Reviewed: Oct. 12, 2009

As with many others, I substituted fresh mushrooms, extra amount of sharp cheddar cheese rather than processed, doubled the amount of rice, added a bit of basil, only baked 30 minutes - easy to prepare, tasty, nice consistency - especially liked being able to prepare in morning & simply pop into oven 1/2 hour before dinner

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Marge

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Reviewed: Oct. 11, 2009

I thought this was good, but not great. Like others, I used real cheese (fresh mozzarella) instead of processed cheese. I also used fresh mushrooms instead of canned, orzo instead of rice (and I added more than what is called for), and half a red bell pepper since I happened to have it in my fridge. It might be better after it has sat in the fridge overnight... we'll see. Not bad, but it didn't take my breath away.

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platypusofdeath

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Birmingham, Alabama, USA

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Reviewed: Sep. 26, 2009

This was really good, I did change a few things, per other's suggestions. I doubled the rice (and added more water) and used Jasmine rice b/c that's what we had. Used a can of diced tomatoes, added garlic, basil, oregano and shredded cheddar instead of processed cheese. Added some panko w/a couple of squirts of butter spray over the casserole when putting in oven. Baked for 40 minutes then 1& 1/2 minutes on broil to brown top. It was great and my 2 year old niece even loved it as did my the rest of my family.

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mom2three

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Sep. 10, 2009

Perhaps one of my new favorites -- definitely going to become a staple in our house! The only change I made to the directions was to only bake for 40 minutes and that seemed like plenty to us!

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jgregory

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Reviewed: Sep. 4, 2009

Fabulous casserole! You can use a ton of squash from your garden that you keep trying to get the neighbors to take! My kids had thirds of this recipe. I used canned tomatoes and I didn't bake it at the end. My mom made it exactly like the instructions and we both liked the changes I made better. Baking it makes the zucchini too mushy!

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MYKIDSMOM5

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Austin, Texas, USA

Living In: Ogden, Utah, USA

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Reviewed: Aug. 26, 2009

This was really yummy! I hate to rate it 5 and say I made changes, but I think it would have been good as written too. We don't like canned mushrooms, so I used fresh and I used 2 cups grated cheddar because we don't do processed cheese. It's definitely a keeper no matter if you make it the way it's written or my way! :-) YUM!

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Caryn

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Reviewed: Aug. 26, 2009

I made this exactly as it was written and it turned out great! My husband loved it. I will definitely be marking as one of our favorite.

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chloe799

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Reviewed: Aug. 11, 2009

My zuk and tomatoes from the garden are crazy so with that said I am constantly trying new things to use them up. This was perfect, with a few changes. 1st I didnt read through the whole recipe, like you should, before I started and when I saw 1hr cook time I decided to let it sit in the fridge and make the next night since I was short on time. I used ground Italian Turkey and mixed that with the zuk and tomatoes it was watery but was not the next night. Added some different seasonings per taste and then the next night through in a bag of Birdsey frozen brown rice put some mozarella in then on top with parmeson and more mozarella and a bit of cheddar. I cannot stand processed cheese! I did not measure but didnt use alot. It was pefect loved! Hubby thought a bit bland so added some salt, my 4yr old ate but protested (he does with everything) my 6 year old liked. Definately a keeper and next time might experiment a bit more with some seasonings.

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MOCHAJEN

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Reviewed: Aug. 8, 2009

All I can say is awesome recipe!!!!!!!!!!

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MINDYMELT

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Aug. 7, 2009

So tasty and fresh! Used about 8 oz fresh mushrooms and added some minced garlic as well. Threw in some green pepper I had on hand. Also increased the rice to 1 cup and I used brown rice. Used some leftover mozzarella melted on top. Delicious! A new favorite at my house! Thanks for sharing :)

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VariableVeracity

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Reviewed: Jul. 25, 2009

My husband and I loved this dish! I only used 1/3 lb. of chicken Italian sausage because I prefer less meat, it was perfect. Also, I love basil so I added quite a bit of that. We'll be having this regularly!

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v-house

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Reviewed: Jul. 17, 2009

This was very good. I usually don't change recipes I find on here but I did not have some of the ingredients needed. I used ground turkey in place of the sausage and spanish rice [seasoned with the mix in the box]in place of the white rice. It was amazing!

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Doria

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Reviewed: Jul. 9, 2009

Very good! Prep work is a little time consuming with the chopping and pre-cooking of veg., sausage, and rice. I used yellow squash from my garden and a can of cheddar cheese soup...all I had. I did add bread crumbs drizzled with butter on top which really added something extra. Turned out great. I always make enough to freeze. It reheats wonderfully. Enjoy!

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Jen :-)

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Reviewed: Jun. 15, 2009

This is really good! Of course, I changed it up a bit. We had Italian sausage on hand and no mushrooms. A little yellow summer squash added in too. Wonderful! Oh, I also used Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses. My picky 1 1/2 yr old LOVED it! Thanks:)

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MSP820

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Reviewed: Jun. 10, 2009

I made some minor changes (ie turkey sausage), but this is one of my new favorite dishes. My mouth is watering just thinking about how good it was!

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Shana

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Reviewed: May 16, 2009

This was pretty yummy. I didn't change much except doubling the rice and using shredded sharp cheddar. I also used italian seasoning instead of oregano. I undercooked the rice just slightly so that it could soak up any excess moisture from the tomatoes and zuchinni and let it bake in the oven for the full hour. Tasty and filling! Will make again.

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ThreeFish

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Wheeling, West Virginia, USA

Living In: Lawton, Oklahoma, USA

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Reviewed: May 14, 2009

Pretty good. One thing I messed up - When the cheese was cubed, 8 oz didn't seem like enough, so I put in 16. Big mistake! 8 oz. would have been perfect, mine tasted too processed and was too cheesy. In an effort to make it healthier, I used Italian turkey sausage, fresh mushrooms and 2% velveeta. I made a topping with quarter cup bread crumbs mixed with some light margarine. Next Time I will use a whole onion and add a couple yellow squashes. Couldn't hurt to have twice the veggies since they cook way down when they are sauteed.

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KrisMarie

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 30, 2009

Even got the kids to try it!! Made a few changes. I doubled the rice and used 1/2 brown. Added Sazon seasoning from Goya to that. In a pan I sauteed onion and garlic and added tomatoes. Then I substituted broccoli (didn't have zucchini in the house!!)and cut up some fresh mushrooms really small (kids again). Threw in veggi chorizo and used both fresh chedder and the mexican velveeta (about half). To be honost, I had bought the velveeta at a buy one get one free (hadn't tasted it in years) and was thrilled to find a recipe to use it since I discovered I no longer liked it. It was GREAT in this recipe. I really suggest keeping it in. I put the rice layer on the bottom, and put the chorizo layer on top of that in the casserole dish rather than mixing it all together. I added the fresh cheese on top and baked for like 15-20 minutes (until the cheese melted and I could get everyone at the table). It was fantastic. Even better the next day. This recipe inspired me to plant some zucchini's in the garden the next day. Can't wait to try it out with them. Thanks!!!

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Food4Thoughts

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Apr. 19, 2009

This is really really good. I changed just a few things. I used 1/2 cup chopped onion instead of 1/4. I used seasoned italian sausage instead of just plain sausage. I never added the rice. Just cooked the rice seperate and used the sausage mixture as a topping for the rice. I springled the sausage mixture w/ garlic salt and flakes in addition to the salt and pepper and then baked in a 9x13 as stated then sprinkled it w/ a full bag of shredded cheddar cheese and only baked for about 30 min since everythings already cooked. Several people have said to leave out the processed cheese which I think is not a good idea. The processed cheese helps solidify the mixture and 8oz is such a small amount to even make a dent in taste, if anything just makes it a little cheesier thicker and better. Next time I might even add 4oz more of the prossed cheese. And then I might just take the whole sausage mixture and mix it w/ spaghetti sauce and serve it over noodles instead of rice. Anyway great idea for a recipe. Uses my 3 favorite vegetables and I love sausage so thats why I made this!

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