A rice dish cooked with meat and spices (hashweh) topped with shredded chicken and toasted nuts. This “stuffing” is served at Thanksgiving or a comfort food dish served anytime to friends and family. This recipe has 3 components: Serves approx. 20

Chicken: Can be prepared earlier in day

•  3-4 lbs. Bone-in Chicken Breasts
• Large onion sliced for chicken to rest on while baking
• Spice rub: 1 Tablespoon of each: Cinnamon and Allspice, ½ tsp. Pepper, 2 tsp. Salt, 1 tsp. Paprika

Nut Topping: Can be prepared ahead of time

• 3 Tbls Pine Nuts
• ¼ Cup Slivered almonds
• 2 Tbls Pistachios or cashews
• 1 Tbls Ghee (butter that’s been rendered)

Beef Mixture: Can be prepared ahead of time

• ¼ Cup Pine Nuts sautéed and browned in Ghee
• 2 lbs Ground Chuck (80/20)
• 2 tsp each Salt, Cinnamon, and Allspice Note: Leftover spice rub can be used here.
• ½ tsp Pepper
• 2 Tbls Ghee

Rice:
• 2 Cups Long Grain Rice
• Broth from baking chicken and canned chicken broth to make approx. 5 Cups

Chicken:

1. Preheat 375 degree oven.
2. Pat dry. Rub generously with spice mixture. Place chicken on top sliced onion rounds in a covered roaster with ½ cup water. 3. Roast until juices run clear and reaches an internal temp of 160 degrees basting every 15 minutes. Approx. 35-40 minutes. 4. Remove from oven and allow chicken to cool enough to d-bone, remove skin and shred into coarse chunks,.
5. Discard sliced onions.
6. Drain broth and reserve for the rice mixture.

Nut Topping:

1. In a small skillet over medium heat warm ghee. Add each kind of nut at a time stirring until golden brown approx. 3-5 minutes.
2. Transfer nuts and butter to a bowl.

Beef Mixture:

1. Lightly brown beef. Drain off excess water, if any.
2. Add spices, pine nuts and ghee.

Rice:

1. Rinse rice with hot water several times to remove starch.
2. To a large roaster, add rinsed rice and beef mixture.
3. Add enough broth to cover rice and beef mixture.
4. Cover with lid or foil. Bake in a 350 degrees preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until rice is tender.
5. Remove from oven and let rice rest, covered for 5-10 minutes. Uncover and fluff with a fork.

Plating and Serving:

1. Transfer the rice and beef mixture to a large serving platter.
2. Add shredded chicken around sides and on top.
3. Scatter browned nuts over the top.
4. Optional: Top with chopped parsley for added color.