While I was making this rice, my two little grandsons were visiting me. The weather was ‘warm’, in the low 50’s, and Gavin (4) was running in and out of the house playing in the sunny glory of the warmer temperatures. In the past, Gavin and I have taken walks around the neighborhood on nice days, but it has been many long, dreary, cold months since that was possible.
As I stood finishing the rice, Gavin came in the house and asked if we could go for a walk. I said, “Sure. Just let me finish this rice and we can go. It’ll only take a me a few minutes.” Well you know how long a few minutes can be to a four year old…E.T.E.R.N.I.T.Y.
About 30 seconds had passed before Gavin started the ‘come-on-hurry-up-let’s-go’ routine. His middle name is Ralph (after one of his great grandfathers) and for whatever reason possessed me at the time, I used his middle name when I answered him. “Ralph…we’ll go in just a minute. I’m almost done.”
He looked at me, and with a moderate amount of emphasis in his voice he said, “Don’t call me Ralph.”
“What should I call you, then?” I asked.
He thought for a few seconds then said, “You can call me ‘Gavin’ or ‘Angel’.”
Oh! Angel. I stifled a laugh. He was really serious about this name thing. It was a bonding moment as he went on to explain that I often use the name Angel when I talk to him and that it is my special name for him. Wow. I hadn’t even noticed that I did that, but as I thought back over the past four years I realized that I really did call him Angel, especially for the first three years of his life. I had stopped using the term as often this past year because he seemed to be growing up and ‘Gavin’ seemed appropriate for a big boy.
We never know how seemingly small things we do affect children. Our actions and our words build a foundational relationship with a child from the very beginning.
Now I have a new memory that is permanently attached to this recipe. My prior memory was one of a very large, happy family reunion to celebrate my mother’s in-law 80th birthday. With either memory, I feel joy inside because the memories are of family and good times together.
Cilantro-Lime Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups uncooked white rice
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 chicken bouillon cubes or 4 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
- 1 teaspoon lime zest, optional
- 4 cups water
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
Instructions
- In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, lime zest, chicken bouillon and water.
- Bring to a boil and stir well. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer 20-30 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat.
- In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and gently toss/stir rice to incorporate.
- Try other recipes in this series: Sweet Pork for Salads, Tacos, or Burritoes (Cafe Rio knock-off) and Creamy Cilantro Tomatoillo Dressing
Notes
You may also like:
Sweet Pork {Cafe Rio copy cat}
Southwestern Chicken Chopped Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette
Easy Mexican-style Rice
Pretty sure I came to your blog an hour ago looking for this recipe and I ended up going through most of your post for the past few months catching up on everything. It’s been fun.
Katie…catching up on the past few months??? If you are posting your comment on this recipe then that means you have gone back over 12 months. That’s a bit of catching up to do. However, I am glad that you had fun. Love you–Mom.
The rice is great, but the story is awesome. Thanks for sharing your recipe and family!