cheesy lentil & brown rice hotdish {vegetarian}

As August winds down I start thinking about back to school, autumn and cozy comfort food. Here’s a healthy, delicious dish that you can serve as a side dish or as a main course. Your vegetarian friends will be sure to ask for the recipe! It’s sort of magical how the ingredients for this dish cook together and emerge from the oven super light and fluffy. YUM!

~ preheat oven to 300 degrees F. ~

1 and 1/2 cups uncooked lentils

1 cup uncooked brown rice

1 small chopped onion

2 large cloves garlic, minced

6 cups low sodium chicken stock/broth

2 teaspoons dry Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

fresh chopped parsely for garnish

sour cream or plain greek yogurt for serving

In a large casserole dish, mix everything except the cheese, parsley and sour cream. Cover tightly and bake at 300 degrees F. for 2 and 1/2 hours. During the last 20 minutes of baking time, top with the shredded cheese.

Plate and top with parsley and a dollop of sour cream/greek yogurt. Salt and pepper to taste.

PS… this also makes a yummy taco, fajita or burrito filling!

Enjoy!

~Melissa