Recipe: Sweet Onion Casserole

I'm spending the day packing my baby up to go off for THREE nights! That's the longest I've ever been away from him in his little life. Because we're a little busy around here today, and because several of you said you'd like more recipes, here's one that I tried out from Cooking Light the other day. I've just subscribed to the magazine and I absolutely love it. (Sidenote, I also sell it! :) Let me know if you'd like a subscription!) This one was a good one! I can't remember what we enjoyed ours with, but I bet it'd be a good side for a roast or pork loin. Mmmmm...

Ingredients:

1 tbsp canola oil

4 cups chopped sweet onion (about 1 3/4 pounds) ('round here we just call that a Vidalia onion)

1/2 cup uncooked long-grain rice

2/3 cup 2% milk

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Gruyere cheese (Eddie wouldn't buy this kind because it was $$$ so we substituted Swiss instead)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/8 tsp ground allspice

Cooking spray

1/3 cup (1 1/3 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 325*.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil; swirl to coat. Add onion; saute' 5 minutes or until tender. Place onion in a large bowl.

3. Cook rice in a large pot of boiling water 5 minutes. Drain.

4. Stir rice and next 5 ingredients (through allspice) into onions. Spoon onion mixture into an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with Parmesan cheese. Cover and bake at 325* for 40 minutes. Uncover and back an additional 5 minutes. Top with parsley, if desired. Yield: 6 servings.