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~

Lentil Grapefruit salad with Mint and Black Pepper Dressing

Easily the most beautiful dish I've ever created, this healthy salad is packed with flavor, has an excellent source of protein, and has a unique combo of flavors, which keeps things interesting. I've been on a major grapefruit kick lately, so having it in this salad made it even better. This works as a light meal, appetizer, or could be multiplied and served family-style.

Lentil Grapefruit Salad with Mint and Black Pepper Dressing
By Caroline Mac
Ingredients:
Single Serving
1 1/2 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup lentils, cooked, and packed in a small cup
1/2 grapefruit, peeled and separated into small wedges
4 mint leaves, shredded, 2 whole for garnish

Dressing:
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1/2 T lemon juice
1/4 t ground black pepper
pinch dried rosemary

Step 1: Whisk together all dressing ingredients until thoroughly blended. Set aside. You may want to whisk it up again before serving

Step 2: Spread spinach leaves at the bottom of a dish. Flip the cup of lentils onto the spinach base and slowly lift cup away, maintaining the shape of the lentils. Place grapefruit pieces evenly around the lentils.

Step 3: Sprinkle mint leaves over entire salad and drizzle with dressing. Top with two mint leaves for garnish.

Enjoy!

Southwestern Black Bean Hummus

Here's a southwestern twist on a mediterranean classic! I had some spread on a rice cake topped with sun dried tomatoes. You could also serve it with veggies, crackers, or even in a mexican-inspired wrap!

Southwestern Black Bean Hummus

By Caroline Mac

Ingredients:

1 can black beans, drained, no salt added

1/4 c tahini

3 T fire roasted green chilis

2T Southwest style seasoning

11/4 t cumin

2 pinches salt

1t lime juice

6-10 drops Cholula hot sauce

Puree all ingredients in a food processor until creamy! 

Enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Here's another hummus recipe in case you're tired of the simple recipe!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
By Caroline Mac
Ingredients:
1 can garbanzo beans, 2 T of liquid reserved
1/2 c tahini
3 T Lemon juice
1/2 cup fire roasted peppers


Step 1: Blend tahini, liquid and chickpeas in a food processor. Add lemon juice and peppers and blend until creamy and smooth.

Serve with your favorite veggies, chips, crackers, or bread!

Enjoy!


                

Lazy Friday Chipotle Black Bean Salad

It's Friday, it's the end of the week, and I got back from the gym and did not want to make the rather complicated Black bean soup I had originally planned on making. However, I still wanted to make something with black beans. Yay for improvisation!

Honestly, I didn't measure anything when creating this recipe. My suggestion is to start with the beans and add the seasoning to taste. One can of beans makes enough for two nights or so.

Chipotle Black Bean Salad
By Caroline Mac
Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained
Chipotle hot sauce
1 yellow bell pepper
Sun dried tomatoes
Salsa verde
Southwest seasoning

Step 1: Add tomatoes, seasonings, pepper, and sauces to beans and mix thoroughly. Serve warm, cold, or room temperature. I had mine as a side with a mixed green salad.

Enjoy!

Southwestern Tofu Scramble

Until just a couple weeks ago, I had never eaten a tofu scramble! Crazy right? A vegetarian that has never had this dish... Well, it turns out that I love it. My initiation into tofu-scramble-dom occurred at Whole Foods. They had a Cajun tofu scramble with Cajun sweet potatoes.

It turns out that making a tofu scramble is incredibly easy. I think they're generally made for breakfast, but I did it for dinner. My dad got me a gift of gourmet spices at a cooking shop near my studio, including Southwestern seasoning, a Singapore seasoning, and an Balti seasoning. I've made it my goal to make something each night with these spices as the inspiration. Tonight was Southwestern night. I found a basic recipe online and decided on my own spices and serving suggestion.

Check back in tomorrow for a new Asian recipe!

Southwestern Tofu Scramble
Inspired by Vegetarian Times
Ingredients:
1 red bell pepper, diced
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 clove garlic, minced
2t Southwestern seasoning
1 16-oz package extra firm tofu, rinsed, drained, and crumbled
1-2t Mexican hot sauce
2T cilantro, chopped
Salsa verde, for garnish
1/2 avocado, garnish
Olive oil for saute

Step 1: In a large sillet, saute pepper and carrots in olive oil over medium-high heat until tender. Add Onions, garlic, and seasoning and cook for a couple more minutes.

Step 2: Add Tofu and hot sauce, stir until evenly mixed and cook until heated through.

Step 3: Stir in cilantro.

Step 4: Serve topped with salsa and avocado. You can also add more hot sauce if you prefer a spicier dish.

Enjoy!