Cassandra Burdick
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With a Side of Rice

The first moment…

my parents blended their cultures wasn’t when they got married, nor was it when they had children—it was when my dad cooked my mom dinner for the first time. The only item on the menu that night was lasagna; a traditional Italian dish made with blood, sweat, tears, and ground beef.

Straight out of the oven came the cheesy pasta—however, my mother only had one issue,

“Where’s the rice?” she said.

Confused but eager to please, my father quickly whipped up a pot of basic white rice before serving to my mom and her family of 6 in a tiny pre-war apartment on the Upper West Side.

Call it my mother’s Ecuadorian heritage remaining prominent in our lives, but still to this day it’s a tradition in my family to serve white rice as a side for lasagna—and practically every meal we have together.

An homage to the melting pot of cultures that I am, I’ve created ‘With a Side of Rice’. The perfect representation of my love for food from all over the world.

Buon appetito. Disfrute de su comida. I hope you enjoy.

A Very Vegetarian Sidesgiving

Aged Manchego, Bleu d'Auvergne, Brie

In the wise words of NYT Cooking’s very own Sam Sifton, “I don’t approve of appetizers at Thanksgiving. I don’t rise in darkness to cook for hours so that you can eat a half-pound of nuts before dinner and refuse seconds.”

But what if your autumnal feast was just one big appetizer, Sam? I’ll be honest, I’m no charcuterie board expert, but from what I gathered during my deep dive into Google the night prior, I learned that a crowd-pleasing board has 4 cheese rules:

  1. Something creamy

  2. Something aged

  3. Something firm

  4. Sometime potent

The rest, you can fill in with your favorite breads, crackers, jams, and farmers’ market fruits.

I figured I could bend the rules due to the fact that my Friendsgiving was meant for a party of three. To not overwhelm my two guests with enough cheese to make Aligot, I decided to combine rules #2 and #3 by opting for an Aged Manchego.

But surely enough three turned into six + a dog, however, this little cheeseboard could still feed the masses. My best advice when hosting wine & cheese night: always stock up on ‘the firm’, it was the first to meet the finish line.

Regardless of presentation, I’m sure your guests will be in awe of the bounty of fresh fruits, salty cheeses, and crunchy breads you bestow upon them—bonus points if you pop open a bottle of Pinot Noir the moment they arrive.

As a wrap-up, and a seasonal goodbye, I’ll end on with what I’m most thankful for: whoever is reading this post. I thank you for your support in my long-awaited food journey.

Cassandra Burdick