Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers

My friend Paige and I were overdue for a cooking night. Our choice? Stuffed bell peppers! Since neither of us had ever made this dish, we decided it would be safest to follow a recipe. Next time I'll definitely create my own! This yummy recipe is protein packed and was really delicious. I added a little extra heat to up the Mexican-style feel of the dish. It would still taste great without the spice, which I why I put "to taste" next to the cayenne. I can't wait to create my own fillings in the future!

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Adapted from Vegetarian Times

Ingredients:
1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
2 T olive oil
2 celery ribs, finely chopped
1 T ground cumin
Cayenne pepper, to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced

10 oz frozen chopped spinach, partly thawed
2 15-oz  cans fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained, liquid reserved
15 oz can black beans, no salt added, rinsed and drained
3/4 c dry quinoa
3 carrots, peeled and grated
1 c shredded cheese (I used vegan cheese)
4 large red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, ribs removed

Step 1: Heat oil over medium-high heat and saute onion, celery, and garlic until tender and fragrant. Add cumin and cayenne and saute for another minute. Reduce heat to medium, add tomatoes and spinach and cook for 5 minutes or until liquid is mostly evaporated (there will still be some, which is ok).

Step 2: Stir in beans, quinoa, and carrots, as well as 2 cups water. You can use a little less water is there is still a lot of water from the spinach and tomatoes. Bring this to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Quinoa should be tender. Stir in cheese.

Step 3: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour tomato juice in the bottom of a baking pan. Fill each pepper half  as full as possible with quinoa mixture and place in baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before eating.

Enjoy!

~Caroline~

Thanksgiving Special: Apple Chestnut Stuffing

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I know I haven't posted in ages, but that doesn't mean I haven't been cooking! Brace yourselves for an onslaught of recipes.

First off, I'll share a couple of the dishes I made for Thanksgiving. Since some of us couldn't go home for Thanksgiving, we all got together for a potluck! Here's my first pick:

Apple Chestnut Stuffing
Adapted from Vegetarian Times
Ingredients:
20 slices of hearty, crusty bread, cubed (I used a Multi-seed whole wheat and a Cranberry walnut from whole foods)
Olive oil to saute veggies
1 sweet white onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
5 ribs celery, chopped
2 tart apples, peeled and chopped
1 cup peeled roasted chestnuts, halved
1/4 cup chopped sage
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1: Preheat oven to 325 degrees f. Spread bread on a 9x13 baking pan and toast in oven for about 15 minutes.

Step 2: Saute onion and garlic for 2 minutes. reduce heat to low, cover, and let cook for 7 minutes. Add  apples, chestnuts, and sage and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat.

Step 3: Add salt, pepper, bread and broth to mixture and stir until evenly incorporated. Transfer mixture to a greased baking pan.

Step 4: Increase heat to 350 degrees. Cover pan and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 15- 20 minutes, or until top is crispy and browned.

Serve Warm!

Enjoy!