Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Food Storage Salads: Fruit Rice Salad


When my family was living out of our food storage (okay not totally out of our food storage I did have a small food budget) we had a problem.  It was summer, and in the summer there are a lot of potlucks.  It seemed like ever week we were going to a pot luck and were asked to bring a salad.  I hated it.  I didn't have anything to make a salad with and I did not want to spend my small food budget on it.   At the time I did not have a very good solution but now I do.  Over the next little while I am going to post some of our favorite salads that are made mostly from food storage ingredients.

Fruit Rice Salad 
1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple with juice
1/2 cup Freeze Dried strawberries
1/4 cup Freeze Dried peaches
1 cup uncooked white rice
1/3 cup craisins or golden rains
2/3 cup flaked coconut
1 recipe THRIVE Whipped Topping, prepared **see below           
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1 pinch salt
1/4 cup slivered almonds

1.       In a saucepan bring salted water to a boil. Add rice, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer--without stirring--for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and chill until cold.
2.       In a medium bowl, mix together pineapple, strawberries, peaches.  The juice from the pineapple should cover the other fruit if not add a small amount of water.  Allow to soften 5 minutes, strain off excess juice/water.  Add a heaping cup of the cold rice, raisins and coconut. Set aside.
3.       In a separate large bowl, whip together THRIVE whipped topping, sugar, vanilla, ginger and salt until stiff. Fold in rice mixture, and stir in 1/4 cup slivered almonds.
4.  Serve immediately, if this salad is held the whipped topping looses some of its fluffiness, it is still good just not as fluffy. 

THRIVE Whipped Topping—made from THRIVE instant milk
   1 t vanilla extract
   1⁄2 c thrive powdered sugar
    1⁄2 c thrive instant milk, prepared and chilled
    1⁄2 c ice water
Combine ice water and powdered milk in bowl and beat for 10 minutes. Add powdered sugar and vanilla, continue to beat until thoroughly blended. Chill.

*This works best in a stand mixer with whip beaters. If mixture begins to fall, beat again.
 Notes:  MUST use THRIVE instant powdered milk and not the standard dry milk variety.

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