Red Rice (Indian Rice) & Lentils w/Garlic Butter

Hi! I am Melanie's friend, Alicia, of 13 very great years. We decided it might be fun if I submitted some of my favorite dinners. My family eats mostly vegan (Friday has always been pizza night and sometimes we still add cheese.)

This recipe is one of my family's favorite dinners. We call it "Red Rice." It is very flavorful and quick if you keep the ingredients on hand. I serve it fresh but Indian food often tastes better when it sits.

Red Rice for 8

Start cooking rice before preparing sauce. You should be done at the same time as the rice.

3 cups Basmati Rice (sold at Costco) to 6 cups water

Add the following to your blender

2 15 oz cans of crushed tomatoes or whatever kind you have on hand

4 green chiles or 1 anaheim pepper (optional but adds a little heat)

2 Tbsp chopped fresh ginger or 1 tsp of dried ginger

4 tsp ground cumin

1 Tbsp paprika

2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups cashew milk (1 cup cashew & 3/4 cups blended smoothly) or heavy cream

2 tsp garam marsala (which is cloves, coriander, cumin & cinnamon)

1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves

Blend until smooth. I pour the whole sauce over the rice and mix it in so nobody runs out of sauce. I set aside some of the rice for lunch before serving or we will eat it all.

I serve this with steamed cauliflower or raw carrot & celery sticks. We love to eat lentils as a side you'll find the recipe below

Lentils with Garlic Butter

Simmer together until lentils split:

1 1/2 cup lentils (mine happen to be yellow)

3/4 tsp turmeric

5 cups water

Blend together when finished but still hot:

5 Tbsp vegetable oil (I use coconut oil and even olive oil)

5-6 garlic cloves

Lentils (liquid and all)

1-2 tsp salt