A belated post on a Yay Area feast feat. rice pilaf

I apologize for not posting for so long. I also apologize for the fact that about half of our entries seem to start this way! My schedule's been rather unpredictable since starting my surgery clerkship, so I've mostly been rocking my slow cooker and old-standby recipes. I typically make a big pot of beans or a casserole on Sunday night and then chip away at it all week so I don't need to cook on the weekdays.

I was looking through my photos from my wonderful spring break trip to California today when I found this one and remembered the delicious feast we made and shared with our cousin, Amy. We made butternut squash with chick peas, a raw kale salad on frise, a rice pilaf, and a leek tart. Most, if not all, of the produce we used was from Jody's farm box. It amazed me--in March, when One Straw Farm (the source of my farm box) still has frozen fields, she was getting pistachios, apples, squash, frise, you name it! I suppose that's what you get for living in California.

Rice Pilaf

Saute 1 chopt onion and 1 generous handful of raisins in EVOO (or a nut oil)
Once the onions are soft, add 1.5c short grain brown rice, almost 4c water, and 1 veggie boullion cube. Bring to a boil, and then simmer until the rice is cooked (~40 min). Season with cumin, cinnamon, and black pepper. Sprinkle crushed pistachios on top.

Michael and I had the leftovers with the yogurt sauce from the squash dish the next day as a cold picnic--wonderful!

Jody, could you post the recipe from the seared red cabbage we had a different night? I want to make that one as soon as my farm box gets started!

Tomato Bean Soup, or Obstinacy is the Mother of Invention

Suzanne came down on Saturday, being able to confirm only on Friday that she would be free to visit. Having done my grocery shopping in DC on Thursday (Wagshal's halibut & salmon, mmmm), I determined to cook on the basis of available ingredients. We did respectably Saturday night, but by Sunday the cupboard was looking bare. The pantry contained canelli beans, canned tomato and soba noodles, and the frig merely a few spring onions and cilantro. The garden is being overtaken by mint. Hence the following meal:

• Canelli beans cooked in vegetable stock, then added to a stew of sauteed onion, tomato, black pepper, basil and thyme, topped with cilantro, and
• soba noodles with canola oil/rice vinegar/salt vinagrette, plus roasted sesame seeds, spring onions and mint.

No complaints!