Meatless Monday Brown Rice and Veggies

I put this rice dish together with things I had on hand and it was delicious! Tom added cheddar cheese to his rice. The rice was warm enough so that it melted the cheese ... yummy! I opted for a little feta on my rice. You can prepare the rice ahead and keep it in your frig to add to the other ingredients when you get home from a day of work or errands.

Note:
Just wanted to say that I don't hesitate to use canned beans when I cook, if I am short of time. When grocery shopping, be sure you look for the brands in your grocery that you like and stick with them. This may take a bit of experimenting. It's probably better if you can use dried beans instead of canned, providing you have the time.

I ALWAYS rinse all the varieties of the canned beans I use. I also discard the bean liquid. I think there's a lot sodium in most major brands and I hope rinsing will help get rid of some of the salt. For some reason, canned organic beans seem to have less added sodium. You will notice that I don't add salt when using so many canned products. And of course, you should use low-sodium or no salt added products whenever possible.

Veggie Brown Rice
Ingredients:
6 cups cooked brown rice
1-16 oz package frozen broccoli flowerets, cooked
1 (14.5 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (14.5 oz.) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 (28 oz.) can Southwestern diced tomatoes, with juice

1 (10 oz.) can RoTel original diced tomatoes & green chilies, with juice
Shredded cheddar cheese or Feta cheese
1/4 tsp. pepper
Pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large pan and heat. Serve hot with shredded cheddar or feta cheese sprinkled on top.