dirty rice with sausage

from down home with the neely's. big hit with the family.

2 cups long grain white rice
5 cups chicken stock, divided
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound smoked pork sausage, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

make the rice, in a medium saucepan combine the rice and chicken stock. bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until all the stock is absorbed into the rice, about 20 minutes.
meanwhile heat oil in a heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium-high heat. brown the sausage. once browned, add the garlic, onion, celery, and green bell pepper. cook until softened, about 5 minutes. season with salt and pepper. add 1 cup chicken stock and cayenne. cook until the stock has reduced a little. add the cooked rice and parsley and stir thoroughly. taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary.

smoky red rice and chorizo with black beans

i think this is from racheal ray. i switched out the chorizo for kielbasa, something my family will more willingly eat.

1 3/4 cups chicken broth
1 tbs olive oil
1 cup white rice (i use brown)
1 cup drained piquillo peppers or 2 roasted red peppers (i roasted 2 red peppers)
1/3 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp smoked paprika
one 3/4 to 1lb package spanish chorizo, cut on an angle into 12 slices
2 serrano chiles, seeded and chopped (i used mild green chiles)
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
15 oz can diced fire-roasted tomatoes, drained
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

in a pot, bring the chicken broth and oil to a boil. add the rice, cover and simmer for 15 min.
puree peppers in a food processor.
stir puree into rice, along with parlsey and paprika. cover, turn off heat, and let stand for 5 min.
meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat a drizzle of olive oil over med-high heat. add the chorizo and cook until crisp, turning, about 2 minutes on each side. transfer to a paper towel to drain. add the chiles, onion and garlic to the skillet and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. stir in the tomatoes and beans; season with salt and pepper.
serve the rice in shallow bowls and top with beans and chorizo.

RICE SALAD - the best you've ever laid taste-buds on

This salad is so delicious and has a funny little history to go along with it. The story goes...a friend of my mom made this salad for some event and everyone was dying over it. She would not give the recipe, so another friend (apparently someone she thought she could trust) somehow finagled it from her and then spread the love. I'm not sure the original owner of this recipe is aware that we have it, but I am truly grateful that we do. It is to die for! Enjoy!

1 box Uncle Ben's long grain and wild rice
juice of 1 lemon
3 cooked and diced/shredded chicken breasts
4 scallions, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 small avocados, diced
handful sugar snap peas, i cut them in half
1 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Dressing:
1/3 cup seasoned rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp sugar

Prepare rice as directed on box. Combine dressing ingredients and gently toss with rice salad. It is so good either at room temp or chilled.