Jeweled Brown Rice

My family loves rice with gems of tangy dried fruit, pistachios, and almonds. Eager to include more whole grains at our table, I prepare this version using brown rice.

Brown rice suffers undeserved bad press, most likely because its nutty goodness is so often marred by a soggy, sticky texture. To keep the grains separate and fluffy, I bake the rice spread out in a shallow pan and hold off adding the fruit and other embellishments until the rice is fully cooked.