Below is a recipe for one of my summertime favorites, beet and rice salad.  It is a colorful side dish (we just had it with cajun whitefish and sauteed summer veggies), or if you mix in chickpeas or cooked chicken and serve over a bed of greens, this can be a balanced meal.  I usually make a batch of brown basmati rice (2 cups cooked) and it might last us a week.

I also tweaked the recipe from the original, which had you cook the beets ahead in boiling water.  I read recently that the nutrients remain intact and are more bioavailable from raw beets (which is why I’ve been adding them to the smoothie recipe too!).  Also, we are in the thick of summer and Kurt gets a little testy when I crank up the stove and oven in hot weather–(he’s got a point)…AND, I always like to find ways to simplify recipes and eliminate steps…so here it is–these amounts almost filled a quart sized container:

• 2-3 golf ball sized beets, peeled and minced in the food processor (they are available now at the farmer’s market–PS:  save the greens, wash them and use in tossed salads!)
• 2 medium sized carrots, peeled and processed like the beets (also available at the Farmer’s Market now)
• 1 clove garlic (add to beets and carrots in food processor)
• 2 cups cooked rice, rinsed in cold water (I like brown basmati for this recipe)
• 1/4 cup each olive oil and champagne vinegar (use less vinegar if you are not a fan of it)
• 1 Tbs honey dijon mustard
• 1 Tbs dried tarragon (or fresh if you have it!) and or any other herbs you like and have on hand

I usually make the vinaigrette in a mixing bowl large enough to hold the rest of the ingredients and tweak it for taste before I add the veggies and rice.  Then I add the minced beets, carrots and garlic.  Then I add the rice.  Everything gets VERY hot pink, which I love, but may be scary for some…The taste of beets is not strong in this recipe and has passed taste tests with people who don’t like beets.  Mostly you taste the basmati rice and vinaigrette, with the carrots and beets providing a fresh and pleasant CRUNCH.  Sunflower seeds would be great sprinkled over at the last minute (so they don’t turn pink).  Enjoy!

]]> http://foodieforthought.wordpress.com/2008/07/02/beet-and-rice-salad/feed/ 0 karinelling http://foodieforthought.wordpress.com/2008/04/25/favorite-new-find/ http://foodieforthought.wordpress.com/2008/04/25/favorite-new-find/#comments Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:31:48 +0000 karinelling http://foodieforthought.wordpress.com/?p=14 ]]>

For all of you brown baggers out there, I have a great new food storage product to share with you.  My only regret is that I’m not the one who thought of this idea!!  And I’m not making any money on the success of this product…The brand is “Fit & Fresh”, and they are found at Target, including online shopping.  I went to the actual brick-and-mortar store because I like to look at, pick up and touch things in person before I buy them.  I purchased the “Salad Shaker” and the “Lunch on the go” pieces.  They also make a smoothie/drink container, and I noticed that Target online is selling this trio as a set now.  I also saw a container for breakfast, and one that keeps hot soups hot and cold soups cold.  If you are someone who doesn’t have access to refrigeration during the day, and that is what is keeping you from bringing your own lunch (which gives you WAY more control over what food goes into your body and the amount of money that stays in your wallet), I’d encourage you to check these out as a possible solution.

All of the containers have a removable ice pack that keeps food at a safe temperature, with the label proudly telling you that it “stays chilled 6 hours*” (* chill times may vary).  I probably won’t do things like store my lunch in a hot car this summer, but when I’m teaching my morning class at WCC, my lunch will be cool and fresh when I’m done at noon, for example…

The Salad Shaker holds up to 4 cups of salad (if that is straight leafy greens, you would be getting 2 “cups” of veggies–) and a little “dressing dispenser” that you twist and it dumps the dressing you filled it with into your salad and then you shake it.  This way your salad doesn’t get all limp and wilty like it would if you put dressing on at home before you left for the day.  I find this feature to be particularly clever!

I also like that these pieces are dishwasher safe (except for the ice packs), so you can reuse them and not need to rely on plastic baggies to keep the components of your lunch separate–again, a good thing for your wallet AND the environment.

On Mondays, I’m the envy of the lunchroom at work as I heat up and enjoy my pizza from our weekly Sunday night pizza. This used to be one of those $5 deals from a chain pizza joint, until my father lovingly pointed out that as a dietitian, I should be ashamed of myself, eating fast food…

Of course, (as always ) he was right. So, my husband and I decided it was time to start using one of our wedding presents, a perforated 15 3/4″ pizza pan (available at Target for about $15). The perforated surface promises a nice crispy crust and the nonstick finish means you can slide your pie onto a cutting board and divvy it up. I have to confess that aside from occasionally helping with the chopping of the various toppings, Kurt is the master of pizza night.

He is the one who researched online recipes for whole wheat pizza crust (I put in the request for the whole wheat part), and every Sunday night he gets the party going by starting the yeast. Fast forward to about 1 hour and fifteen minutes later, and our house smells like the best pizzeria in town. He is also the one who, a few weeks ago, wondered aloud about making his own pizza sauce…so off he went and managed to find a recipe that makes enough for two pizzas (we freeze half for next week). It is the best pizza I’ve ever had–and I spent a year of my life in Italy, so that is a high compliment!!

In any case, Pizza Mondays are a great example of the idea behind the Lunchbox Chronicles: make enough for dinner one night to take for lunch the next day! The only things I miss as I sit in the lunchroom eating my Monday Pizza are Kurt, our dog Otto and a nice glass of red wine…