Tag: stir fry

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Winter Farmer’s Market Finds

Did you know that there is an indoor winter Farmer’s Market in Carbondale? You can find a great variety of local food and products on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market. The market is located in the movie theater entrance of University Mall. It runs from December through March and makes it a bit easier to still get fresh, local produce, dairy and meat products. There are wonderful locally made food products, baked goods, and beverages as well as handcrafted and artisan items.

You can enjoy local musicians as you shop, and there is a Kids Club with a different activity each week. On January 27, there is a cooking demonstration, and February 2 is the yearly seed swap. Ellen Esling, CCFM Indoor Market Manager, does a wonderful job with the weekly event.

Fresh Local Produce

My new favorite product by Glaciers End is the Winter Solctice Shrub. (A shrub is a drinking vinegar that has been used by many generations as a beverage. ) Although some people drink it by itself, I prefer adding a little splash to a glass of ice and seltzer water (or club soda) for a refreshing drink. I’ve also used their shrubs in marinades and vinaigrettes. Glaciers End is usually at the Winter market.

Glaciers End
Winter Solctice in Seltzer Water

If you like mushrooms, Flyway Family Farms has a wonderful selection of gourmet mushrooms. Although I tend to like the shiitaki or gourmet mix, I recently used their Black King Oyster mushrooms in a vegetarian stir fry. A great way to try a variety is with the Gourmet Mix.

Flyway Family Farms

Black King Oyster Mushroom Stir Fry

You can usually find lettuce and salad mixes at the winter market. Kale is one of favorites. If you like zuppa toscana, kale is one of its ingredients.

Kale

Those with a sweet tooth can find a variety of wonderful treats.

Get Dipped’s Vanilla Cream Pie
Eagle Point Emporium’s Freeze Dried Candy

You can also shop for great gifts or yourself!)

Eco Friendly Makeup Remover Pads

Beautiful Gourds and Dream Catchers
Lapis and Blue Lace Agate Earrings
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Game Changer: Baked Rice

Game changer. Life changing. Food hack. Thing that makes life a bit easier. These all describe my feelings about learning that I could bake Rice. It can even be baked ahead in bulk and frozen or refrigerated for later use! That is a tremendous help for times that you want real food but don’t have the time or energy to make it yourself. After reading through various recipes for baked rice and experimenting a bit, I think that one cup of dry rice to one and three forth cups of boiling water is the formula that works best. The rice is not soggy (a pet peeve…) or too dry. If you have sprayed or oiled the baking dish, it doesn’t stick–unless maybe you let it go too long and burn it.

What really helps to speed things up is boiling the water in a hot pot while the oven preheats. In fact, you may want to give the oven a head start, because boiling water in a hot pot or electric kettle is WAY faster than waiting for water to boil on your stove top.

If you are making something in the oven to go with your rice that can cook at 375 F, you can prep it while the water boils. If it requires a longer cooking time than the rice, you could preheat the oven and pop it in before you boil the water. I typically will throw something together while the water boils. If it isn’t ready to go in when the water boils ( the rice mixture needs to be covered and placed into the oven when it is boiling,) I just put it in when I can and let it cook longer after I remove the rice to rest and be fluffed.

Long grain rice

Please be aware that the ratios of liquid (water, broth, or possibly a juice) to dry rice are different for each type. The ratio below is for long grain white rice.

Baked long grain rice

I’ve used this rice with an Asian stir fry and Latin American stir fry–both baked. I plan to experiement with adding salsa, achiote (annato seed,) or saffron to the rice as it bakes. I also suspect some soups might work for the liquid.

Baked veggie “stir fry” with mushrooms, peppers, onions, carrots, garlic, freshly grated ginger, black pepper, red chili flakes, and soy sauce.

Baked Fajita mix with chicken, mushrooms, peppers, onions, garlic, sazón, lime, chipotle powder, and a tiny bit of brown sugar.

RECIPE

Ingredients:

1 cup long grain white rice

1 ¾ cups boiling water (or other suitable liquid, such as stock or broth)

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt (or herbal substitute if you prefer)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. If you are boiling your water in a hot pot, start it after you start preheating.

2. Pour all ingredients into a baking dish (approximately 2 quart) and stir.

3. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil (or a dish lid if it has one) and bake until the water is absorbed,-approximately 25 minutes.

4. Remove the dish from the oven and allow it to rest 5 minutes. Then fluff the rice with a fork and serve. Enjoy!