Brown Rice Stuffed Grape Leaves

Have you ever made Brown Rice Stuffed Grape Leaves?  I'm not sure why I wanted to try, but I did and they turned out so pretty.

Brown Rice Stuffed Grape Leaves

Brown-Rice-Stuffed Grape Leaves

Use Uncle Ben's rice to make these delicious brown-rice-stuffed grape leaves.

Makes 32 grape leaves

Ingredients

5 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 small clove garlic, finely chopped

1 cup brown rice, cooked according to package directions

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

1 tablespoon finely chopped mint

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1/4 cup currants

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

3 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken broth

32 grape leaves (about 1/3 of a 16-ounce jar), rinsed, dried, and stems removed

1 lemon, sliced crosswise into 8 slices

Directions

1.Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until translucent. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add mixture to a large bowl, along with cooked rice, parsley, mint, lemon zest, currants, and pine nuts; stir to combine. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to bowl; stir to combine and set aside.

2.Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place one grape leaf on work surface, vein-side up. Place 1 heaping tablespoon rice mixture in the center of grape leaf. Roll leaf from bottom up, folding in sides to form a 2-inch log. Place seam side down in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Repeat process with remaining grape leaves and rice mixture.

3.In a large bowl, mix together chicken broth, remaining 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil; pour over grape leaves. Top grape leaves with lemon slices. Place a second 9-by-13-inch baking dish on top of grape leaves and lemon slices and fill halfway with water to weight down. Carefully transfer to oven and bake until grape leaves are tender, 40 to 50 minutes. Serve immediately.

And when you're finished they should look like this~

Everyone loved them, but I can't say for sure, I couldn't bring myself to eat one!  I guess I won't be on Survivor anytime soon!