Soak the rice in water for an hour, then drain. Rinse under cold water, and spread on a baking sheet to dry for 30 minutes. Melt 3 TB. of the butter in a heavy pan with a lid. Stir in the rice and the saffron, add 4 cups water and the salt. Bring to a boil for two minutes, then simmer, covered for 20 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, remove the lid, and cover with a dish towel and let stand for 10 minutes. Melt the remining butter and toss the nuts in it for one minute. Add the dried fruit and cook for another minute. Stir into the rice.

I never know how much saffron to add. I've heard that if you add too much, it tastes a bit medicinal. (And it's pricey, so you don't want to waste it.)

Sauté rice in vegetable oil until golden, then remove and set aside. Stir onion and celery and sauté until just soft. Stir in broth and rosemary, then bring to a boil. Stir bulgur wheat and browned rice, then cover. Simmer, stirring once or twice, for one hour, or until wheat and rice are fluffy-tender.

An hour? That seems a bit long for white rice or bulgur wheat.

Heat broth to a boil, stir in rice, then cover. Simmer for 20 minutes. Chill cooked rice -- overnight, if possible, since each grain should be cool and dry. When ready to finish dish, sauté onion in 2 TB. of the oil in a skillet until soft, then set aside in a kettle. Add remaining oil to skillet, then add one third of the fluffed rice. Sauté, sirring, until lightly browned, then remove and place in kettle. Repeat with remaining rice. Return all to skillet, stir in salt, mace and pecans, and cover. Heat slowly for eight minutes or so, or until hot.

First time I've ever seen mace in a recipe that wasn't for donuts! I imagine you could substitute a little nutmeg or allspice.

Wash and trim fresh mushrooms, then chop. Sauté lightly in 2 TB. of the olive oil in a skillet, then set aside. Add rice and remaining 4 TB. olive oil in same pan, cook and stir, until rice is golden. Stir in mushrooms, almonds, parsley, salt and chicken broth, and cover the skillet. Simmer 25 minutes, or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork before serving.

mmmm

In a skillet, braise the peas in the olive oil and salt, adding a little warm water if necessary, until peas are cooked. When done, stir in the parsley and the cooked rice.

Original recipe called for lard, but I substituted olive oil, which we're more likely to have handy.

Cut the mushrooms in very thin slices, lightly salt, then sauté in 1 TB. olive oil until limp. Sauté the rice in the rest of the oil in another pan for 4 minutes, then add the parsley, mushrooms, and four cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Again, lard changed to olive oil. Can't recall if we've ever kept lard around the house.

Rinse wild rice and drain well. In a pan, combine rice and broth. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, for 35 minutes, or until rice is done. Discard any excess water. Meanwhile, grill sausages on ridged cooktop grill for 15-20 minutes. While sausages are cooking, melt butter in a skillet over medium heat, add onions and mushrooms, and cook, stirring often, until onion is soft and mushrooms are lightly browned. Stir thyme and marjoram into mushrooms, Add rice and stir until heated through. Serve pilaf and sausages sprinkled with parsley.

The sausages seem superfluous to the pilaf recipe, but I guess they would go well together, so I've kept them in.

In a skillet, stir almonds over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes, until browned. Set aside. Add vermicelli to pan and stir for 2 minutes, until browned, then remove from pan as well. Add butter and rice to pan, and stir until lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Add broth, sherry, tarragon and vermicelli. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle with toasted almonds.

This recipe seems like some sort of proto-Rice-a-roni. Garnish with fresh tarragon, if desired.

In a bowl, combine the green onions, cottage cheese, sour cream, milk, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, rice, 1/4 cup of the cheese and hot sauce, and mix until well blended. Spoon into a shallow casserole dish, then sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes, then garnish with green onions.

According to the cookbook, sour cream and cottage cheese give this casserole "a rich, creamy consistency." Well, duh! They're not going to make it spicy and crumbly!

In a saucepan, bring 1 cup of broth to a boil, then add bulgur and remove from heat. Cover and let sit for an hour, until broth is absorbed. Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt butter and then add the onion, celery, chopped celery leaves and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until onion is soft, about eight minutes. Add rice and cook for another 4 minutes, then mix in bay leaf and remaining 1 cup broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. When done, lightly mix bulgur into rice mixture and garnish with whole celery leaves.

You better like celery! If you feel it's a vile, noxious weed, like a certain friend of ours in Seattle feels, skip this one!

In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is soft. Stir in rice and continue cooking, stirring often, until rice is lightly browned. Add broth and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for about 25 minutes. Stir once or twice and season to taste with salt. Toss gently with cheese.

A handy definition from this cookbook: "Pilaf is simply long grain white rice that is lightly browned in butter along with onion and garlic, then cooked in broth until tender -- either chicken or beef. It is often tossed with a small amount of grated cheese just before serving." No wonder the book calls this "classic pilaf" -- give the recipe, then define the dish to be exactly that recipe.

In a pan over medium heat, melt butter, then add nuts and stir until lightly toasted. Remove nuts and set aside. Raise heat and add onion, carrot, garlic and parsley. Cook until vegetables are soft. Add barley, rice and bulgur, and continue cooking until grains are lightly browned. Stir in broth, sherry, basil and oregano, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper, and garnish with toasted nuts.

Grains, including rice, vegetables, nuts -- this is what I want out of a pilaf.

In a bowl, combine bulgur and broth, and let sit for one hour. Stir in parsley, green pepper (or carrot), onions, cheese, corn and egg. Combine tomato sauce, basil, oregano, garlic salt and pepper. Stir into bulgur and mix well. Spoon into a greased casserole dish. Bake, covered, at 350° for 25 minutes or until bulgur is tender and mixture is heated through.

When I was growing up, the only pilaf my family would have would be Rice-a-roni, "the San Francisco treat."

According to Wikipedia, Rice-A-Roni was "created by adding a dry chicken soup mix to rice and macaroni. It was introduced in 1958 in the Northwestern United States and went nationwide four years later."

In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the rice and cook for about five minutes, until lightly browned. Stir in broth, water, salt and basil, then bring to a boil. Turn into a casserole dish and bake, covered, at 375° for 20 minutes or until rice is almost tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Carefully stir in carrots, celery, green onions and almonds. Cover and return to oven for 10 more minutes. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

The proportion of rice to vegetables seems a little off to me, like this is a vegetable dish with rice, rather than the opposite way around. I'd probably reduce the amount of vegetables to a half cup each, or even less.

In a skillet over medium heat, melt 2 TB. of the butter. Add rice and cook, stirring, until lightly browned. Stir in salt, cumin and boiling water, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 25 minutes. Meanwhile, in another pan, melt remaining butter and stir in the pine nuts. Cook, stirring often, until nuts are browned. Spoon over hot rice and garnish with parsley.

That's a lot of cumin ... and a lot of butter.

In a bowl, combine rice, cheese, egg, parsley, butter, milk and onion. Turn into a greased casserole dish and bake, uncovered, at 350° for 45 minutes until set and top is lightly browned.

Can't get much more simple than this! We rarely have leftover rice on hand, though, even the small amount called for in this recipe.

In a large bowl, combine rice, butter, lemon juice, nuts, garlic, onion, salt, spinach, green onions and parsley. Beat together egg and milk, and add to rice mixture. Toss gently, then turn into a greased casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes or until custard is set.

This Sunset Casserole book has a ton of good rice recipes! Just look how easy this one is!

Soak bulgur in cold water for 20 minutes, until soft and swollen. Taste to see if the bulgur is tender, and if not, let soak in addiitonal water. Drain in a sieve and press out any excess water. Add scallions, tomatoes and tomato juice. Stir in parsley and mint. Make a dressing by whisking together oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and allspice. Stir dressing into the tabbouleh and let stand for 30 minutes or so at room temperature before serving on lettuce leaves.

I've read that tabbouleh is more properly described as a parsley salad with bulgur than a bulgur salad with parsley.

Put rice in a baking pan and bake, uncovered, at 350° for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add rice and cook until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Add broth and water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to very low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is tender. Season with soy sauce and top with green onions.

A rather odd way of cooking rice ... evidently this method makes the rice grains split, for a feathery texture.

In a 5-to-6-qt. pan with a nonstick surface, bring five cups of water to a boil. Add rice, cover and cook on low heat for 20 minuts, until rice is tender. Season to taste with salt, then spoon out of pan. With a mortar and pestle, pulverize 3 tsp. of the saffron with 1 tsp. of the sugar. Pour into pan used for cooking rice and add 1/2 cup water and 1/4 cup of the butter. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted. Stir in two cups of the cooked rice, mixing well, and spread in an even later over pan bottom. Mound remaining rice on top, then dot with remaining butter. Cover and cook over low heat until a crisp crust forms on the bottom of the rice, about 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Spoon some of the white rice from top of the pan into a serving dish. Pulverize remaining saffron with sugar and mix with 2 TB. hot water. Mix in a few large spoonfuls of the cooked rice, then spoon this colored rice atop center of rice in serving dish. With a wide spatula, ease rice crust free from pan bottom, keeping intact if possible. Invert crust onto a separate serving dish, and cut into triangles.

This traditional Persian dish (two, actually -- the rice and the crust are considered separate dishes) is often served with beef or lamb stew.

In a pan, bring broth, 1/2 cup butter and sugar to a boil over high heat. Add rice, stir until mixture reaches a boil again, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, seasoning to taste. Pour into a casserole dish, cover, and place into a 325° oven to fluff for an hour. Meanwhile, melt 1 TB. butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add almonds and cook, stirring, until golden brown. Lift with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Melt remaining butter in pan and add raisins, stirring, until puffy, then add dates and remaining butter, then the apricots. Stir to heat. Pour fruits over rice pilaf, then sprinkle with almonds.

The cookbook notes that this dish is a favorite of Fresno's Armenian-American community, which it describes as "well-fed." (Around here, that means "fat.")

In a pan, combine rice, coconut milk, water, turmeric, lemongrass, galangal or ginger, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 to 20 more minutes, until rice is tender. Add salt to taste. Remove galangal and bay leaf. Fluff rice with a fork. Garnish with tomato and cucumber.

Galangal is an odd, perfumey Asian ingredient that can be hard to find. You can substitute ginger.

Rinse rice and drain. In a pan, bring rice and broth to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, about 50 minutes. Let rice cool. In a small bowl, mix oil, vinegar, shallot or onion, mustard and pepper. Stir into cooled rice, and serve at room temperature.

Wild rice, despite its name, is not actually rice. It's actually people.

Melt 2 TB. of the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add pine nuts and stir until lightly toasted. Remove nuts with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add remaining butter to the pan with onion and barley, and cook, stirring, until barley is lightly toasted. Remove from heat and stir in pine nuts, parsley, chives and pepper. Spoon into a casserole dish. Bring broth to a boil, pour over barley mixture, and stir to blend well. Bake at 375° until barley is tender and almost all liquid is absorbed, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and garnish with additional parsley sprigs.

Jack says he's not fond of barley, but he'll eat it when I set it in front of him.

Toast sesame seeds in a frying pan over medium heat until golden, about two minutes, shaking pan frequently. Remove seeds and set aside. Melt butter in the pan, then add the onion, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until onion is golden. Add bulgur and sesame seeds, and stir until the grain is coated with butter. Add broth and parsley, stir to blend, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes, until grain is tender.

The cookbook calls this a "western classic." Next to the recipe is this little snippet of text: "'Flower Children' of the 1960s were a colorful part of a social revolution that has changed many aspects of our lives -- including our diets. Today, Westerners are much more appreciative of a greater variety of foods. We accept tofu as an everyday ingredient -- and find whole grains, brown rice and vegetables to be not only healthful, but delicious."

Boil or steam the rice in the usual manner. Plump raisins by allowing to stand in warm water or at room temperature wine for about 15 minutes, then drain well. Mix rice with raisins, butter and almonds. Press in a bowl and unmold on a round platter, and sprinkle with extra chopped almonds.

Cooked rice mixed with raisins, butter and nuts equals the easiest pilaf ever.

Cook wild rice in 1 1/2 cups of the consommé for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bake white rice in a baking dish at 300° to toast until golden brown. Stir in the remaining 1 1/2 cups consommé, soy sauce, onion and partially cooked wild rice. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

It's a little unusual to combine two cooking methods with rice.

In a skillet, sauté onion in shortening or butter until clear. Add rice and sauté until rice starts to turn translucent, about five minutes. Pour in water, then add salt, curry powder, cumin, cayenne, ginger, black pepper and turmeric. Stir, then cover tightly and simmer slowly, without stirring, for 25 minutes. Remove cover and place peas and butter on top. Cover and cook slowly for five more minutes, or until peas are tender. Stir once to mix in the peas and melted butter.

Another easy pilaf. This Dinner Party Cook Book is a winner.

Combine the rice with the peas, butter and parsley.

Okay, I take it back -- this is the easiest pilaf ever.

In a pan over medium heat, melt butter, then add onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until onion is soft, about five minutes. Add rice and continue cooking and stirring until rice is lightly toasted and opaque, another five to ten minutes. Pour in the broth, then bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt, then stir in the optional cheese.

These are getting simpler and simpler ....

Heat oil in a skillet, add onion and garlic, and fry until soft. Stir in tomatoes, cook for another five minutes, then add rice. Stir to coat with the vegetables, then add 2 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook over low heat until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in the parsley and season to taste.

The cookbook notes that if the rice is still soggy at the end of cooking, it is known as malandrinho, or "naughty" rice.

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and let them sizzle for a few seconds. Add the onion and fry until soft. Add peas, rice and salt and stir fry for five minutes. Add water and bring to a boil. Cover tightly, lower heat and cook for 20 minutes until all the water has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork.

We usually just keep ground cumin on hand, but I think cumin seeds are readily available.

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the bay leaves, cinnamon and cardamom and let them sizzle briefly. Add the onion and fry until soft. Add the mushrooms and fry for about five minutes until all the moisture has evaporated or been absorbed. Add the rice and salt and stir fry for two to three minutes. Add the water, bring to a boil, then cover tightly, lower heat, and cook for about 20 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork.

These two Indian recipes seem to have a little more water than is usually called for in rice recipes. I'll have to assume it's correct ...

Heat oil in a skillet and sauté the garlic for one minute. Add the cauliflower and ginger and cook for several more minutes, until cauliflower is lightly browned. Add rice, raisins, curry powder, coriander, cinnamon, ground cloves and scallions. Stir and cook, covered, over very low heat, for 15 minutes. Stir in the butter, yogurt and sesame seeds, and serve.

I substituted butter for the soy margarine called for in the original recipe.

Rinse the rices and combine them in a heavy saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, for 40 minutes. In another skillet, melt the butter. Add the cooked rice along with the scallions, parsley, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Sauté over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring. If rice seems dry, add a small amount of water. Stir in the cashews before serving.

Again, butter substituted ... it just seems much more natural and healthy than something so heavily processed as soy margarine.

Finely chop the mushrooms and sauté them for 2-3 minutes in the butter. Add the stock. Combine mushrooms with the cooked rice and add the almonds. Season with salt and pepper. Press into a greased 7" ring mold and let stand for 3-4 minutes. Invert the rice onto a platter, then fill the center with a buttered vegetable, creamed fish, or whatever works.

I love food served in ring form!

Combine all the ingredients and pack into a greased 7" ring mold. Bake it at 350°, set in a pan of hot water, for 45 minutes.

We've made dinners where the meatloaf was shaped in a ring mold, the rice pilaf was shaped in a ring mold, and the jello dessert was shaped in a ring mold. Such a meal is known as a three-ring dinner. If only two rings are made, it is a ring ding dinner.

Combine rice with ham. Combine egg, soup, milk, salt and basil. Grease a 9" ring mold and layer rice mixture with liquid mixture. Top with chips. Bake at 375° for 1/2 hour in one inch of hot water. Invert onto a platter and fill center with a cooked vegetable.

The ring ding dinner, visual proof (with popovers):

Beat the egg. Mix with the milk, parsley, garlic, onion, rice, cheese or butter, curry powder and salt. Grease a 7" ring mold with the olive oil and fill with the rice mixture. Bake at 325° for 30 minutes.

The cookbook makes a rather dated reference, noting that this dish is "Outstanding alone or as a stuffing for breast of veal."

Cook the rice in the water, When the water is nearly absorbed, add the cheese, paprika and cayenne, then the one cup of condensed soup. Stir the rice over low heat until the cheese is melted.

"Few grains cayenne"? To me, that means three or four tiny little dots of the spice. Could such a small amount flavor anything? Go ahead, live a little -- increase it to 1/8 tsp.

Bring the lentils and water to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and cook the onions about five minutes. Remove 1 1/2 cups of the onions with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Continue cooking the remaining onions for about 5-7 minutes, until caramelized and crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels. Drain the lentils and reserve the liquid, adding water if needed to make 1 1/2 cups. Return lentils to the pan, add the 1 1/2 cups liquid, the first batch of onions, rice, salt and allspice, and cook over low heat, covered, until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Serve on a platter and top with caramelized onions. Serve garnishes on the side.

I'd caramelize even more of the onions, but that's just me.

Heat 1 TB. of the olive oil in a saucepan with a lid and cook the onion about three minutes. Add rice, raisins, salt, saffron, and mix well. Cook for three minutes, then add water. Bring to a boil, stir, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, until rice is cooked and dry. While rice is cooking, bake pine nuts in a 450° oven for 15 minutes. When rice is done, fluff with a fork, let it cool for a few minutes, then combine with pine nuts, tomato, mint, and remaining olive oil. Serve garnished with whole mint leaves.

Mint in savory dishes always surprises me, in a good way.

In a skillet, sauté stir the vermicelli in butter and oil until golden. Stir in the rice and fry for one minute, then add the water or broth and salt and allow it to boil for one minute. Cover and reduce heat, and simmer about 18 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed. Place a folden paper towel over the rice, cover the pot, and let rest off the heat for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle with one of the spices and fluff with a fork.

The original all-purpose Rice-a-roni-like eastern Mediterranean rice pilaf, adaptable for use with any number of spice and herb combinations.

Clean the lentils and cook them in 1 1/2 quarts water for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stir the onions in the oil over medium-high heat until the onions begin to turn golden-brown. Reduce the heat and cook, stirring often, until the onions are medium brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove half the onions and drain on paper towels. Continue cooking the remaining onions until they turn a deep brown. When the lentils have cooked 20 minutes, add the rice, salt, pepper and enough water to cover and bring back to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook, covered, for another 20 minutes. When the onions have turned a deep brown, add them and their cooking oil to the lentils. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Top with crisp onions and serve possibly with a yogurt sauce.

If using brown rice, cook with lentils for the full amount of time -- brown rice and lentils take about the same 40 minutes.

Slice the onions. Heat the oil in a skillet and cook the onions, covered, for 30 minutes, stirring, often, until the onions are golden-brown. Meanwhile, wilt the spinach in a saucepan for five minutes, then stir in the bulgur, broth, allspice, salt and pepper. Cover and cook over low heat until bulgur is tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for five minutes. Stir in the fried onions before serving.

Seems more like a spinach dish with bulgur than a bulgur dish with spinach.

Heat half the oil in a pan and cook the onion and chilis over gentle heat, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Set half the chives aside. Cut stalks off the cilantro and set the leaves aside. Purée the remaining chives and cilantro stalks in a blender with the stock. Add rice to the onions and fry over low heat for 4-5 minutes. Pour in the stock mixture, add salt and pepper, and then bring to a boil. Stir, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 18-20 minutes, until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Remove the cover, place a dishtowel over the pan, replace the cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil and cook the mushrooms for 5-6 minutes. Add remaining garlic chives and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir mushrooms, chives and chopped cilantro leaves into the rice. Serve immediately, scattered with cashew nuts.

Onions, mushrooms, cilantro ... some people would just hate this dish.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add wild rice and salt, lower heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Drain well. Meanwhile, melt 1 TB. butter in a saucepan, add the onion, and cook over medium heat for five minutes. Stir in white rice and cook for 1 minute more. Stir in the stock and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes, until rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed. Melt remaining butter in another pan and cook the almonds in it until they are golden. Set aside. Put rices in a bowl and mix with almonds, raisins and half the parsley. Stir to mix. Add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving dish, then sprinkle with remaining parsley.

Three pans to clean? Usually a pilaf (excuse me ... "pilaff") just uses one.

Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook 20-25 minutes without stirring or peeking.

Beef bouillon cubes replaced with beef broth plus water. Bouillon cubes seem more appropriate for the frugal, homespun nature of this cookbook, however.

How frugal and homespun? The cookbook says "Serve with a tossed salad and/or vegetables and homemade whole wheat bread."

Sauté the onion in the butter, then add everything else and mix together. Bake in a covered casserole dish at 350° for 45 minutes.

My mom would make something similar to this, but she'd give it a crunchy almond topping.