Let Uncle Ben work his magic

Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!

Bullwinkle may never find his rabbit, but at least he's still in the animal kingdom. Uncle Ben's The Magic of Rice Cookbook (1969) makes me want to see Bullwinkle try to scoop some pilaf out of his top hat. I wonder what Rocky would have to say about that...

I wasn't really sure how to highlight all the rice-y magic in the book, so you're getting my signature weird menu format, this time with rice-based appetizer/ veg, main dish, and dessert.

The appetizer is a classic with a little twist.

I'm sure you recognize stuffed peppers, but what are those little "roses" on top?

I'd call them stinking roses, but that's a nickname for garlic. Anyway, the starters are saffron-rice stuffed peppers with anchovy roses! I love the bright green and yellow contrast against the shiny brown fish.

The main dish may sound a bit familiar...

...but this time the picture sells it.

Who can resist rice volcanoes erupting over porkchops with a backdrop of kaleidoscopic 1960s wallpaper?

And just in case you're not completely riced out, how about a rice-based dessert that ISN'T pudding?

It's not sand with oddly lumpy sea foam and a deformed, decaying starfish on top.

You've always wanted a grainy cheesecake full of cottage cheese and instant lemon pudding mix rather than that smooth, luscious cream cheese, right? Uncle Ben knows what you like.

I'm thinking it might actually take a little magic to make that entire cheesecake disappear, even though disappearing cheesecake is usually one of the easiest tricks in the book! Sorry, Uncle Ben.