Broccoli Mushroom Pie and Spicy Brown Rice - DAY THREE

So I failed yesterday. Messing with my mother will have you full of beefy pork juice. However, I managed to get away with fishy poultry. (Not together, but I'm sayin'.) So today, I was back on track. I'm noticing a theme, though. My food tends to be beige as hell, which means I'm still working on getting color (read: vegetables) into my diet. Anyway ...









mushroom and broccoli pie ("we're chopping bra-co-lieeee!!!")

1 bag frozen broccoli (thawed or use fresh) 1 scallion, chopped about 10 medium mushroom, sliced about 1 cup cheeses (i used trader joe's quattro formaggio, white cheddar, and sharp yellow cheddar) 4 tbsp olive oil 4 tbsp whole wheat flour (i use pastry, white is fine too) garlic some milk (about 1 1/2-2 cups) fresh ground pepper garlic salt

crust--if you have them, you can use canned biscuits instead
1 cup flour (i use half wheat, half white)
5 tbsp butter (chilled and cubed)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c boiling water

preheat oven to 425 degrees.


place thawed broccoli in 8x8 baking dish. saute mushrooms and scallions in olive oil. once they've softened, add garlic. add flour and stir until lumps disappear. add milk slowly, stopping when the sauce has thickened to your taste. (it'll take a minute for the sauce to thicken; take it slowly.) add cheeses and stir until melted. season to taste, and pour over broccoli.

meanwhile, mix flour, salt, garlic powder, and baking powder. cut chilled butter into flour mixture until mixture develops pretty uniform crumbs. pour in boiling water and stir just until everything in moist. scoop dough over broccoli slop.

bake in oven for about 30 minutes or until dough browns. (i find that i have to cover until the last ten minutes of cooking so that it doesn't get too brown. it's up to you.)

absolutely delicious. one of my favorites so far.

slightly caribbean rice (aka alton brown's recipe with some stuff added)

1 1/2 c short grain brown rice
1 14 oz can coconut milk ( i used light)
3/4 c broth
1 bay leaf red pepper flakes to taste
curry powder (i didn't measure, use your discretion)
you can use salt but, i'm trying this bragg stuff out (liquid amino acids)

preheat oven to 350 degrees. pour rice into baking dish. bring broth and coconut milk to simmer. add bay leaf, red pepper, and curry powder. pour milk mixture over rice, stir, cover with foil, and bake in oven until all liquid is absorbed (about 40 minutes).
















a few notes:
aldi's steamed veggies in a tray are phenomenal. low in sodium, easy to prepare, cheap, and tasty as sin. go thee to the nearest aldi and stock up. (get the spring blend.)

my old people's cake from yesterday was a big hit. i'll be making it again, as i really enjoyed it myself.