Wild Rice Cranberry Pecan Salad

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown rice wild rice mix
• 2 1/3 cups water (see package instructions)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon butter

• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (toasted or un-toasted, your choice)
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions

• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

1 Use the amount of water for the rice according to instructions on the rice package. Typically straight brown rice is a 1:2 ratio of rice to water. Straight wild rice is a ratio of 1:3 of wild rice to water. For this brown rice wild rice mix that I got from a bin (no package) I used a ratio of 1 cup of rice to 2 1/3 cups of water. Bring rice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, butter, and water to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 50 minutes. Do not stir. Do not uncover. Remove from stove and let sit, covered for 10 minutes. Then uncover, fluff up with a fork, and let cool to almost room temperature.
2 In a medium sized serving bowl, mix the rice, cranberries, pecans, and green onions together.
3 In a separate jar, mix the lemon juice, olive oil, orange peel, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving, mix dressing in with the rice mixture. Serve warm, chilled, or room temperature.
Yield: Serves 4 to 6.