3 cups California brown medium grain rice
6 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup chopped bacon
1/4 cup flour
1 cup milk
3/4 cup fresh grated smoked Gouda
3/4 cup fresh grated extra sharp cheddar
3/4 cup fresh grated pepper jack cheese
3/4 cup diced tomato
1/4 cup chopped green onions
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan for garnishing
California Brown Rice, Cranberry and Almond Salad
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
- Start by pouring the chicken broth into a large pot on medium heat and bring it to a boil, add the brown rice and turn the heat to low, put a lid on the pot and cook the rice for about 30 to 40 minutes or until done.
- While the rice cooks, in a large sauté pan add the bacon and cook until crispy, about five minutes.
- Remove the bacon from the pan but keep the grease, add the flour and into the pan with the fat in it and cook for about one minute, add the milk and bring it to a boil.
- Turn the heat off and add the grated cheeses a little bit at the time while stirring the mixture to dissolve the cheese. You may have some of the cheese left over, depending on the desired thickness of the dish. If so, this can be used as a topping. Next, add the rice into the cheese sauce and stir for about one minute. Add the tomato and the green onions and heat the mixture just for about two minutes on low heat. At this point you might want to add some salt and or pepper if need it, you could also add some fresh peas for color and taste if desired. If the rice is to thick simply add some water until you get the desired thickness.
- Serve your rice and cheese topped with some fresh grated Parmesan cheese and enjoy.
- Chef notes: “This time around I wanted to create a comfort food recipe featuring California rice as the main ingredient. One of the most popular comfort foods in the United States is Mac and Cheese, so I decided to give it a twist and make it rice and cheese; I decided to use California brown rice for this recipe since it has a great texture and nuttiness as well.”
