Wild Winter Rice with Pecans, Cranberries, and Sweet Potato

Note: if you are using dried cranberries, skip the process of tossing with sugar/oil and then roasting them, and add them directly to the rice along with the other ingredients in step 6.

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C.
2. Cook rice with water according to package instructions (usually simmered for about 45-50 minutes with a pinch of sea salt).
3. Meanwhile, line a baking tray with foil. Add cranberries and sweet potato to tray, drizzle with 1 tablespoon (3 teaspoons) vegetable oil, and toss with your hands, keeping ingredients separate. Toss cranberries with 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Toss sweet potatoes with a pinch of sea salt.
4. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes. Meanwhile, toss pecans with the remaining 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons brown sugar.
5. Remove cranberries and sweet potatoes from oven. Push aside and add chopped pecans. Return to oven and bake for an additional 3 minutes.
6. Toss ingredients with rice, serve warm or at room temperature. If rice mixture is still too tart from the cranberries, add brown sugar by the teaspoonful until satisfactory. Remaining rice can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.