Spanish Rice with Salsa Rose

This cold spell has sent my kitchen into a tail spin! Ella and I tend to cook when we are worried so when we saw the forecasted temperatures in the teens we fired up the oven and started baking. In the past five days, we have made chocolate chip cookies, brownies, beef brisket, pizzas, pasta, pancakes and Spanish rice! If we can’t control the weather, we might as well eat good food, don’t you agree?!

A couple of nights ago we had Taco Tuesday on Wednesday and thanks to the Lego movie, my kids think that is so much fun. Our taco night consisted of bowls of Eckert’s homemade salsa, Eckert’s taco dip, Eckert’s hydroponic lettuce and freshly grated Mammoth Cheddar. I removed Eckert’s chorizo from the casing before browning it in a skillet and serving it along with this recipe for Spanish Rice with Salsa Rose. We enjoyed this comforting meal around the dinner table while overlooking a frosty orchard.

The big hit of Taco Tuesday was my newly concocted Spanish Rice recipe. I love the Salsa Rose products from the folks at Reinneck Ranch because they are delicious and LOCAL! The owners of Reinneck Ranch live in Mascoutah, Illinois and they are always a pleasure to work with. Recently they sampled their salsas at our Wine and Food Festival and as usual, they sold their shelf clean.

I thought it would be fun to experiment with their salsa in a rice dish and now I know, I will never buy the packages of instant Spanish rice again. This dish gets it savory flavor from the onions and garlic and a hint of sweetness from the salsa. My kids topped off their plates with shredded cheese before eating their body weight in rice. Yes, I will be making this recipe again very soon.

Fingers are crossed these temperatures won’t harm the peach crop. In the meantime, I will keep my apron on and my oven full.

 Eat well this winter,

Angie

Spanish Rice with Salsa Rose

 2 Tbs. canola oil
½ white onion, chopped (about ¾ cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups white rice (I used Basmati)
3 cups water
¾ cup Mild Salsa Rose

 Add oil to 10” skillet over medium heat. Heat until shimmering. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 2 more minutes. Add rice and stir constantly for 2 minutes. Pour in salsa and water. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is done and liquid is fully absorbed. Makes 8-10 servings (or only 6 if you have rice lovers).