Remember when buying rice took a straightforward commitment to a single box on the grocery shelf? Then came pre-cooked or par-boiled rice - doubling the options.
A glance a the current rice section reveals a multitude of brown, white and wild rices. A pile of pilafs with ethnic-inspired seasonings or meat-flavored sauces.Next to the abundant rice supplies stands a group of other grains like barley, couscous, millet, wheat berries or quinoa. Each has a distinctive texture and flavor, but all add that nutritionally sought after fiber to the diet.
Though a variety of grains is a secondary diet item in this country, the worldwide diet depends on grains for survival. Although Far Eastern countries formerly depended on barley as a dietary anchor and rye was a staple in Scandinavian lands, both now use more rice or wheat than either of the other grains.
Other grains form interesting combinations of texture and flavor in soups and side dishes.
Explore a healthy new use of familiar or little-known grains as you participate in the October Recipe Exchange:
Rules for submitting recipes are as follows:
1. Submit only one recipe per sheet of paper (but all can be mailed in one envelope). Include name and address on each recipe. Mail to Recipe Exchange, P.O. Box 1257, Salt Lake City, UT 84110.
2. No more than three recipes will be accepted from any one person.
3. Recipes must be postmarked by Friday, September 13.
4. If identical recipes are received, the recipe with the earliest postmark will be selected for testing.
5. Recipes will be tested by a panel of home economists, with the best recipes printed in the Deseret News food section the first Tuesday in October. Readers whose recipes are selected will receive $5.
Thanks to our readers who submitted recipes for the Ground Meat Recipe Exchange:
Norma Richardson, Joyce Terry, Shawna Christensen, Stacie Stone, Alta Hall, Teri Taggart, Shauna Helie, Bonnie Gilchrist, Thelma Rouse, Chris Graham, Steven Taggart, Donna Carper, Hazel Cannon, Janet Houston, Thelma O. Thelin and Tiffani Angus.