Veggie & Basmati Rice Bowl

This dish has so many components to it so make this when you need to escape to the kitchen to cook. Do any of you consider cooking to be relaxing? It is definitely a task where you can tap into your creativity, let go of stress, spend alone time and then enjoy something delicious. This is a dish that you can take your time with and use new spices and veggies.

A word about radishes: they are very bitter raw. I used to like them in salads but for some reason I just couldn't enjoy them when just dipping them in hummus and eating them raw. So I baked them and added them to this dish and they actually tasted yummy.

I fried the rice for this recipe. Yeah...it gives it a delicious pop, but it's totally optional. However, I suggest you do this.

All the ingredients give this dish amazing flavor, texture and nutrition!

1/2 cup of brown basmati rice

1 tbsp of olive oil

sea salt to taste

1 bunch of radishes, washed and chopped

1/2 tbsp of avocado oil

1 cup of butternut squash

Rosemary garlic seasoning to taste

2 tsp of ground cumin

1/4 cup of pumpkin seeds

Cook everything at once (if you are able) then combine in a bowl. 

Cut the tip and base off your squash and then cut the squash in half longways. Scoop out the squash seeds and place in a small bowl. Coat the squash with oil and place the squash facedown (skin up) on a cookie sheet. Wash the squash seeds thoroughly then mix with a little avocado oil, sea salt and peppers and place in an oven safe dish. Cut the ends off the radishes, chop into small pieces then mix with avocado oil, rosemary garlic seasoning and place in a square dish, making sure the radishes are spaced apart and spread out.

Place the squash, seeds and radishes in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Take out the seeds once they turn a light brown-they will burn easily. Take out the radishes second when they are a little brown and shrunken. Take out the squash third when the skin is shriveled. Oven temps vary!

While the oven is on, put 1/2 cup of rice in your rice cooker or pan on the stove and add enough water to just cover the rice. I prefer harder rice so I only add a little water. Cook until the rice is pretty much done. Scoop the rice into a flat pan with olive oil, sea salt and cumin, place the lip on the pan and turn the heat on medium. The rice will begin to cook and fry up a little bit. Take the cover off and mix often so all the rice becomes crispy. 

Scoop the rice into a bowl. Add the squash seeds (or eat them all like I did while everything cooks). Add the pumpkin seeds to the rice then the radishes and mix together. When the squash is done, take it out of the oven, turn them over and cut the squash into squares. The skin should come off easily or with minimal peeling. Add the squash to the bowl. Serve and eat immediately.

You will have leftover squash since you only need a few pieces for the dish. So keep peeling and skin off the squash then store leftovers in an airtight container and consume within a couple of days.