My Famous Roasted Vegetable Rice

People who know me already know this recipe. I'm often asked for it and I always give it. I have it on my catering menu and I make it quite often for Nick and myself. We love it. Using fresh vegetables works just as well, but I have discovered that using frozen works great too. I use a mixture of hearty vegetables, ones that can stand up to the roasting process. Carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini, yellow squash... things of this nature. This particular time I used a frozen California blend vegetable. Put them frozen, in a metal baking pan (metal works better for browning) and then drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 400 for about 40-45 minutes. Check them. You want them to be roasted, not just cooked.





While the veggies are roasting, cook your rice. I use Jasmine rice. It's such a fragrant and delicious rice. You can use something else, but I can't guarantee you that the dish will come out as well. The rice is key to the flavor. I use white or brown Jasmine and it works great with both (brown takes longer and uses more liquid, just an FYI). Melt a Tablespoon of butter in the bottom of your pan and add a cup of rice to it, and about half a cup of slivered almonds. Cook the rice and almonds in the butter for a few minutes, until you start to get a delicious nutty aroma coming from the pan. (This is brown rice, thus the browned color.. you don't want white rice to get this brown!)





Then add 2 cups of chicken stock (Kitchen Basics stock in a carton a wonderful product. It's a little more expensive than say College Inn, but it's worth it). Stir, bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer, stirring occasionally. In the summer when I have fresh herbs, I add fresh thyme. But dried works well too. You can cover the pot, but I don't find it absolutely necessary to do that.





When the rice is done, the veggies should be done as well. Add the roasted vegetables to the rice, stir and serve. Delish! And aside from a little butter, pretty darn healthy too especially if you use the brown rice!