Gluten-Free Recipes: Quick, Easy Spanish Rice

Gluten-free pasta is particularly expensive. Fixing sandwiches for lunch is not only cost prohibitive but no longer tastes quite as good. If you are lucky, you can find a couple of gluten-free soups on your grocer's shelves, but there aren't many; and if you're family is counting pennies, you have to wait for a sale. So how can you feed your family and still have time for dance class, soccer games, and getting yourself to the gym to keep that New Year's resolution?

As I mentioned in one of my first Hubs, make sure you invest in a rice cooker. With a timer and warming mechanism this "best friend" of the gluten-free family will help tremendously. Here are a recipe and some serving suggestions for quick and easy Spanish rice:

1. Prepare two cups of uncooked white rice. A rice cooker will provide the option for the rice to be prepared while you are away in order to cut down on preparation time.
2. Coarsely chop half of a small yellow onion, and begin to sautee it over medium heat in a tablespoon of either olive oil or butter.
3. Add a pound or two of hamburger, and turn the heat up slightly until the meat is mostly browned, return to medium heat. (The recipe is fairly flexible. If you don't have hamburger or prefer not to eat meat, a package of chopped button mushrooms will work just fine. In this case, do not increase heat.)
4. While meat is browning, add 1/2 tablespoon of cumin for each pound of hamburger or package of mushrooms.
5. Add other spices to taste. I like to add a pinch of cayenne pepper, some black pepper and a little garlic salt.
6. Now it's time for the tomatoes. This time I used a cup of store-bought garlic lime salsa and a can of tomato paste with 2 cans of water. A fresher option would be to add a 16-ounce can of diced tomatoes to a cup and a half of store-bought salsa. Basically, you can use anything you have on hand.
7. Once the meat is cooked through and the sauce is hot and bubbly, add the rice and mix well.

So we know it's quick and easy to make gluten-free Spanish rice, but is it a healthy meal your kids will eat? I think so. If they like tacos and other Mexican dishes, this should be a hit.

To add an extra serving of vegetables, serve it with a tossed salad or your family's favorite steamed veggies. I put shredded cheese and sour cream on the table along with extra salsa. Score one for the dairy food group! Mom should get a solid "10" for serving up this meal.