Enchilada Rice Casserole

August 30, 2012 in Entrees, Other

I promised that I would post the recipe for the dinner that I made last night…and here it is! This is a super easy Mexican casserole that can be prepped for and cooked all within 45 minutes. This recipe was adapted from a recipe at Vegan Awakening’s blog (http://veganawakening.wordpress.com/2009/10/31/enchilada-rice-casserole/).

To create this meal you will need:

Servings: approximately 6

1 tablespoon of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
2 cloves of minced garlic
1 small yellow onion
1 green bell pepper
1 15 oz can of reduced sodium pinto beans (drained and rinsed)
1 15 oz can of enchilada sauce (mild or hot, depending on your liking)
4 cups of instant brown rice, cooked according to package directions
2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast*
2 teaspoons of ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
sea salt, to taste
salsa, optional
shredded part-skim Mexican or cheddar cheese, optional

*Nutritional yeast is an ingredient used in a lot of vegan cooking that is nutrient rich and gives food a “cheese-like” taste w/out actually using dairy products. This product can be found in any health store, in health markets at your local grocery store, or online. If you are not using nutritional yeast, you could substitute shredded part-skim Mexican or cheddar cheese.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Heat EVOO in pan over medium heat. Cook garlic, onions, and peppers until golden and tender.

3. Meanwhile, combine enchilada sauce, nutritional yeast (if using), ground cumin, dried thyme, and cayenne pepper. Stir until well-combined.

4. In a 9 x 13 baking dish (sprayed w/ cooking spray), combine rice, onion and pepper mixture, and enchilada sauce mixture. Stir until well-combined. If desired, mix in shredded cheese.

5. Season with salt, to taste.

6. Bake, uncovered, 30-40 minutes. I baked mine for approximately 30 minutes.

7. Top each individual serving with the salsa of your choice and shredded cheese (unless you want this dish to remain vegan, as I did).

This is a great meat-free dish, but you could also add in ground turkey, lean ground beef, or shredded chicken, if you’d like!