Try this rice pilaf for a delicious side dish of health grains and veggies. Finely chopped summer veggies and rice with a flavor boost from vegetable broth and a hint of spices.
Ingredients
Rice: Use long grain rice. Either white or brown rice will work.
Vegetable broth and water: Cooking the rice and the veggies in vegetable broth helps to soften them and add a nice extra bit of flavor. I used about two to three cups of broth and two cups of water.
Butter or margarine: Melting a few tablespoons of butter or margarine in the pan and searing the veggies before adding the broth helps to cook them thoroughly and punch up the flavor.
Zucchini and summer squash: I used two zucchini and one small yellow summer squash, finely chopped.
Sweet onion: One sweet onion, finely chopped.
Carrots: I used two large carrots, finely chopped.
Rice Pilaf with Vegetables
Peel the onion and the carrots.
Dice all veggies (onion, carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash) into tiny pieces and rinse them in a colander.
Heat four tablespoons of Smart Balance covered pan over the stovetop and pour the veggies in the pan, then cover the pan. Set the timer for five minutes and let the veggies sear in the covered pan.
Add two cups of vegetable broth and a cup of rice then cover the pan again. Set the timer for 15 minutes and let the broth boil and start to cook the rice and veggies.
Add two cups of water and cover the pan again for 15 minutes to finish cooking the rice and veggies. If necessary to cook out all of the liquid, cover the pan and cook for 15 more minutes before serving.
