Mixed vegetable rice

I have fallen in love hard. I do that with animated movies and I have been waiting to watch this one for quite some time. I watched it two times already smiling, laughing and tearing up each time and I cant wait to see it again.

It has been a while since I watched an animated movie or any movie for that matter 😦 I buy the DVDs but sadly don’t have the time to watch them. The kids take over the TV in the daytime and my husband in the evening . Added to that to enjoy a movie you need a minimum of peace and quite, if nothing else, to hear the dialogue! So I buy the movies, it makes me feel better having them at arm’s reach and I keep telling myself, this weekend I’ll watch a movie or two but you can guess what happens or doesn’t happen each weekend.

I rarely get a Saturday off, most of my patients at the clinic favor Saturday appointments which means I seldom get to enjoy a full weekend. This week was an exception.

To celebrate the occasion I took the kids after our trip yesterday to buy DVDs and we got “Tangled”. But by the time I got the kids bathed, made dinner, cleaned up, got the kids to sleep, wrote my post for yesterday it was already 12!

It might seem crazy to celebrate a day off by staying up when you have been suffering from sleep deprivation for 2 years (my 22 month old boy wakes up at least 4-5 times each night and that is a major improvement compared to a few months ago). None the less I needed sometime for me and decided to watch the movie midnight or not.

If you like animated movies you’ll fall in love with this one within the first 5 minutes. It reminds you of Disney’s great works like Mulan, Areial and Bell. The music, visuals, characters and plot come together into a movie that is enchanting.

I dare you…

not to laugh at the feisty horse who is FULL of attitude. He doesn’t say a word but has enough facial expressions to have you laughing out loud…

Not to love Rapunzel’s innocence and enthusiasm for life..

Not to like Flynn despite his mischief ..

and I dare you not to cry or at least tear up when you see Rapunzel’s parents release that lantern into the sky to be followed by thousands of lanterns carrying the hope that they will light the way home for the lost princess.

I could go on and on but I don’t want to ruin the movie for you if you havent watched it. One thing I have to say about it…is a line that really struck a chord was when Rapunzel was waiting for the lanterns to go up in the sky

Rapunzel: I’ve been looking out of a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what I might feel like when those lights rise in the sky. What if it’s not everything I dreamed it would be?
Flynn Rider: It will be.
Rapunzel: And what if it is? What do I do then?
Flynn Rider: Well,that’s the good part I guess. You get to go find a new dream.

This is what I fall in love with in Disney movies time and time again…believing in the power of a dream..

Today’s recipe is simple, quick, colorful and delicious… you can make it without the meat and you’d get a yummy vegetarian recipe. I sometimes make it when I have leftover rice and it works like a charm for a quick meal. Dress it up with meat and almonds and it is transformed into an elegant dish worthy of being served to company.

My vegetable rice

2 cups basmati rice (or any long grain rice of your choice)

Frozen mixed vegetable (peas, carrots,corn and you can add green beans)

Vegetable oil

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon all spice

1/4 -1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

ground beef

Almonds for decoration

Heat the a couple of tablespoons of oil

Saute the vegetable in the oil for 5-7 minutes.

Wash the rice and soak it in water for 10 minutes

Add the rice to the vegetables and stir for a couple of minutes, add the spices and salt

Add water or chicken broth (usually 1 cup basmati rice requires 2 cups of water but check the instructions on the box because this may differ from brand to brand)

Allow it to come to a boil then lower the heat, cover and let it cook till the rice absorbs the water.

let it stand covered for 10 minutes then fluf with a fork.

If you want this to be a vegetarian meal.. stop here and enjoy

If you wish to dress it up a bit heat a couple of tablespoons olive oil in a pan, add silvered almonds and stir till golden brown.

Drain reserving the oil (The oil now is almond flavored and absolutely amazing, you can either drizzle it over your rice or add it to pasta or rice)

In another pan add a tablespoon olive oil and add the ground beef, a dash of salt, pepper or all spice, cardamom and cinnamon (we are using the same spices in the rice to tie up the flavors)

Cook until the meat is browned and the fluids have evaporated