Zela Russell’s eggs and rice supreme

Zela was my grandmother from my mother’s side of the family and was a McKinnon prior to marrying my grandfather, Noel, who fought in WW2. I did not know him as well as I knew my grandmother. Zela was a pintsized woman, who played golf, had seven children, was a Catholic, liked whisky, had stunning blue eyes, lived her early years at Ohau Station and then the rest of her life in and around Karitane and Oamaru. From a child’s perspective you knew she was a force, oldfashioned but fun.

I’d call this ‘‘comfort food’’; I know my grandmother would simply have called this dinner or lunch.

Rice is a big one to be thrown out;

4076 tonnes go to waste every year in New Zealand, so this is a good recipe to use that up, remembering to store it in an airtight container in the fridge and heat thoroughly before eating (cooked rice can also be frozen). Rice can go musty if not stored properly in the pantry, so always store in a wellsealed container — brown rice goes musty before white.

Serves 4

You will need clean hands chopping board and knife mediumsized baking dish, greased pot small mixing bowl/dish grater whisk wooden spoon

White sauce

Makes 1 cup

1 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp plain flour

1 cup milk/milk alternative

1 tsp mustard powder/Dijon mustard

The rice stuff

4 hard boiled eggs, halved lengthwise Worcestershire sauce

2 cups cooked, wellseasoned rice (brown rice works well, but any rice works or just use the rice from the night before) handful grated cheese finely chopped chives/green herb you like/spring onion salt and pepper

Method

Heat the oven to bake 180degC.

White sauce recipe

Put one of the tablespoons of butter in a small pot, melt on a medium heat then put your flour in and stir quickly to combine.

Pour the milk in and use the whisk to stir in continuously and heat through until thickened, making sure there are no lumps.

Stir in the mustard powder/Dijon mustard, taste, then add a pinch of salt and pepper if needed. Set aside.

Egg and rice dish

Remove the egg yolks from the hard boiled eggs and place in a bowl.

Add the other tablespoon of butter (you could use olive oil to be healthier, although Zela might have an issue with this!) and a big dash or two of Worcestershire sauce.

Mix well but don’t overbeat, then taste and adjust seasoning.

Stuff the egg whites with yolk mixture. Place cooked rice, still warm, in your dish. If using rice from the night before then heat in the microwave for 1 minute.

Snuggle the halved stuffed eggs in the rice but don’t cover. Spoon the seasoned white sauce over the rice and eggs, and sprinkle the cheese over the dish. Pop into the oven for 510 minutes until heated through.

Grill for 3 minutes so the cheese is golden and bubbling.

Garnish with chopped chives or herbs and serve with a simple green salad.