In other parts of the world, rice is a diet mainstay. I think I could certainly be happy with that kind of diet. I love the stuff.

And I'm not talking the over-dressed, over-salted stuff you find on the grocery stores, presented by friendly faces with names like Uncle Ben.

I'm talking about freshly steamed, fragrant, snowy mounds of the stuff.

And that's why I picked this week's cookbook — Rice Cooking by Robin Howe — from the shelf at an antique store or flea market I've since forgotten.

As I flipped through this cookbook (published in 1959, by the way), I lamented the fact that the author repeatedly shielded her readers from authentic, adventurous fare with the reasoning that her contemporaries didn't have the necessary ingredients easily accessible. Howe was obviously well-traveled and in this book gives glimpses into the wonders of food in various parts of the world, but she stops short (understandably so) of giving recipes for such dishes.

It made me grateful, however, for the variety of foods we can find even here in Grant County in this modern age.

So, much of the book's recipes seem to fall flat. The section on sweet dishes, however, offers intriguing possibilities.

I'm a huge fan of rice pudding. I have been ever since I can remember. So it's been fun in recent years as my culinary horizons expanded to discover that many cultures have versions of this dish. And Howe includes many of these traditional dishes, along with some that seem less traditional to me, but sound delicious nonetheless.

A couple I'll be trying:

-- Rice and Lemon Meringue Pudding: Inspired by the pie, certainly, with a toasty meringue topping and everything.

-- Rice and Date Layer Pudding: Billed as an Iraqi dish. I love dates, and this dish's casserole-like construction intrigues me too.

And one more recipe that snagged my attention: Rice Waffles. Howe lists this as an American invention, though I have never heard of such a thing. (Have you?) I can't quite envision the final product of this recipe, which incorporates cooked rice into a waffle batter. I'll just have to try it sometime when I have leftover rice!

A side note on rice:Another kitchen appliance we didn't know we couldn't live without came into our kitchen as a gift: Our electric rice steamer.

This nifty machine actually sat in our cabinet for months before we used it for the first time. How hard is to cook rice, right? But once we tried it, we haven't looked back. You just add the rice and water, according to the machine's measurements, and you turn it on. Then, you're free to continue prepping the rest of your meal, since you don't have to watch this pot. In a while, you'll hear a happy "ding!" and your rice will be ready and fabulous.

Another side note on rice:The type and quality of rice does matter. There's short grain (like arborio, the kind used for Italian risotto), long grain (like basmati, the fragrant beauty from India) and others in between.

You often can't find much variety here, so I confess that when we go out of town, we buy big burlap bags of the more exotic varieties, especially basmati.

Our message, though, would be this: Don't be afraid to try new types of rice when you find them. You can certainly find information about the different types and their uses on the Web, along with suggestions for cooking. Don't let unfamiliarity prevent you from finding a new favorite!

Originally posted to The Grub Report by Patricia Gibson on November 26, 2007 10:37 PM

Comments

I purchased a microwave rice cooker earlier this year... we love rice, and though I was skeptical at first, I love this little contraption! (Our electric rice cooker was having some problems, and I ALWAYS boil it over on the stove.) Go rice - and microwaves!