Cheesy Baked Chile Rice

Ohhhhhhhh this is comfort food but it tastes like Mexican food and it's so easy and you can make it ahead and it's vegetarian but hearty and filling and cheesy. 

It's great for a Monday, is what that should tell you.

This rice is all of the things. 

Also, how was your weekend?  Mine was kind of .... rained out.  I had 93737 fun things planned for the sunshine, and then there wasn't any so....whomp whomp.  

We DID, however, celebrate a full year in our house!  I did 3 loads of laundry to celebrate.  Cool, huh?

Or not.

So, the rice.  We need rice (white or brown, your choice), stock, cream cheese (mine is vegan!), sour cream, a green onion, green chilies, green pepper, cumin, and grated cheese. Feel free to use whatever kind you like....I was feeling lazy and pre-grated just felt right to me. 

So, first, lets get started on the veg.  Finely dice a green pepper.

Then, in the same pot you'll use to cook the rice, add the green pepper and a teaspoon of cumin to the pot over medium heat with a drizzle of oil. 

While the green pepper is working, thinly slice the scallion and separate the white and green parts. 

Stir the green pepper for 5 minutes or so until it just starts to soften, then add the rice.  1 cup makes plenty for 4 people!

Stir the rice with the green pepper for a minute to coat it in the oil, then toss in the white parts of the scallion.

Now, onto the stock!  I like chicken stock in this - that with the cheese kind of ends up tasting like cream of chicken soup, which is lovely even if chemical-laden, but vegetable stock or even water would work just fine!  Just add the amount of liquid that the instructions indicate for your rice.  Then, cover the rice and cook using the directions provided until the rice is juuuuuuust cooked.  Don't let it go too long - it'll cook a bit more in the oven!

See?  Cooked rice.  Nice.

Now, add the chilies, cheese, sour cream, and cream cheese to the pot. 

Stir everything together and.......yum.  Taste!  Add salt if you need to.  I didn't because the chilies, cheese, and stock had plenty of salt. 

Now, spread this into a baking dish, and sprinkle the rest of the cheese all over the top.  I drizzled in a tiny bit of milk because I wasn't going to bake my rice until later and didn't wait to dry out.  You can add 2 tablespoons of milk to your mixture, or not.  Totally up to you. 

Now, let's cook this and eat!  There are two options for cooking here:  baking or broiling.  If you make the rice, stir everything together, then immediately want to eat it it'll still be hot, so you can just broil the cheese for 3 minutes or so and serve!

Like this.  Duh.  OR, if you make this in advance, bake the rice for 20 - 30 minutes at 375F until it's heated through and the cheese on top has melted.  It's totally up to you which method you use, and it all depends on how far in advance you make this nonsense.

Top the rice with the scallion greens, and you've got rice, kids.

I think this is super cute in little ramekins, as a side to your favorite Tex-Mex dinner.

The flavor in this was REALLY delicious.  I'm a huge fan of canned green chilies, and with the cumin....MAN.  Really simple yet great flavor.

Since there is technically carb, veg, and protein in this, you could TOTALLY eat it as a meal.  I did, and don't regret this one bit. 

You could of course serve this with an extra green veg and some lean protein too - this would also be great for a potluck!

Try this soon, friends.  It'll make your taste buds happy.  Promise. 

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 Shared with my buds @Weekend Potluck.  Check out ALL the incredible recipes, and the hosts:

• Sunflower Supper Club ~ Kim & Julie
• 4 Little Fergusons~ Tonya
• The Country Cook~ Brandie
• Mommy Time Party ~ Tabitha
• The Better Baker ~ Marsha

Enjoy!