Today’s recipe has absolutely nothing to do with cookies or holiday baking, but everything to do with eating foods that are delicious, good for your body, and produced with the highest of standards. Don’t worry, you’ll find no preachy posts here, just a simple, heart healthy, gluten free, dairy free recipe that could grace your holiday table or provide a quick and easy weeknight dinner for you and your family any time of year – AND, it ends with a #Giveaway of Star Fine Foods, maker of the Extra Virgin California Olive Oil featured here, and an assortment of their other fine products.
Way back in September (Wow, is it really December!) I attended an Olive Oil Tasting hosted by Star Fine Foods and Diane Cu and Todd Porter of White on Rice Couple. Much like wine tasting, but instead we were taken on a tour of the world’s richest olive oil regions including Spain, the Mediterranean, and the Holy Lands and, while we were there, the first to taste STAR® California Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), one of the first olive oils made exclusively from olives grown in California.
Since then, their EVOO California Olive Oil has honestly become my go-to olive oil – it’s light with fruity notes and a bold peppery finish (doesn’t that sound like wine) which makes it an ideal choice for dipping sauces, dressings, and cooking vegetables and proteins when you don’t desire a bold olive oil taste. Here I’ve combined it with the warm flavors of apple cider vinegar and curry to lightly coat exotic ebony grains of organic Forbidden Rice from Lotus Foods dotted with the vibrant jewel tones of dried apricots and cranberry, crunchy pistachios and the pleasurable pop of fresh pomegranate seeds.
Jeweled Forbidden Rice
1 cup Lotus Foods Forbidden Rice*
1/3 cup coarsely chopped pistachios
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
1/3 cup fresh pomegranate seeds
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup Star California Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey or agave
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon minced shallots
salt and pepper to taste
1. Prepare rice according to package directions. Transfer rice to a glass mixing bowl and allow to cool.
2. While rice is cooking, chop the apricots and pistachios. I poured a half cup of hot water over the cranberries to moisten and plump them up a bit.
3. Whisk together the apple cider vinegar, honey, curry, and shallots.
4. Toss pistachios, apricots, cranberries, and pomegranate seeds with rice. Pour dressing over, and mix to blend. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Serves 4
*A new study shows that a spoonful of black rice bran or 10 spoonfuls of cooked black rice contains the same amount of antioxidants as a spoonful of fresh blueberries. Click here for more information.
Giveaway is now closed.
NOW for the GIVEAWAY!
One lucky reader will have the opportunity to experience Star’s EV California Olive Oil as well as an assortment of other Star Fine Foods products.
Included in the basket are four bottles of Family Reserve Olive Oils: one each of Fresh Basil, Fresh Rosemary, Lemon Peel, and Roasted Garlic; Star Balsamic Vinegar,, Star Red Wine Vinegar, Star Cannonballs Stuffed Spanish Queen Olives, Star Spanish Salad Olives, Cara Mia Marinated Artichoke Hearts and Cara Mia Marinated Mushrooms.
How to Win?
1. MAIN ENTRY(required): Like the new She’s Cookin’s page on Facebook and leave a comment below letting me know that you have and please tell us about your favorite use of olive oil, too!
2. BONUS ENTRY: Follow @shescookin and @Star_Fine_Foods on Twitter and tweet the #Giveaway, then come back and tell us you tweeted. To make it easy, copy and paste this: I just entered to win a basket of Olive Oil, Olives and more from @shescookin & @Star_Fine_Foods. Enter here http://ht.ly/7IW27 #Giveaway
Important Details:
• This giveaway is open to USA residents, age 18 and above only, and will run until Wednesday, December 7, 2011 at 10:00 pm PST.
• Winner will be chosen by random.org and notified via the email provided on the comment form information.
• Winner has until midnight, December 8, 2011 to claim the Star Fine Foods gift basket or we will choose another winner.
• Winner will receive one gift basket of Star Fine Foods products (retail value of $65). Product will be shipped directly to the winner by Star Fine Foods.
Good Luck 🙂
Disclosure: I have not been compensated to write this post and all opinions are mine. This is a way for me to give back to readers and followers of She’s Cookin’. Heck I’d like to be winning this wonderful basket of goodies!
Comments are Closed.
And, after qualifying the entries, the Winner is…. Courtney! Congratulations Courtney 🙂
Mmmmm… this reminds me of a Persian rice dish we make with basmati rice. Sounds delicious!
… And liked you on FB!
JUST ENTERED! 🙂
I just entered to win a basket of Olive Oil, Olives and more from @shescookin & @Star_Fine_Foods.
My favorite rice 🙂 This is gorgeously prepared and would make a beautiful holiday side…great giveaway too 😉
Olive oil tasting sounds very intriguing. I’ve had wine and caviar tasting but never have thought of olive oil tasting. I like the name of the rice already! I’ve heard of it before but don’t think I’ve tried it. Great giveaway Priscilla!
Your rice is beautiful. I’d love to attend a good olive oil tasting.
I liked you on FB. One of my fave dishes with olive oil is roasted potatoes with olive oil and kosher salt just like my grandma used to make.
You & your sis are some great cooks! Is Ruth as talented too? Great site, & I like you on FB. 🙂
following, tweeted- done… Love the California Star Olive oil, used it over salad as is! Delicious…
Already liked on FB!
We make our own salad dressings at the RGB… so one of my favorite olive oil applications would be to make a dressing. 🙂
Nice basket!
[K]
Love reading your blog & get many ideas & recipes from it. I use olive oil to make my own dressings,drizzle it on veggies, an the occasional splurge on eatting bread w a plate w olive oil & balsamic to dip it in!
I like you on FB. This basket is great. An olive oil tasting sounds so fun. I mostly use it in salad dressings and sauteing veggies.
I liked the She’s Cookin facebook page
Followed on Twitter, Liked on Facebook, and I’ve re-tweeted the suggested comments!
Now crossing my fingers 🙂
And as far as how I love to use olive oils, I pretty much cook EVERYTHING with it, and have long wanted to start using flavored and different quality oils.
Thanks for the great post!
I liked you on facebook and my favorite way to use olive oil is in pasta with clam sauce. thanks.
I just went and “liked” your Facebook page! I recently had forbidden rice for the first time, I love it. Great recipe …. I would love to dip some crusty bread in this olive oil!
I think I already liked it, but I’ll like you again! Nice basket, how cool you got to taste the goods. I want some of that rice.
-GIna-
The rice looks great! Good luck to all!
Hi Priscilla! I think I like and follow you everywhere:-)
The rice looks delish and your give away rocks, such good stuff!
I could eat this every day… seriously!! Delicious!!
I just entered to win a basket of Olive Oil, Olives and more from @shescookin & @Star_Fine_Foods.
I love to rub baking potatoes with olive olive and minced garlic with a little salt, wrap in tin foil and bake in the oven. It is delicious.
Ok..followed, tweeted, and now I am hungry! Aside from cooking with olive oil – yummy, I also use it on my skin – I mix just a tad in with my body lotion – blend it very well before applying it. My skin is so smooth!
I follow you. Love the rice recipe.
You know I like you! I <3 rice and I'd love me some olive oil 🙂
I liked you on FBook! Favorite use of olive oil is as my go-to oil for a quick veggie saute!
I just tweeted ya! (I just entered to win a basket of Olive Oil, Olives and more from @shescookin & @Star_Fine_Foods. Enter here http://ht.ly/7IW27 #Giveaway)
Coating tiny new potatoes with olive oil then sprinkling fresh or dried rosemary and salt on them and baking them until crispy on the outside. Melt in you mouth goodness! I liked you on facebook (and in person) :)!
like on facebook and use olive oil when I cook my pasta
followed on twitter and tweeted
I liked you on Facebook and one of my favorite uses for olive oil is to season it and dip some yummy artisan bread in it. Yum!
I followed you both on Twitter and Tweeted here: http://twitter.com/#!/sheshe/status/144106831382462464
Thanks for the chance to win such an awesome gift basket! 🙂 🙂
I just entered to win!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good Luck to me
Liked your page. And, although I use olive oil in my dishes, I really enjoy using it around the house on woods, skin, lubricating metals (gears, hinges).
Following you and Star Fine Foods on Twitter and tweeted the giveaway.
I like you FB. Simple use of olive oil drizzled over some really good bread!
I like you on FB and follow you and Star on Twitter. I love olive oil for dipping and have just discovered olive oil ice cream . . . so delicious!
Oops! I just tweeted your giveway too.
I liked you on Facebook and am looking forward to following your posts! I use olive oil in cooking everything from tomato sauce to vegetables and beyond. My favorite olive oil application is to use it (instead of butter) to flavor popcorn. Popalicious!
I use olive oil in all my cooking from frying to baking.
I like you on facebook. I like to use olive oil best in stirfry
I liked the new fb page and retweeted, thanks! My fav are olive oil tastings!
Congrats on the new page, Priscilla. 🙂 I love the individual components of the rice dish and I can just imagine how harmonious they are together. So much good flavor in a bowl! Good luck to the giveaway winner (keeping fingers crossed it will be me!).
Thanks for participating everyone! I don’t reply to your comments in a Giveaway as it makes it more difficult to determine the winner, but I enjoyed reading about how you like to use olive oil and appreciate each and every one of you 🙂
Awesome post..missed your giveaway:/ but congrats to a winner!
your dish sound really tasty, and I do love your presentation and photos!
Wishing you very Happy and Healthy New Year!!!!!!!!
Delicious! Love it, thank you!