Rice Penguins Recipes

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, heat oil and salt pork over medium-high heat. Add sofrito and cook 1 minute. Add tomato paste and mix well, cook for 2 minutes. Add rice and cook 2 minutes being careful not to scorch the rice, turning all the time. Add saffron and gandules and stir constantly. Add liquid, stirring constantly. Add salt and pepper to taste and bring everything to a boil. Lower heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes. Do not disturb. After 15 minutes, check the rice. Stir. Recover. Turn off heat and let steam for 5 minutes more. Serve immediately with pernil asado or alone. The rice should be fluffy and separate. The color should be golden.
• Mix together all ingredients and set aside to let flavors meld together.

Steps:

• Use a large spoon or medium sized ice cream scoop to make the warm rice balls. Place the spoonful of rice on a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap the rice with the plastic wrap and roll with your hand to create a rice ball.
• Take a sheet of nori (dried seaweed) and fold in half. Cut a heart shape along the fold. Unfold and wrap around rice. Use plastic to set the nori around the warm rice.
• Use the remain nori sheet and with a nori punch press to get different shapes you can use for the eyes.
• Use the round cutters to press into slices of carrot to create the feet and beak.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Place pigeon peas in bowl and cover with several inches extra water; soak overnight. Drain.
• In a large, heavy saucepan, combine drained pigeon peas with water (or water and coconut milk). Bring to the boil and add the ham hocks, onion, 1 clove of the garlic, and the chile. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer, uncovered, until the peas are tender, about 45 minutes.
• Stir in the rice; reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, another 20-30 minutes. About 5 minutes before the rice is tender, add the last garlic clove to the pot by squeezing it through a garlic press.
• Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper and red-hot sauce, if using, and serve.

Steps:

• Hard boil the eggs. Drain, set aside to cool then peel.
• BODY: Cut a small slice off the wide end of each egg. (Cut the slice so that the penguin can stand up on its own.).
• FLIPPERS: Slice three olives in quarters lengthwise. Cut a small slit down each side of the "body" of an egg and insert one olive piece on each side.
• CHEST: Cut approximately 1/2" sliver of black olive lengthwise. Make a tiny slit down the middle of the hard boiled egg and carefully insert the olive sliver.
• HEAD: Place one toothpick down the center of the top (narrow end) of each hard boiled egg. Attach the whole olive with the hole in the center of the penguin's face.
• NOSE: cut six small triangular pieces of carrot or bell pepper-large enough so that it will fit snugly in the olive hole and not fall out. Place the carrot or bell pepper piece in the olive hole.
• To serve, arrange the endangered penguins on an irregularly shaped piece of styrofoam.