The Beginning...

It's Ash Wednesday! Time to put my nose to the grindstone. Today, I'm giving up cursing. Those who know me will probably start laughing right about now. But I'm doing it! It's going to be hard. I'm also going to pray the rosary once per week. I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to trudge over to the church on Wednesday nights when the old ladies pray, or whether I'm going to steal time at home. I'd probably better make it to the church because we all know that stealing time at home rarely works. Anyway, a recipe for today from CRS:

Rice Casserole (serves 6)

• 1 cup rice
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 8 oz sour cream
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 8 oz grated mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup cilantro or green pepper, finely chopped

In a large saucepan, sauté the garlic in the oil for one minute. Set the pan aside. In a small pot, combine cilantro or green pepper and vegetable broth. Heat mixture until it begins to boil. Add the broth mixture and rice to the large saucepan containing the garlic. Cover the pan and cook at low heat (the broth should continue boiling) until all the broth has evaporated and the rice is cooked.

Grease an 8" x 8" baking dish, and spread the rice in the pan. Spread the sour cream on top of the rice, and sprinkle the grated cheese over it evenly. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Serve hot.

This is what we're having for dinner tonight. And I admit that I immediately started fixing it up in my mind. "Oh, I could add some shredded carrots and use queso manchego instead of mozzarella, and maybe..." STOP. The point is to eat simply. So I'm making the recipe as is. Well, I'm using a yellow pepper because green gives Nick heartburn. But that's it! The point is simplicity and I'm trying to embrace it.