in an effort to use some items that definitely needed to be used - over ripe plums & leftover brown rice - i put on my thinking cap and developed this simple recipe. the dish's mild, fresh flavor with the pungent punch of feta made for a delicious side dish to our pesto chicken last night.

here's what you'll need:

1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 plums (or 4 small sugar plums), sliced
2 cups cooked brown rice (i used "minute rice")
1-2 oz crumbled feta
1/4 cup prunes, chopped
salt & pepper
olive oil

1. in a pan, saute onions in a bit of olive oil until caramelized.
2. add plums and saute a minute longer. season with salt & pepper.
3. add in rice & prunes and toss (rice will become a lovely blush color).
4. toss in feta and mix rice until feta begins to melt. season with more salt & pepper.

the subtle flavors of the rice and sweet plums & prunes are beautifully balanced by the feta. as i mentioned, we enjoyed our rice with chicken, but it would work well with fish or shrimp as well.

no plums? why not try another stone fruit, like peaches or cherries? no prunes? how about raisins or dried cranberries? no feta? try another pungent cheese like parmesan or bleu. get creative and keep it simple. cooking is supposed to be fun!.