A Rice Find!

Tomatoes are finally at their peak at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market! We started with a Salad that we topped with sliced tomatoes, Burrata Cheese, Chives and Basil. We get the fresh Burrata at The Cheese Store of Silverlake.

I then grilled a salmon filet that we had purchased at the fish monger at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market. We of course used the Egg to smoke the salmon, low and slow! We have used this recipe before and think it is excellent. The recipe is called Honey-Cured, Smoked Salmon and it is from Cooking with Fire and Smoke by Phillip Stephen Schulz. You can find the recipe in our Blog of Jan 15 2009. Simply click the date to get the recipe.

Cathy found a recipe for a Squash or Pumpkin dish called: Jewelled Pumpkin Rice in the Moro East Cookbook. This was a first time making it, and it definitely is joining the repertoire of rice dishes that we will make again. It is delicious. We also found out it re-heats! This is a great one, and not very difficult. Give it a try!

Jewelled Pumpkin Rice
From Moro East by Sam & Sam Clark

This pilav is areal winner. For those who need convincing about pumpkin or squash,
this is the dish to try.
Serves 4-6

1 pound peeled and seeded butternut squash (from 1 ½ lb squash), cut into 1/3 in dice
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
a big pinch (about 50 strands) of saffron
3 ½ oz unsalted butter
2 ½ in piece of cinnamon stick
4 allspice berries, crushed
1 large or 2 medium onions, thinly sliced across the grain
½ oz dried barberries (or currants)
2 oz shelled unsalted pistachios
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
2/3 lb basmati rice, soaked in tepid, salted water for 1 hour
16 ounces vegetable stock

Preheat the oven to 400

Toss the diced butternut squash with half of the salt and the olive oil. Spread it in a single layer in a baking tray and roast for 30 minutes or until tender. Mix the saffron with 3 tablespoons of boiling water and add1 ounce of the butter, which should melt. Set aside.

Heat the remaining butter in a medium saucepan with the cinnamon and allspice until it foams, then add the onion and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Fry over a medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onion is soft and starting to color.

Add the barberries, pistachios and cardamom and cook for 10 minutes more, until the onion is golden and sweet. Now drain the rice and add to the pan, stirring for a minute or two to coat, then pour in the stock. Taste for seasoning then scatter with the roast squash. Cover with a circle of greaseproof paper and a tight-fitting lid and cook over a high heat for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for a final 5 min¬utes.

Remove the lid and the greaseproof paper and drizzle with the buttery saffron water. Replace the lid and leave to rest, off the heat, for 5-10 minutes.