Rice and Chestnut Bundles Recipe
This is a bit of futzing, but if you need a fancy meatless dish, this is a great one. You can make the filling a day or two before.
Cooking Temperature 190 C / 375 F /Gas Mark 5
Ingredients
- 2 cups Vegetable Stock
- 1/2 cup Risotto Rice
- 1/4 cup Wild Rice
- 2 tablespoons Oil
- 1 head Fennel chopped
- 1 clove Garlic crushed
- 1 Red Pepper seeds removed, chopped
- 1 tablespoon Parsley dried
- 1/2 cup Chestnuts canned, chopped
- 3 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese
- 2 Eggs hard-boiled, chopped
- 1 tablespoon Curry Powder
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 3 sheets Phyllo Pastry
- Salt
- Ground Pepper
- 1 Zucchini diced
Instructions
- Boil the eggs, let them cool a bit, then peel and chop and set aside ready to go.
- Bring the stock to boil in a saucepan, add risotto rice, lower heat to medium, and cook the rice until stock is absorbed and the rice is tender to the bite -- if it dries out before this, add a bit of water.
- Meanwhile, cook the wild rice according to instructions on the pack.
- When both rices are cooked, place both in a large bowl.
- In a frying pan, cook the fennel and the garlic for about 4 minutes, then add the pepper and the zucchini and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add to the bowl of rice, along with the parsley, egg, chestnuts, parmesan and curry powder, along with some salt and pepper to taste.
- Start heating the oven to 190 C / 375 F /Gas Mark 5.
- Now we make the bundles. Melt the butter.
- Lay out a sheet of phyllo pastry on the counter, brush it with melted butter, top with a sheet of phyllo pastry, brush that with butter, then top with another phyllo sheet. Finish off with a brush of melted butter. Cut into 4 squares.
- Fill the centre with the rice mixture, pressing down, and leaving an edge, then fold the pastry edges together over the top of each bundle, scrunching them together at the top centre where they meet. Place on a baking sheet, and brush with melted butter. Cook in oven until golden, about 30 minutes, then let cool a minute or two before serving.
Notes
If you don't have curry powder, omit, or use a mixture of ground cumin, ground coriander, etc.
This recipe serves 4, but it can easily be doubled or tripled.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!