Vegetarian Paella Jenny MacFie
prep time: 02:40 cook time: 00:30+cooling 00:10 serves: 6-8 cost: $12.00 vegetarian
	Takes hours, and worth it. This is our favorite of Jenny MacFie's recipes. It has a clean light taste, quite a change from the usual seafood paella. Between dinner and dessert, some guests will nibble on the almond/egg/cheese/olive topping; decide ahead of time how permissive you want to be. Unless you chop quite a bit before you turn on the stove you will likely get stuck at some point with the next ingredient not yet chopped. Any time this has happened I've just turned off the stove and caught up without any ill effect.
3/4 lb zucchini, thinly sliced salt 1/2 c oil 3 c onions coarsely chopped 2 c brown rice 2 c white vegetable stock 1 T turmeric or 2 pinches saffron 2 cloves garlic, minced 3 red bell peppers, thinly sliced 2 c tomatoes, coarsely chopped 2 t salt 1/2 t black pepper 1/2 pack (5 oz) frozen peas 1 pack (10 oz) frozen artichoke hearts, quartered 1 1/4 c almonds, coarsely chopped 3 hard boiled eggs, finely chopped 2 1/4 c sharp cheddar, grated 1/2 c black olives	Sprinkle zucchini generously with salt and let drain 30 minutes. In large pan, fry onions in oil over medium heat until golden brown. Add rice and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly so the rice doesn't stick and is evenly coated with oil. Pour in stock (or substitute water), turmeric or saffron, and garlic, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Rinse the zucchini and pat dry with a towel. Add to pan, with red peppers and tomatoes. As always, the reason to use red peppers is for their color; green will do if you're strapped for cash. Canned tomatoes are okay too. The rice should be moist, but not too mushy; pour on a little more water if it is too dry. Season with salt and black pepper. Cover and cook for 10-15 more minutes, until rice is soft and peppers and zucchini are tender but not soggy. Add peas and artichokes. Turn mixture into an oiled flameproof dish, about 9x13. Sprinkle it with the almonds, eggs, cheese, and olives. Cook at 350¡ for 30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes.