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Baked rice and zucchini

This one-pot meal is quick to prepare and a great way to use up excess zucchinis.
Ingredients
  • 3/4 cup brown rice
  • 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 500grams green zucchini, scrubbed (but not peeled), thinly sliced
  • 500grams yellow zucchini, scrubbed (but not peeled), thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh oregano leaves
  • 1 punnet cherry tomatoes, all halved
  • 90grams low-fat ricotta
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
Method
  1. 1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius.
  2. 2. Cook the rice in boiling water until al dente, about 35 minutes. Drain and set aside in a bowl.
  3. 3. Whilst the rice is cooking, combine the oil and onions in a large non-stick frying pan and cook over moderate heat until soft, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic and stir for one minute more.
  4. 4. Add zucchini and cook 5 minutes, until crisp and tender, then stir in oregano and season with coarsely ground black pepper.
  5. 5. Add zucchini mixture to the rice, together with the cherry tomatoes and ricotta. Mix well.
  6. 6. Spread evenly in an ovenproof dish sprayed with mono/polyunsaturated oil cooking spray. Scatter with parmesan. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and cook a further 20 minutes or until top in golden and filling is bubbling.
Notes
Tip: leftovers make a great meal reheated the following day. *From Heart Foundation's The New Classic Cookbook*