Recipe 22: Zucchini Herb Casserole

I don't make many vegetarian dishes, but at some point during the summer I found a couple of zucchini recipes that sounded really good to me.  This particular one was a casserole that included a bunch of veggies and rice and then the whole thing is covered in cheese.

Here is a picture of the final result.

 Here is the recipe that I used(Link):

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup uncooked long grain white rice
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 pounds zucchini, cubed
• 1 cup sliced green onions
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 1/4 teaspoons garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon basil
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 1/2 cups seeded, chopped tomatoes
• 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

Directions

1. Combine the rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, until rice is tender.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a shallow 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.
3. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the zucchini, green onions, and garlic 5 minutes, or until tender. Season with garlic salt, basil, paprika, and oregano. Mix in the cooked rice, tomatoes, and 1 cup cheese. Continue to cook and stir until heated through. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.
4. Bake uncovered 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

The Process

This was actually a really simple recipe to make, I started the rice and then  mixed all of the zucchini together with the green onions and garlic.

Then I put it in the only skillet that I had over the summer, it was slightly small, but still worked pretty well.

Since the rice wasn't ready yet I decided just to mix everything together and cook it a little until the rice was done.

So I added the remaining veggies, spices and cheese and then heated it for a little bit.

Since I didn't think the rice would fit in the skillet I decided to mix everything together in the pan.

I then added the cheese and put it in the oven.  All in all a very simple dish to make.

I was surprised, but I really liked this.  I think that the herbs made this very flavorful and kind of salty, which usually makes everything a little better.

I do think that this might be best as a side dish or not a stand alone main dish anyway.  I had a salad with it, but it definitely seemed more like a side to me.  However, it was very good.