Rice with mushrooms

◼  They made me a present of a box with dehydrated Maitake mushrooms of ecological production, until that moment I had never tried them. And I didn´t really know very well how to prepare them, so I decided on rice with mushrooms.

The box contained 30 grams of dehydrated mushrooms; I put them to soak in water overnight to hydrate them.

The next day, I prepared them as follows:

• Cover the bottom of a paella pan with  extra virgin olive oil  to sauté, first, one finely chopped onion; then, add some finely chopped garlic cloves when the onion is softened; stir and let make some minutes over a low heat.

• Add a spoonful of  Herbes de Provence , stir and let make some minutes.

• Cut the mushrooms into small pieces, add and stir. Add ½ coffee cup of round-grain brown rice, stir and cover everything with water. Keep over a high heat until the water begins to boil, add salt (to taste) and reduce the heat. Time required, approximately, an hour.

◼  Ideas to repeat and, besides, to have always on hand together with dried legumes and rice in the pantry.

>> see more rice recipes

                   

Mediterranean Savor: Couscous soup

◼  I made this soup with the stock obtained from cooking some chickpeas when preparing hummus (chickpeas paste).

Add to the stock, together with the onion and some chickpeas, a little water to reduce the concentrate, one stalk celery, finely chopped (optional, if I have it, I add it) and rectify the salt.  

 
Once boiled, crush everything with an electric mixer to get a liquid and homogeneous mixture. Add ½ coffee cup or 3 tablespoons, per liter of stock, of a blend of couscous with flower petals from organic farming, already prepared, which I buy in the store in the section of organic foods.  

◼  It is a soup, ideal for supper, since it makes you feel better and with calming effect.

>> see more broths recipes

                   

Mediterranean Savor: Hummus

◼  Cook the  chickpeas  with an onion, some  bay leaves  and salt to taste. I always use the same quantity of chickpeas, 200 grams.

◼  In a mixing bowl (with capacity for 1 liter) put the drained chickpeas, 4 or 5 sliced cloves garlic, a drizzle of  extra virgin olive oil  and salt (quantity to taste), the juice of a large  lemon  and a tablespoon of ready-made  Tahini  paste.

◼  Beat the mixture with an electric mixer until you get a paste with creamy texture; in case more liquid is needed, add a little of the stock from cooking the chickpeas or else lemon juice; this will depend on the taste of the one who is preparing the hummus.

◼  Place the paste in the refrigerator for a few hours; when you are going to use it, you can serve it a serving platter garnished with sweet paprika and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

◼  I like to make salads, with beetroot, zucchini, cucumber or radishes, cut into very thin slices to prepare some toast with Hummus, especially for dinner time.

>> see recipes made with chickpeas broth 

                   

Combination of sautéed spinach with chickpeas

◼  Sautéed spinach with raisins and almonds accompanied by cooked chickpeas.

◼  When I cook chickpeas to prepare Hummus, I cook them with an onion and some bay leaves; I usually cook more than I need to prepare the chickpea paste; so, on the one hand, I prepare hummus and on the other hand, another dish like this combination of sautéed spinach.

◼  In addition, I reserve the stock from cooking the chickpeas to prepare other recipes, for instance, a noodle soup.

◼  Spinach is cooked fast, in a saucepan with a little water and salt (to taste) or steamed. In a skillet, first sauté in a little extra virgin olive oil the raisins and almonds (or pine nuts, according to what you have on hand) and then add spinach, stir and ready to serve.

                   

Recipe made with tradition, Sephardi rice.

Sephardi rice is a recipe created by my brother, based on an ancient Sephardi recipe. It is a carrot stew served with rice and very spicy savor; well, as my brother comments, if you catch a cold, you eliminate all the viruses and become new.                        

I was surprised by the idea, so I adapted his recipe to my taste, with less spicy. As I use whole grain rice, it is the first thing I prepare, so while the rice is on the boil, I prepare the stew.                                       

In a saucepan sauté finely chopped onion in extra virgin olive oil over a low heat; when the onion is softened, add a few finely chopped cloves garlic, stir and sauté for a few minutes; add a wooden spoon of Provence herbs (the measure to aromatize is always to taste), sauté for a few minutes and add some tomatoes, peeled and diced; stir and cover the saucepan to make the sauce.      

When the sauce is ready, add the diced carrots, stir and add a dried chili pepper (or to taste), a pinch of sea salt to taste and cover with water to cook, cover and simmer. My brother also adds a splash of white wine, but it is optional.

And for the rice, I use a blend of wholegrain, basmati and wild black rice. When I serve the dish, pour a few drops of lemon directly over the rice, it gives a really special touch.

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

 


800 g  carrots , 3 medium  tomatoes , 1 large onion,4 cloves garlic,  Provence herbs , 1 dried chili  pepper (or more, if desired), 1  lemon ,   extra virgin olive oi l , 1 teacup  whole grain rice , sea salt (to taste).

>> see more rice recipes