Our absolute favorite rice. ridiculously easy to make, super elegant to serve when you have company coming (read on for a neat little trick) and keeps extra well in the fridge for up to a week.

I used 2 kinds of dried raisins and pine nuts for my topping  because that’s what I had on hand. Feel free to switch these up for sliced almonds, dried apricots, cranberries or anything else that catches your fancy (or sits in your pantry). Yum. If you do have leftovers, be sure to sprinkle it with some water and cover it before you heat it up in your microwave. That way the rice stays nice and soft.

The recipe calls for cooked rice. I cook mine the same way I do pasta, in a big pot of boiling salted water, until slightly softer than al-dente (which means you can still bite on it). I then drain my rice, place it in a bowl and mix 1 spoon of vegetable oil in it to prevent it from sticking. You can use any kind of long grain rice. I like Jasmin and Basmati because of their aroma. Try them once and you will never go back to that plasticky parboiled stuff.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked long grain rice
3 Tbsp Canola oil
2 sliced onions
1 cup dried fruit (raisins, chopped apricots, cranberries etc), soaked in a cup of water for 20 minutes.
1/4 cup sliced almonds or pine nuts
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp turmeric
salt to taste

For the rice:

Cook your rice in salted boiling water just like you would pasta, until chewy but not too soft (about 8 to 10 minutes). Drain and place in a large bowl. Mix in 1 spoon vegetable oil (I like to use canola). Cover and set aside.

For the super tasty fruity topping:

In a pan heat the oil, then add 2 sliced onions and saute on medium heat until the onions turn golden brown. Add drained mixed  fruit (save the soaking liquid) , 1/3 cup of nuts, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon,  1/2 teaspoon turmeric and salt to taste. Allow to cook while stirring often, for about 3 minutes (be careful not to burn the nuts). Add about 1/3 cup of the soaking liquid and cook, stirring often, untill the liquid is well absorbed. Take off the heat.

Now for a cool serving suggestion ( I keep forgetting to take a photo of it before eating ): pour the topping into a bowl, cover with rice and press down firmly. When ready to serve, flip the bowl carefully over a larger plate. You will now have a beautiful rice mountain, topped with glossy, golden brown topping. Dig in.