Day 361.

Gasp! 361? Only 4 days to go in this year; unbelievable. I’m planning to follow along with Kelly’s Get Real series in 2012 to help our family make the transition to even more whole foods in our diet, so stay tuned for that in 2012. We’re already using a lot of whole foods, but we can always do better. The day after Christmas I definitely needed something I could set and forget. I decided I wanted to try something with rice and pumpkin puree and looked around a bit until I found Creamy Pumpkin Brown Rice. I proteined it up with a cup of white beans and converted it to be made in my rice cooker. I think this is going to be a winner for its sheer simplicity if nothing else. And, BONUS, it uses all whole foods.

Creamy Pumpkin Brown Rice

Adapted from Creamy Pumpkin Brown Rice

Ingredients for 4 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup red onion, chopped

1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup white Northern beans, cooked

2 pints (about 4 cups) Easy Slow Cooker Vegetable Broth

2 bay leaves

House seasoning or salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Saute onion in olive oil for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add all ingredients, except House seasoning, to rice cooker and cook on brown rice setting until cycle completes. Remove bay leaves, stir, season to taste and serve.

The Results

The kids and I went insane for this rice. The pumpkiny flavor was fantastic, but not overpowering and the texture was soft like risotto, but not too mushy. Both kids had seconds, which they had topped with “shaky cheese” (Parmesan). I liked mine without cheese. This rice is a definite repeat.

This post is shared at·Tuesdays at the Table, Tuesday Night Supper Club,·Slightly Indulgent Tuesday,·Tempt My Tummy Tuesday,·Delicious Dishes,·Real Food Wednesday, Recipe of the Week, Hearth and Soul,Tutorial Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday and Tasty Tuesday.