Raisin Rice Pudding

Ever wonder what to do with this, other than typical leftover fried rice?

(Lonely carton of white rice that comes standard with every Chinese takeout order, still sitting in your fridge)

Well wonder no more.  This is my mother's special rice pudding, passed down from her grandmother.  It's super easy to make, just has a few ingredients, and will be sure to cure you from the previous night's Chinese food coma.  This is comfort food at it's easiest and finest! (And it also bring back great memories)

What you'll need:

1 carton of white rice

whole milk (at least 2 cups) (Do as I say, not as I do!)

3 tablespoons of sugar

3 tablespoons of butter

1 handful of raisins (I used both golden and regular but you can use one or both or neither)

2 teaspoons of vanilla

Put the rice in a pot, and fill the pot with enough milk so that it just covers the rice.  Then put in the rest of the ingredients

Stir together.  Cover the pot and turn the heat on the lowest possible setting for about 15 minutes.  Then, uncover and continue to let it sit until the rice has absorbed all of the milk and your house smells like vanilla.  Stir occasionally so the rice doesn't stick!

How do you know when it's done? Overall it'll take about 30 minutes.  But you'll really know when it's done when you simply taste it!  Some people like the pudding a little more firm, others most liquidy, so make sure it's the right consistency when you take it off the stove.  Also, you can always add a bit more milk while cooking if the rice absorbs it too fast. Mine looked like this when done:

Sprinkle with cinnamon and serve!

Enjoy!

Eggplant Surprise (leftovers!!)

This is just a quickie idea on what to do with some leftover prosciutto (from the last pasta post) other than eat it straight from the deli bag.  I had some eggplant lying around that was going to go bad if I didn't use it, so I figured I'd cook it up with the prosciutto.  I also saw a leftover bottle of roasted red peppers and figured, hey why not throw that in too, it's all in the Italian theme right?  And what could make a combination of eggplant, prosciutto and roasted red peppers more delicious?  Cheese.  Cheese is pretty much the only answer when asked to make something already delicious MORE delicious.

You're probably wondering where this is all going.  So here it is:

Cut the eggplant in thin slices, spray them lightly with pam or olive oil and broil them for about 8 minutes until they're soft.

Cover with red peppers:

And the prosciutto! And a bit of marinara sauce (or none if you don't have any, I'm sure it'd still be delicious)

Smother in cheese and broil until all melty and bubbling.

Hmm this might not show how delicious it was.  But trust me, it was.  Try it out with any leftovers you have around.  Zucchini and chicken could substitute for the eggplant, and any number of goodies could be used in place of the peppers and prosciutto.  Just don't forget the cheese!

Quick Leftovers Idea

Law students like me have little time, little money and very little energy to think about what to eat during the week.  Sunday night dinners are ideal for leftovers that I eat throughout the week in various forms.  

Here's an idea for when you have a little leftover (still delicious) steak and veggies from the night before:

Stack a little steak, asian slaw (basically cabbage with a little oil and rice wine vinegar) sliced cukes on top of your bread of choice.  Drizzle with leftover peanut sauce and spice it up with sriracha.  Fabulous, filling, and an excellent way to clean out your fridge.  

Besides being yummy, the sandwich also happened to pass my law school lunch test: 3 hours of property law reading without snacking.  

It is now on my go-to for week day lunch.