The few times I made this, I found myself standing over the sheet pan popping piping-hot meatballs into my mouth (because, you know, I had to make sure they were seasoned properly), then spooning the equally hot rice into my mouth, burning myself in the process, forgetting momentarily that I should also take a photo. This recipe has you prepping everything all at once and then dividing, rather than doing it multiple times, over and over again. It's a comforting yet light dish, with creamy coconut rice and herb- and ginger-filled meatballs that are par-baked first and then finish cooking with the rice.
I became obsessed with the combination of cumin, ricotta, zucchini and mint back in my Food & Wine magazine days; they published a chef's recipe with these ingredients and it felt like a revelation. My summer squash recipes have been inspired by it ever since, so this recipe draws on that flavor profile but uses goat cheese as a creamy substitute for the ricotta. I know you probably don't want to turn the oven on during the summer — which I fully get — but as someone yet to be blessed in life with their own grill (given my city-living choices) sometimes you just have to.
If you're one of the lucky ones, you can definitely grill these vegetables instead as it's more about cooking them to your liking and then adding them to the pasta..