Sunday, July 27, 2014

Creamy Lentil Rice Casserole

With Jamie gone and it being just Nya and me for dinner, I've been a little unmotivated in the kitchen. I haven't been doing anything elaborate, instead, throwing things together at the last minute. But with friends with toddlers coming into town, I needed get back to "real" cooking, and prepare dishes that are not only packed with nutrients, but yummy for all ages!

I adapted this recipe from April over at Kid Tested Firefighter Approved. It was one of the first dishes I made when eliminating dairy from my diet, and one of Jamie's first favorites in the plant based world. This is usually my go to dish when I have to bring something to parties because everyone always loves it, and I can be getting ready while it bakes (a HUGE plus to slaving away in the kitchen all day!).

It does take a long time to bake, but is easy to prepare and full of creamy goodness. And the best part, it's made from whole foods, so it's a great first dish for toddlers!

What you need:

6 cups water or veggie broth

1 cup brown or green lentils

1 cup brown rice (quinoa and millet work here too!)

1 large onion, chopped

8 cloves garlic, chopped or pressed

4 cups loosely packed spinach, chopped

2 15 oz cans of diced tomatoes

2 Tbsp Italian seasoning

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Cheeze Sauce 

3/4 cup raw cashews

1 1/3 cup water

4 tsp mellow white miso (any will work, I always happen to have the white on hand)

Juice from 1 lemon

4 Tbsp nutritional yeast

4 tsp tapioca starch (cornstarch or arrowroot powder work also!)

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

dash of cayenne pepper


What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine all ingredients except for Cheeze Sauce in a 13 x 9 baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 45 minutes.


3. In a high speed blender or food processor, combine all ingredients for the Cheeze Sauce, and process until smooth and creamy.

4. After the 1 hour and 45 minutes, remove foil, add cheeze sauce, and stir until combined.


5. Keep uncovered and bake for an additional 20 minutes.


Enjoy!

To connect with others in this crazy journey of life, discover new parenting ideas & fun DIY projects, learn about holistic remedies, & find whole food plant based recipes, please visit our Facebook page Loving Green at Loving Green FB.

2 comments:

  1. This is a very tasty and hearty dish! I used quinoa instead of brown rice. Also, I did not have miso so I put a little tahini in there instead (I have no idea if they're even comparable!) I love the different flavors and I can't wait to see how C likes it! I think my mom might even like this one- I'm slowly turning her on to quinoa!

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    1. Quinoa is a great idea for this dish! Miso tends to be a bit "tangier" but they are pretty comparable, so that's a great sub! So glad you all liked it! How did C do with it? This was one of our first plant based dishes that Jamie actually loved. It turned him in favor of plant based eating. You could say it made him a believer! :-) I will have to give it a try with quinoa next time. Thanks for a great tip!

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