How to Make a Tuscan-Style Rice Salad

Here is the Tuscan-style rice salad recipe. This is a fresh and loaded salad where you can use your imagination!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup Arborio rice – uncooked
• ½ cup peas – fresh or frozen, cooked
• ½ cup chickpeas – drained, rinsed
• 2 oz. prosciutto – cut into thin slivers
• 3 eggs – large, beaten
• Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese – cut into chunks
• ½ cup carrot – peeled, diced
• 10 oz. grape tomatoes – cut in half      
• 1 tbsp. fresh basil leaves – torn
• 2 tbsp. Italian parsley – chopped
• lettuce leaves – your favorite
• fresh basil sprigs – for decorating                           
• 1/3 cup lemon juice – freshly squeezed                      
• ¼ cup red onion – diced
• 2 garlic cloves – crushed
• 2 tsp olive oil
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• salt & freshly ground pepper – to taste

METHOD:

1. Add the rice to 2 cups of lightly salted boiling water. Cover and cook over medium heat until the water is absorbed, and the rice is tender. Uncover and let it cool.
2. In the meantime, whisk together the eggs, olive oil and garlic. Heat a small, preferably, non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Add the eggs and cook while stirring until scrambled into large clumps. Stir in the torn basil leaves then remove from the heat. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
3. In a large bowl, that you will also use for serving, whisk together the lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the rice, scrambled eggs, carrots, peas, chic peas, red onion, parsley, prosciutto and tomatoes. Blend altogether by tossing gently and top with basil sprigs.
4. Serve with crusty Italian bread and chunks of cheese. Enjoy this terrific and loaded Tuscan-style rice salad!

Note: You can either serve from the bowl or for a fancier presentation, line a platter with lettuce leaves. Spoon the rice onto the leaves, mounding, and garnish with small chunks of cheese and basil sprigs.

For another variation, you can eliminate the scrambled eggs and add a drained can of Italian tuna broken into chunks or some left-over rotisserie chicken. Sometimes, I also add left-over cooked corn kernels.