Flowfit

mild curry flavour - sweetness shines through

Curried Rice Salad

This salad has been in my family for years. I’ve tweaked it and updated it, but to keep it simple, I’ll give you something close to the original that you can play with yourself. I recently made this at a function I catered, and I added pulled roasted chicken and used Burgol in place of the Rice-a-Roni. It was a hit!

• 1 pkg Rice-a-Roni Chicken and Vermicelli
• 2 jars artichoke hearts (marinated in oil – drain, chop and reserve oil)
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 cup craisins
• 1 can water (sliced) chestnuts, chopped
• 4 chopped green onions
• 1 cup toasted almonds
• 1 can sliced black olives, drained
• ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp curry powder (more or less to taste)
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice according to package directions.

In a large bowl, combine celery, raisins, water chestnuts, onion, parsley and olives.

Mix reserved oil and mayo with curry powder. (I use one of the jars from the artichokes and just shake the dressing)

Once rice is cooked, let cool for about 10 minutes. Mix rice with celery, etc. Pour dressing over top and mix in.

That’s it!!  Easy schmeasy!!  Enjoy!

YUM!

TIPS -
To make with Burgol, replace rice a roni with 2 cups Burgol and 4 cups of chicken stock.

I’ve been making this mussel recipe for years.  It was originally given to me by my sister who said she had them at a restaurant.  They were so fantastic, she had asked the chef for the recipe.  It still exists on the same crumpled napkin – a simple list of ingredients without amounts.  Grab a loaf of whole grain crusty bread and get ready for a heavenly sauce.

Dig in!

Mussels a la Lisa
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 shallots finely minced
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced or pressed
• 3 stalks celery (I prefer the hearts), diced
• 1 fennel bulb, sliced into strips (save fronds for garnish)
• 1 cup white wine (choose a dry chardonnay)
• 8-10 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 10 fennel seeds
• Handful of chopped basil leaves
• 1tbsp curry powder or 2tbsp curry paste
• Fresh cracked pepper and sea salt to taste

removing beard

To clean mussels… run under cold water and inspect for cracks, breaks and dead ones.  Discard any with a broken shell.  If the mussel will not close, gently tap it on the side of the sink and watch.  It should close.  Discard any that do not close tightly.  Some of the mussels will also have a “beard”.  Remove this by gently sliding up and down while pulling.

In a large sauté pan, pot or wok, heat Olive oil.  Add curry powder and fennel seeds.  Cook, stirring constantly until super fragrant (approximately 1 minute).  Add shallots, garlic, celery and fennel.  Continue to cook on medium for another 2 minutes.  Add wine, cook on high heat for 4 minutes.  Add mussels, basil and tomatoes, cover and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes or so to ensure the ones on the bottom get moved to the top for even cooking.  Cook until all mussels are open.

Discard any that did not open during cooking.

To serve, sprinkle with fennel fronds and a handful of torn basil leaves.

YUM!

TIPS – Offer a large empty bowl on the table to discard empty shells.

This soup is wonderful in the summer when zucchini are fresh from the garden, but it is also a great soup to warm up with on snowy or rainy days… plus, it reminds me of summer! Today is dark and rainy and I’ll be making this for dinner tonight!

CURRIED APPLE ZUCCHINI SOUP

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 medium sized apples (peeled and chopped)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 tsp curry powder or 2tbsp curry paste (or to taste)
• 4 cups chicken (or vegetable) stock
• 1 cup water
• ¼ cup brown rice
• 3 cups chopped zucchini
• salt and pepper to taste
• dollop plain yogurt (for garnish)
• chopped cilantro (for garnish)

In a soup pot, sauté the apples and onion in the oil for 5 minutes on medium heat. The onions should become translucent. Add Curry and let cook for another 2-5 minutes, stirring often. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add rice, s&p. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes with the lid off. Add zucchini and continue to cook until zucchini becomes quite soft. Puree using blender, food processor or hand mixer (my preference is hand mixer), add extra water to thin if needed. Be careful, it’s HOT!

Add dollop (spoon full) of plain yogurt and sprinkling of fresh cilantro before serving.

YUM!