I’ve made this a few times and the kids always love it. There are so many different variations of this dish so get creative! You can make this with or without the spinach and tomato addition. A few people said they used the leftovers as dip! I used it (in my next post) for Leftovers Lasagna! Enjoy!

Cheezy Rice & Lentil Bake

Cheezy Rice & Lentil Bake (with Spinach/Tomato/Quinoa option!)

INGREDIENTS

3 cups low sodium veggie broth or water
3/4 cup uncooked lentils – I used green lentils
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice or quinoa
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 Tbsp italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
* 10oz package frozen spinach (optional)
* 1-15oz can diced tomatoes, drained OR 1 box Pomi chopped tomatoes, drained (optional – you could use 1 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes here too!)
** Cheeze recipe below

Possible additions – artichoke hearts (add to the spinach version!), 1 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes, soaked for 30 minutes (instead of Pomi or canned), green chiles, red pepper flakes, use leftovers from Spinach Artichoke Dip instead of the LowFat Nacho Cheese…

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients except the cheese in a baking dish (I use an 11 x 7 for the original recipe – used a 9 x 13 with the spinach and tomato addition).
3. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 10 minutes – (the quinoa/lentil/spinach took about an hour)
4. Make the cheese sauce before the time is up – takes about 5 minutes.
5. Remove the foil, add the cheese (recipe below), stir well and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

** If using tomatoes, add them in and stir 5 minutes before it’s done.

Low Fat Vegan Nacho Cheese

Ingredients
¼ cup raw cashews – I soaked mine for a few hours first
⅔ cup non-dairy milk – I used unsweetened almond milk
2 tsp yellow miso paste
½ tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp salt
2 tsp arrowroot or cornstarch
¼ cup roasted red bell peppers – I use a whole one from the jar
½ tsp cumin
¼ tsp black pepper
a dash of cayenne pepper

Cheese Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or Vitamix type blender and process until smooth and creamy.

Cheezy Quinoa & Lentil Bake made with spinach and tomatoes – stir all ingredients in one pan before baking!

Make your cheeze sauce!

Quinoa & Lentil Bake – ready for cheeze and tomatoes!

Add in cheeze sauce and stir

Put back in oven, uncovered

Add in tomatoes 5 minutes before cook time is done

Yummy!

Quinoa & Lentil Bake with Spinach & Tomatoes