A drink and a casserole

As you may remember, my sort of resolution for 2013 was to try and eat a bit better. Toward that end, I purchased brown rice. Of course, I had completely forgotten how much I dislike its gooey, gummy consistency.

I have found I can mitigate a lot of the issue by lightly toasting the rice first and by making casseroles with it.

Tonight, I started with a Paloma and then made a Chicken Mushroom Casserole.

Paloma

1/4 cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice


1 T agave syrup


1 T lime juice


1/4 cup tequila



Salt the rim of a highball or margarita glass.

Place all of the ingredients in a shaker with some ice. Mix well, pour over ice into prepared glass. 

Chicken Mushroom Casserole Recipe

1 1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

2 1/2 water

2 chicken breasts

2 tablespoons Creole seasoning

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

1 lb mushrooms, cleaned and quartered

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped


2 large eggs


1 cup cottage cheese


1/2 cup sour cream


1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese


In a quart saucepan, heat a couple of glugs of olive oil. Add in the dry rice and toast lightly for just a couple of minutes. Pour in the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes. Once done, allow to cool slightly before fixing the rest of the casserole.

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Rub a 9 X 13 baking dish with a bit of olive oil or butter and set aside.

Cut chicken breasts into pieces and sprinkle with Creole seasoning. In a large cast iron skillet, brown chicken over medium heat in a little bit of olive oil, about 5 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same  skillet, melt two tablespoons of butter. Saute the mushrooms. Stir every minute or so until the mushrooms have released their liquid and have browned a bit. Add the onions and cook for another 4 or 5 minutes or until they are translucent. Stir in the garlic, cook for another minute. Remove from heat and put the chicken back in the pan with any drippings.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese and sour cream. Add the cooled rice. Combine the rice mixture with the chicken and mushrooms. Stir until well combined and then turn out into your prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese, place in oven for 30 to 45 minutes or until hot throughout and golden along the edges.