Confetti rice is a side dish that can also double as a main course! Vegetarian and vegan options too!

Delicious Side Doubles As A Main

Did you ever make a side dish that you knew could double as a main dish? This Confetti Rice falls into that category.

I have, so I know you did too! My Buttery Broccoli Cheese Casserole is one of those casseroles–hint: it’s GREAT for a Thanksgiving side–and so is this rice recipe!

Great Taste Can Stand On It’s Own

Frankly, I didn’t think this was a dish I could fall totally in love with. After all, it’s just rice and some veggies, particularly bell peppers, that I wanted to use up before they went bad. I had a handful of frozen peas I wanted to use up as well.

But somehow the flavors all came together to make something that was a lot more than just the sum of it’s parts.

This rice was so totally awesome, that I couldn’t stop eating it and actually looked forward to reheating it later on in the day.

Use any veggie combo you like in this dish. The only thing I say is necessary are the bell peppers. Use those always, but the rest you can use up those bits and pieces you have hanging around in the freezer.

Make It Vegetarian Or Vegan

The beauty of this confetti rice is you can make it vegetarian and even vegan!

For vegetarian, just use vegetable stock in place of the chicken stock–as long as butter and cheese are acceptable for you to eat (many of my vegetarian friends do).

If you want to make this vegan, then replace the butter with vegan butter, olive oil or coconut oil. And of course use certified vegan vegetable stock in place of the chicken and omit the cheese.

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The Recipe

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Confetti Rice

Confetti rice is a side dish that can also double as a main course! Vegetarian and vegan options too!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time35 minutes mins

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: confetti rice, how to make rice, rice salad

Servings: 6

Calories: 309kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 6 tbs butter
• 1 1/2 cups jasmine rice uncooked
• 1 tbs chicken base see NOTES
• 3 cups water
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded carrot
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/4 cup frozen baby peas
• 1/4 cup frozen corn kernels
• 1/2 small green bell pepper cut into thin strips
• 1/2 small red bell pepper cut into strips
• 2 tbs Parmesan or Romano cheese

Instructions

• Melt butter over medium heat in a large, deep skillet. Add the rice to the pan and let the rice toast (brown a bit), stirring frequently.
• Add the chopped onion, shredded carrot and garlic to the pan. Fry for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Stir in the water and the chicken base; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low and cook until liquid is almost absorbed; about 10 minutes
• Add the cheese, peas, corn and peppers; stir to combine. Cover and cook over low heat for 5 minutes.

Notes

Chicken “base” is a concentrated stock. I use Better Than Bouillon (low-sodium variety

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 309kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 344mg | Potassium: 187mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2545IU | Vitamin C: 25.7mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 0.6mg

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Quite possibly the perfect side dish!  This orzo is easy, cooks quickly and is flavored with asiago, fontina and parmesan cheeses!

If you need a quick and easy side dish, stop right here because this is it!

Easy and cheesy

I recently discovered fontina cheese, thanks to my friend Melissa G (aka Ms 7-Up) who made a spectacular and mouthwatering mac and cheese with it.  She told me I MUST try fontina!  So I did and I love it.

The asiago and parmesan here add the zing.  Asiago is a pretty strongly flavored cheese which offsets the creaminess of the fontina.  The parmesan is the balancing flavor.  You can sub romano for it if you want.

Takes only minutes to prepare

You can also substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream but I strongly recommend using the heavy cream.  There’s not much of it, but it goes a long way.  I prefer it to lesser-fat creams since it’s thick and when it combines with the cheese you have instant rich cheese sauce.

The Recipe

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Three Cheese Orzo with Broccoli

Quite possibly the perfect side dish!  This orzo is easy, cooks quickly and is flavored with asiago, fontina and parmesan cheeses!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time8 minutes mins

Total Time18 minutes mins

Course: side dishes

Cuisine: American

Keyword: broccoli, broccoli and cheese, orzo, three cheese

Servings: 4 -6

Calories: 387kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 1 cup orzo uncooked
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock*
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup frozen chopped broccoli
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup cream I used heavy cream
• 2 tbsp grated parmesan
• 2 tbsp shredded asiago
• 2 tbsp shredded fontina
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions

• *You may also use 1 1/2 cups water with 1 stock cube as a substitute
• Steam broccoli until bright green and crisp-tender. Drain and set aside.
• Place orzo, chicken stock and olive oil in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until liquid is almost absorbed (about 5-8 minutes).
• Uncover orzo and fluff. Add the broccoli, butter and cream. Stir until the butter is melted. Add the salt & pepper.
• Add the cheeses, remove the pan from the heat and stir until cheeses are melted.
• Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Serving: 1person | Calories: 387kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 71mg | Sodium: 624mg | Potassium: 236mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 792IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 133mg | Iron: 1mg

Three Cheese Orzo with Broccoli

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So easy, yet so tasty.  Spinach haters may give this one a go.

This Asian spinach is so easy to prepare.

It takes less than 5 minutes to make and will be a hit with the entire family.

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Asian Spinach

So easy, yet so tasty.  Spinach haters may give this one a go.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time2 minutes mins

Total Time7 minutes mins

Course: side dishes

Cuisine: Asian

Keyword: asian spinach, spinach

Servings: 4

Calories: 50kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 cloves garlic crushed
• 1 bag about 4-5 cups baby spinach or regular spinach, washed and de-stemmed
• 1/2-1 tsp coarse sea salt

Instructions

• Heat oil and crushed garlic over high heat in large saucepan. Oil must be heated almost to the smoke point. Swirl pan constantly, and remove and discard garlic when it starts to turn golden.
• Place spinach in hot oil and stir constantly, maybe for 1 minute. Add salt and stir. Spinach will wilt down to 1/2 the original amount.
• Serve immediately. Makes about 4 servings.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 50kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 347mg | Potassium: 396mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 6658IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 2mg

Asian Spinach

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Asian Green Beans

This is one of my most favorite things to eat at a Chinese buffet…ok dim sum (dumplings) too…

Incredibly easy to make.  You can start with fresh whole green beans, but if you are lucky enough to have an Aldi around you, they sell the most FABULOUS frozen whole baby green beans that are perfect for this.  If you start with fresh beans, cut off the stem end

Crisp, tasty & delicious

If using frozen beans, defrost them then drain them and dry them off a bit, as any water will make the hot oil splatter.

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Asian Green Beans

Incredibly easy to make.  You can start with fresh whole green beans, but if you are lucky enough to have an Aldi around you, they sell the most FABULOUS frozen whole baby green beans that are perfect for this.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time5 minutes mins

Total Time10 minutes mins

Course: side dishes, vegetarian dishes

Cuisine: Asian

Keyword: asian green beans, green beans

Servings: 4

Calories: 135kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 16 oz bag of whole frozen green beans defrosted and drained/dried –or- de-stemmed fresh
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 clove garlic crushed
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp dark sesame oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame seed

Instructions

• Heat 2 tbs vegetable oil in large skillet or wok. Add crushed garlic clove and stir around until it begins to brown; remove and discard garlic clove.
• Add drained and dried beans and sprinkle with the 1 tsp of sugar. Stir fry until they are bright green. Add the soy sauce and the sesame oil and stir and toss to coat beans.
• Remove to platter and sprinkle with toasted sesame seed. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 135kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Sodium: 817mg | Potassium: 289mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 782IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 2mg

Asian Green Beans

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Party Rice Balls

These are as easy as 1-2-3 and can be made ahead of party time.  In fact, they can even be reheated.

Addictive!

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Party Rice Balls

In a word, purely addictive.  The perfect snack for watching football or any time.

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time10 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Course: Appetizers

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: rice balls

Servings: 24 rice balls

Calories: 69kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked white rice
• 3 cups water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese
• 1 tbsp fresh minced parsley or 1/2 tbs dehydrated parsley
• 1 cup plain breadcrumbs
• oil for frying

Instructions

• Bring water and 1 tsp. of salt to boil and stir in rice. Reduce heat, cover and cook rice until all water is absorbed. Fluff rice and set aside until it is warm to the touch. You must work with WARM rice, not cold.
• Mix the eggs, cheese and parsley in a small bowl. Add to the warm rice and stir well until all rice is coated with the egg mixture.
• In a separate bowl, add the cup of breadcrumbs. Keeping your hands wet, roll rice mixture into balls the size of a golf ball. Coat with breadcrumbs. Repeat until all the rice mixture is used.
• Heat about 1-inch of oil in a heavy skillet, preferably cast iron. Oil should be about 375 degrees OR when a cube of bread is dropped in the oil, it will brown in 1 minute.
• Add rice balls to hot oil and brown on all sides. This may have to be done in stages--do NOT crowd the pan! Fry maybe 6-8 balls at a time so they have plenty of room to move around in the pan. When brown, remove to a plate covered with a paper towel to drain oil. These may be kept warm in a 200 degree oven until all the rice balls are cooked.
• Makes about 24 rice balls. Serve with marinara sauce and extra cheese.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 69kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 201mg | Potassium: 28mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 70IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 1mg

Party Rice Balls

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