Saffron Rice with Golden Raisins and Pine Nuts (An Edible Mosaic Book Launch!)

I’m on my way to Boston today, visiting Jess for the weekend.

While I’m gone, I have something new and exciting to share! Faith, from An Edible Mosaic, just published her first cook book: An Edible Mosaic:  Middle Eastern Fare with Extraordinary Flair. I don’t remember how I first found her blog, but it’s been one of my Google Reader favorites and a constant source of left-column listed “Things I want” on Eat Run Read for literally years.

The book has over 100 Middle Eastern recipes, with a focus mainly on dishes from the Levant (an area that includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Cyprus, Turkey's Hatay Province, and some regions of Iraq or the Sinai Peninsula), but also a few recipes from other areas of the Middle East.

She shared two of her recipes with me, and now I’m psyched to share them with you: Saffron Rice with Golden Raisins and Pine Nuts and Mixed White and Yellow Rice.

(Saffron Rice, pictured here with Shrimp in Aromatic Tomato sauce, another recipe from the book.)

SpeedyKate cooks with saffron a lot – it may be a bit pricey, but it’s absolutely delicious, makes our apartment smell amazing, and is totally worth it. I have not yet made this recipe because it has been crazytown in my life and I have barely had time to hit up the grocery store, but based on my previous experiences with Faith’s recipes, and the ingredient list (Rice? Good. Saffron? Good. Raisins? Good. Pine nuts? GOOD!), I imagine this rice is delicious! Plus it’s vegan, just in case that’s a concern…though I would probably serve it with some sort of roasted veggies and kebabs.

Today is Faith’s book launch party, and she’s offering  some pretty cool giveaways – you can go to her blog to enter!

Mixed White and Yellow Rice

And if you’re interested in buying the book, head on over to Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Saffron Rice with Golden Raisins and Pine Nuts

(aka Roz Milow'wan)
Recipe courtesy of An Edible Mosaic:  Middle Eastern Fare with Extraordinary Flair by Faith Gorsky (Tuttle Publishing; Nov. 2012); reprinted with permission.
Serves 4 to 6
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes, plus 15 minutes to let the rice sit after cooking
Ingredients:

• 1½ cups (325 g) basmati rice, rinsed 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts 
• 1 onion, finely diced 
• 4 tablespoons sultanas (golden raisins) 
• 1¾ cups (425 ml) boiling water 
• ¾ teaspoon salt 
• ½ teaspoon saffron threads (or ½ teaspoon turmeric)

Directions:

1. Soak the rice in tepid water for 10 minutes; drain. While the rice is soaking, put half a kettle of water on to boil.
2. Add the oil to a medium, thick-bottomed lidded saucepan over medium heat. Add the pine nuts and cook until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Transfer the pine nuts to a small bowl and set aside.
3. Add the onion to the saucepan you cooked the pine nuts in, and cook until softened and just starting to brown, about 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the rice and cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the sultanas, boiling water, salt, and saffron (or turmeric), turn the heat up to high, and bring it to a rolling boil.
4. Give the rice a stir, then cover the saucepan, turn the heat down to very low, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes (do not open the lid during this time). Turn the heat off and let the rice sit (covered) 15 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
5. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle the toasted pine nuts on top; serve.

OPTIONAL Add two pods of cardamom, two whole cloves, and one 2-inch (5 cm) piece of cinnamon stick at the same time that you add the rice.

Mixed White and Yellow Rice

Serves 4 to 6
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes, plus 15 minutes to let the rice sit after cooking
Ingredients:

• 1½ cups (325 g) uncooked basmati rice, rinsed 
• 2 tablespoons oil 
• 1 onion, finely diced 
• 1 bay leaf 
• 2 whole cloves 
• 2 pods cardamom, cracked open 
• 2 whole peppercorns 
• ¾ teaspoon salt 
• 1¾ cups (425 ml) boiling water 
• 1-2 pinches saffron threads or ½ teaspoon turmeric dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water

Directions:

1. Soak the rice in tepid water for 10 minutes; drain. While the rice is soaking, put half a kettle of water on to boil.
2. Add the oil to a medium, thick-bottomed lidded saucepan, cover and place over moderately high heat. Once hot, add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
3. Add the rice, bay leaf, cloves, cardamom pods, peppercorns, and salt, and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the boiling water to the rice, turn heat up to high, and bring it to a rolling boil. Give it a stir, cover the pot, turn heat down to very low, and cook 10 minutes (don’t open the lid during this time). 
4. After the rice is cooked, let the pot sit with the lid on for 15 minutes, then fluff the rice with a fork. Transfer 1/3 of the rice to a separate bowl.
5. Stir the saffron or turmeric-colored water into 1/3 of the rice (the rice will turn yellow). Mix together the yellow rice and white rice; serve.