Me, Dr. Oz, and the Recipe that Never Was

I've got a story to tell you today. After the story, I'll share the recipe that started it all.

I was having a boring day about 6 weeks ago. I was sitting on the couch, thinking about what I would do for the rest of the day, but not actually doing anything. The phone rang. I expected it to be my Mom.

"Hi, this is Marty from the Dr. Oz show," a voice said. Confusion set in. I was silent. I looked around to see who was playing jokes on me, even though I was home alone. Marty said hello a few more times. I finally answered him, feeling very silly. I'm guessing he's accustomed to that reaction. In true New Yorker fashion, he rattled off a lot of information in very short time and I was still kind of dumbfounded. He invited me to participate in a show via video, featuring one of my healthy recipes with Hawaiian flare for a 50 States of Healthy Cooking kind of show, and I agreed.

I immediately got on Facebook and posted that I was going to be famous. {Ok, not really, but I did post that the Dr. Oz show just called me and I was super excited.}

Over the course of the next week, through many phone calls and emails, I narrowed down what they wanted from me. I worked on filming for three days. I made my 'Pineapple and Edamame No Fry Rice' over and over so it would look fresh in the takes. I did my hair and makeup more in one week than I usually do in a month. I washed the same clothes and wore them repeatedly for continuity in the shots.

I submitted my 3 videos finally, with a sigh of relief. It was a lot more work than I had expected!

They told me they loved them, but to do them again, talking louder. :/
And this time, they gave me a script. Scripts are hard people. You have to memorize them.

I filmed again. And again. And again. Marty let me know they decided not to use the recipes, but they still wanted to see the food. I hadn't even sent the recipe in yet! I was bummed - the recipe was the star! But I kept at it. I resubmitted, and they accepted my work this time.

Then I got an email saying they were taking a different direction, and they had selected 3 people to actually feature their 'winning' recipes on the show. I was not one of the 3 people. {Kind of hard for mine to win since I never got to send it, right?} They told me the show would air at the end of May, and that they selected a few random clips from the 47 non-winners, so keep an eye out. Since they didn't tell me I was one of them, I didn't worry about it. But I still watched, just to see how it all turned out. I never saw it. There was no show during the last week of May that in any way resembled the one I was working on.

Fast forward to June, and a friend Facebooks me that her Mom saw me on TV today. Say what? I was on Dr. Oz??? Luckily, being in Hawaii, it was still early in the day and I hadn't missed it. I tuned in, iPhone ready to film me on the screen. Watch carefully:

See why I said to watch carefully? I was the very first video clip to speak. "I'm Kristen, from Honolulu, Hawaii..." CUT! lol. There was also a quick close up of my dish, sitting on a log on the beach, before the clip of me talking.

Ay yi yi - what an experience! So much excitement, so much work, and so little TV time! lol. But it was definitely a positive experience, I learned a lot, and I'm glad I did it.

Ok, now that you've seen my 2 seconds of fame {15 minutes is evidently very elusive}, now I'll share the recipe that should have been the star of the show all along! ;)

Pineapple & Edamame No Fry Rice

What you need:

2 Cups Uncooked Brown Rice (Or 1 Cup Brown Rice and 1 Cup of Quinoa for a lighter carb, higher protein count)

1/4 to 1/2 Cup Vegetable Broth

1 TBSP Minced Ginger

2 TBSP Braggs Liquid Aminos

2 Cups Shelled Edamame (Prepared according to package directions)

1 Cup Fresh Pineapple, Chopped***

1/4 Cup Chopped Cilantro

1/4 Cup Chopped Raw Cashews

1 Green Onion, Chopped

What you do:

1. Cook the Brown Rice in a Rice Cooker. (Or use your preferred method.) (If you choose to use half quinoa, prepare that at the same time.)
2. Heat a cast iron skillet or other heavy bottomed pan over medium heat. Add the 1/4 cup of vegetable broth and the ginger. Simmer over medium heat for 2 minutes. (Reserve the other 1/4 cup of broth to add as needed.)
3. Add the Braggs and stir. Then add the cooked rice (and quinoa if you're mixing the two), the edamame, and the pineapple. Turn heat down to medium-low. Continue to cook until thoroughly heated. Add the reserved vegetable broth as needed to keep it from drying out. 
4. Remove from heat, serve into dishes, and sprinkle each dish with cilantro, cashews and green onion.

***We're lucky enough to get fresh pineapple grown right here in Hawaii, and it gives the dish a local flare that is super yummy. But any pineapple will do. If you absolutely have to use canned, pick a juice packed one to cut calories and sugar.

I hope you like the recipe as much as we do!