A brief stroll through the Enchanted Broccoli Forest

I was looking through my cookbooks the other day and happened upon an oldy but goody, Mollie Katzen's Enchanted Broccoli Forest.  I haven't made a recipe from it in ages, so I decided to choose a few to pilot this week.  Last night we had an Indian-themed menu from the book, including her Indian Pulao, Potato/Panir/Pea Curry, Raita, and Parsley-Mint Chutney. Two hours after embarking on this adventure (thankfully my brother and our friend Coors Light were on hand to keep me company), we had plates of steaming Indian-ish food.  I would definitely make the Indian Pulao again, but I think I have a better raita recipe somewhere.  Although pretty spicy, the chutney was really good.  The curry was also tasty, but let's just say that no picture was taken for aesthetic reasons (i.e., substituting tofu crumbles for panir and black sesame seeds for regular sesame seeds resulted in a less-than-appetizing color).  Nevertheless, behold the beautiful pot of Pulao:

Indian Pulao (adapted from Mollie Katzen's Enchanted Broccoli Forest)
1 to 2 Tbsp butter or canola oil                            3 to 4 Tbsp water (as needed)
1 C chopped onion                                              2 diced carrots (or sliced like I did)
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger                                  2 minced garlic cloves
3/4 tsp salt                                                           1 diced medium green bell pepper
1 tsp mustard seeds                                             1/2 C raisins
1tsp turmeric                                                         6 C cooked basmati rice (I was bad & used white)
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground fennel seed (optional- I used it)
* She also adds 1 C chopped nuts and 1 C toasted unsweetened coconut to the top at the end, but I didn't have any. But I bet it would be good...

How to Make It:
- Cook 2 cups of rice in 3 cups of water (about 15 minutes for white basmati).
- Melt butter in a large dutch oven or pot (I love my Le Creuset rip-off).  Add onion, ginger, salt, and spices and saute for a few minutes until the onions are soft.  I added a little water during this so it would not burn and turned it down to medium-low.
- Add carrots and garlic. Stir and cover for a few more minutes (about 5).  Then add the bell pepper and do the same (another 5-ish minutes).
- Add the raisins and rice, mix it up, and let it cook a little longer on very low heat until all the flavors meld together.
- Put some raita and chutney on top and eat it.  Mmmmm....