Kids love rice, well mine do! If you have children like mine, they all have such different personalities and tastes. One of my kids is an excellent eater, he eats everything with the exception of sweets, he is not a fan of hard candy or sweet food. My second on the other hand is the total opposite. He prefers eating candy all day, everyday and avoids all the healthy stuff. My picky eater is the one that when he was younger, I ended up making a second and third dinner in fear he was not eating enough. I will have to say now that he is 8, he is finally opening up his palate and is even trying new dishes, it is slowly changing but it hasn’t been easy Moms and Dads. Making sure our kids eat a healthy meal is so exhausting sometimes. Don't give up and keep on introducing them to new flavors, I get creative in this area because of my picky eaters.
I enjoy cooking and since my kids were babies I puree most of the vegetables they eat into the food I cook, I add it to the rice, casseroles, meats, poultry, everything. My love for cooking comes from my family, especially seeing my mom and dad in the kitchen. My dad is also a good cook; his rice and beans are classic. Growing up, both my parents worked in NYC and whoever got home first started cooking. Since they both had a long commute they helped each other with 4 kids. My dad learned how to cook and his menu was limited but he did his best and we all ate it up! My mom is a gourmet cook; she does wonders in the kitchen, it is very impressive to say the least.
In my culture, we eat a lot of rice and beans but I have learned to change it up. When you love to cook you start inventing and seeing what works for you and your family. My mom always incorporated a lot of veggies in her cooking; I have learned so much from her and I think this is why I grew up loving my vegetables even though I do remember complaining about seeing them. My parents did not give us multiple options with food, if we really did not like something we put it to the side but were still required to eat our meal, “you get what you get and you don’t get upset.”
In my house, my pickiest eater actually enjoys my Green Rice. This kid only wants sweets, but what he does not know is that all the food I make for them is filled with fresh garlic, onions, peppers, celery, carrots, spinach and anything that I can combine with whatever I am cooking. I am slowing letting them know this so they are less resistant to vegetables in their meals. I am noticing they are not complaining as much but it is all a process. Today, I still puree vegetables in the food because it is easier, it taste good and they have no idea that I am getting their palates used to these flavors. I don’t use many dried condiments, the fresh veggies taste so much better and I make enough for a few days so I don’t have to cut them up daily. There are recipes that call for adding additional dried condiments but for the most part I just cook with salt and pepper and always add pureed veggies.
I wanted to share the Green Rice Recipe with you because it is super simple and nutritious. Although, I know rice is not loaded with protein and vitamins, it does have some good in it, in my opinion. Many cultures have been eating rice for years. My kids love the regular white long grain rice but today you have so many other options. To be healthier you can substitute with brown rice or whatever rice you enjoy. They are all are packed with lots of carbohydrates which our kids need in their active environments. Adding the vegetables is healthier and it is super tasty too, I love this recipe and hope you do too.
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GREEN RICE RECIPE
Serving Size should be enough for 5-7 people
Cook: 35 mins
Total: 45 mins
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
Pot with Lid
Ingredients Listed Below
INGREDIENTS:
3 Cups of Rice (Long Grain) Try getting NON-GMO there are many brands now with the seal.
3 Cups of Water (This could very depending on the rice you choose, check how many cups of water you should use for every cup of rice)
2 – 3 Garlic Cloves
5 Oz of Spinach
3 Stems of Celery
1 Green Pepper
Small Bunch of Cilantro (About 15-20 stems cut up in small ½ inch or smaller)
1½ Tablespoons of Olive Oil
Salt to Taste
DIRECTIONS:
1. You want to rinse your spinach, celery, and green pepper and let it drain. You can also rinse the cilantro stems and peel garlic cloves all at the same time.
2. In separate container, wash your rice 2-3 times with water and drain and set-aside until ready to add rice.
3. In a blender/food processor, add your spinach, celery, green pepper and garlic cloves with 1 cup of water to help blend better. You want to puree this and it will become a green puree of vegetables.
4. Add green pureed vegetables and 2 cups of water and let it boil.
5. Add salt to taste with the greens and garlic cooking for about 5-7 minutes, remember that white rice is bland so you might have to add a little extra salt or even more garlic so taste the water.
6. Once green water is boiling for a few minutes you add the 3 cups of rice. Leave it in medium heat (6-7 on an electric stove.)
7. Cut washed cilantro in small ½ inch pieces to add to the rice. Cut off the end stems, these you can throw away as they are usually the root stems. Add chopped cilantro to boiling water, the rice will soak up the water. Leave the rice uncovered until all water is absorbed. Watch it and make sure it does not burn (some stove burners are hotter than others.) You want to lower the heat once the water completely dries up.
8. Once the rice absorbs all the water, mix the rice with a large spoon so that it cooks evenly and lower the heat (3 on electric stove.)
9. Add 1½ tablespoons of olive oil, if you prefer to add more or less that is fine too.
10. Then you cover the pot with the lid and continue to cook in low heat (3 on an electric stove,) it will be ready in 20 minutes once rice is fully open and not hard.
Once it is fully cooked, you can lower heat more to keep warm, serve and ENJOY.
