Vegetarian Paella

(This is a vegan dish I tweaked from a Peta's The Compassionate Cook cookbook...Is that how you spell tweak? Anyway...) This dish has a long list of ingredients, but it's very easy to make, and the result looks more wow-y than you expect. It's a rich yellow color!

I usually serve it with refried beans and tortilla chips.

Ingredients:
1 cup white rice
2 cups boiling water
1 T. canola or olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 green bell pepper, sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 cups vegetable broth (or water if need be)
1 t. salt
1 T. paprika
1 t. turmeric
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved (although I have just dumped a drained can of chopped tomatoes in when I didn't have any fresh)
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
1 small jar chopped or sliced pimentos (optional)

Method:
Mix the rice and boiling water, and let stand for 20 minutes. Then, pour off the water.

In the meantime, heat the oil in a large skillet (that has a lid) over medium heat. Saute the onion and bell pepper until the onion is transparent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and sauté another 3 minutes. Add the rice and broth (or water), bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Stir in the salt, paprika, and turmeric. Cover and simmer until the rice is tender, about 20 minutes (but check after about 15...different varieties of rice cook at different speeds).

Once the rice is tender, stir in the tomatoes and artichoke hearts. Turn out onto a serving dish and garnish with pimentos, if using.