Let me just start by saying I love zucchini! Love, love, love! But we usually just brush some olive oil on it, sprinkle it with salt and pepper and grill it. Kinda boring. Tasty, but boring. I need some more exciting ways to eat zucchini. When I first saw this recipe I was intrigued. My thought process went something like this: rice, ok, zucchini, love, cheese, I need to make this! And so I did. And I am very glad that I did. I will make it again and again. But I am still on the lookout for more ways to use zucchini. Let me know if you have any great recipes.
But back to this rice. First, I love the idea of cooking the rice in chicken broth instead of water. It is a great way to infuse flavor into the rice. Side-note: I do the same thing with mashed potatoes. Instead of boiling them in water I use chicken broth. I made this for a quick lunch one day, so we ate it plain. But I think it would go great with grilled chicken or grilled steak. Your definition of healthy and my definition of healthy may not be the same. But I consider this a pretty healthy side. You could even add more zucchini and cut down the amount of rice and cheese, if you wanted in order to make it healthier. The addition of the cheese kind of makes it like a quick, easy version of risotto without the constant stirring. The cheese gave it a nice creaminess, which I really liked. If you like zucchini, I highly recommend this recipe!
Here is what you’ll need
Bring the broth to a boil and add the rice
Shred the zucchini
Let rice cook about 20 minutes
Add the butter and the zucchini
Add the cheese
Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir. Ignore the artichokes in the background. There are no artichokes in this recipe!
Yum!
