Brown Rice with Artichokes, Chickpeas, and Tomatoes

If you are looking for a brown rice entrée, you might enjoy the "Brown Rice with Artichokes, Chickpeas, and Tomatoes" (page 273).  Besides the ingredients listed in the title, the rest of the dish consists of garlic and spices, cooked in a broth of your choosing, with the tomatoes and parsley added at the end.  I have never had good luck cooking brown rice to a level of doneness that I like when I include anything else in the pot besides water and salt.  And usually I don't even add salt until after the rice is cooked. So even though the recipe called for the artichokes, chickpeas, and seasonings to go in the pot along with the rice, I only added them during the last five minutes of the cooking time after the rice had cooked thoroughly tender.  I omitted sautéing the garlic in oil, and just added it to the rice along with the artichokes and chickpeas. If you have a choice between canned and frozen artichoke hearts, go for the frozen - they are leagues ahead of the canned variety in both flavor and texture.