

1. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter on the medium speed of an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes. 
2. Add the vanilla and mix well. Gradually add the sugar 1 cup at a time, and beat until desired consistency (you may not need all the sugar). 
3. Refrigerate for about 45 minutes. Allow the icing to come to room temperature before using. Refrigerate any leftovers.

This yields icing for one 3-layer 9—inch cake or 2 dozen cupcakes. Makes about 5 cups.