Healthy Holidays: Easy Baked Vegetable Risotto

Over the holiday season I've been trying to reinforce the fact that festive food doesn't have to be unhealthy to be delicious. Even casseroles and stuffing can be done in ways that we cut out the unnecessary fat, calories, and preservatives and retain even more flavor than the unhealthy originals.

In addition to recreating yearly favorites, most of us like to introduce at least one new dish a year to change things up. Wouldn't it be great to do something different this year that is delicious, comforting, and healthy? Yeah, that's what I thought. Let me introduce you to my little friend - risotto. This creamy and luxurious rice dish has been a staple of italian cooking for centuries and there's good reason for it, it's delicious. Made with arborio rice, risotto gets its creamy texture from the starch that is contained in each kernel of rice. Why is this good? Because you get the mouthfeel of eating something creamy and rich that normally you'd associate with alot of fat.

Health Benefits Of Arborio Rice

This short grain rice is often overlooked as a health food, however that isn't true at all. It is high in calories and carbohydrates, so you do want to control your portion size but it has other healthy benefits over normal rice.

• Protein - a one cup serving of arborio rice contains 9 grams of protien, which is twice as much as long grain white rice.

• Fiber - arborio rice contains twice as much fiber as long grain white rice which helps regulate your digestion and can play a pivotal role in weight loss.

• Calcium - a one cup serving of arborio rice contains 45% of your daily recommended dose of calcium which maintains your bones and teeth. This also reduces your risk of Osteoporosis.

• Iron - arborio rice is rich in iron and one cup provides youwith 12% of your recommended iron intake.

• Vitamins A & C - one cup of arborio rice contains 12 percent of your recommended daily vitamin A  and 6 percent of vitamin C.

So lets get to creating a new dish for your holidays that is rich, delicious, and healthy! By using this healthy rice and mixing it with nutritious vegetables, this recipe is sure to please the taste buds of anyone looking for a festive casserole.

Easy Baked Vegetable Risotto

Ingredients

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray casserole dish with cooking spray. In a large nonstick skillet heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, rosemary, and mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes until soft. Add rice and continue cooking and stirring for 2 minutes. Add broth and wine and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and pour into casserole dish. Cover dish with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and stir in green beans, red bell peppers, and 1/2 cup parmesan. Cover and cook for another 15 minutes or until liquid is fully absorbed. Mix in remaining parmesan and serve.

Serves 8