Title: Brown Rice Casserole
Categories: Vegetables, Casseroles
Yield: 6 Servings
4 c Cooked brown rice
1/2 Tofu block
1 lg Onion
2 md Carrots
2 Celery ribs
1 Green pepper
2 md Zucchini or other
- summer squash
6 oz Mushrooms; wiped clean
1 tb Olive oil
1 tb Butter
3 cl Garlic; finely chopped
1 ts Nutritional yeast (optional)
1 ts Ground cumin seeds
1 ts Salt
1 c Mushroom broth,
- vegetable stock, or water
6 oz Jack, Muenster, Cheddar, or
- Gouda cheese; grated
Pepper
Fresh herbs (Parsley,
- Cilantro, Thyme, or
- Marjoram); for garnish
Cook rice. Set the tofu on a slanted board or pan to drain, and
prepare the vegetables. Chop the onion, carrots, celery, pepper,
and zucchini into pieces about 1/2" square. Quarter mushrooms if
they are small, and cut them into sixths or eighths if they are
large. Cut the tofu into 1/2" cubes. Heat the olive oil and the
butter and fry the onion over medium heat until it is lightly
browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, nutritional yeast, if
using, cumin, and salt. Stir until blended and cook for 1 minute.
Add the carrots, celery, green pepper, and 1/2 cup of the liquid,
cover pan, and braise the vegetables until they begin to soften,
about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and mushrooms and cook 7 to
10 minutes. The vegetables should be nearly, but not completely,
cooked. If the pan gets dry while they cook, add a little more
liquid. Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine the vegetables with rice and
cheese. Season with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.
Gently mix in the tofu, and put mixture into lightly oiled
casserole. Add a little more liquid to moisten. Cover with foil and
bake 1/2 hour. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes. Garnish with fresh
herbs.
