Saffron Rice Pilaf

April to October, on the first friday of the month, we keep the store open a little later and host tasting events. It’s a great way to enjoy downtown, explore new flavors, and discuss your favorite cuisine with friends or our friendly staff! One of April’s tastings was this saffron rice pilaf featuring Saffron from Cyrus Farms located in Lake Chelan, WA — a unique local offering to include in international cuisine.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Basmati Rice
• 2 Tbl Medium Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tsp Saffron threads
• 1 small zucchini squash, diced
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• ½ cup dried apricots, diced
• ¼ cup dried cherries
• ½ cup slivered or sliced toasted almonds
• Garnish (optional)
• Mint leaves or chopped parsley (optional

Method:

Soak Basmati rice in a bowl with warm water for 30 minutes.  After soaking, drain and rinse rice and set aside.  Heat up vegetable broth until hot and add saffron threads to soak.  Heat olive oil in a separate sauce pan with a cinnamon stick for 1 minute.  Add the onion and garlic and saute until onions start to brown about 2-3 minutes.  Add the drained rice and cook for an additional 3 minutes on medium-high heat.  Add salt, pepper, apricots and saffron/vegetable broth mixture.  Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes over medium-low heat or until rice soaks up all the moisture.  After rice is cooked, remove cinnamon stick and discard.  Fluff rice with a fork, add the almonds and cherries and mix together.  Garnish with chopped parsley or mint leaves, if desired. Enjoy!