Creating healthy dinners doesn’t have feel complicated or overwhelming, especially on a busy weeknight. One of my favourite pantry staples to incorporate in plant-based cooking is quinoa. This pseudo-grain (meaning it mimics a grain, but is in fact a seed!) is packed with nutrients including protein, fibre, magnesium, and iron!
Make a large batch on a Sunday and use it all through the week for various dishes, including these totally easy weeknight stuffed peppers. If you’ve got a super-busy week ahead, try prepping the stuffed peppers ahead of time, then pull them out of the fridge when you're ready to bake!
Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 4 bell peppers, halved and seeded
- 2 medium sized carrots, diced
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- ½ white onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Portobello mushrooms, diced
- 1 small zucchini, diced
- 1 tsp each salt and pepper
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil or any neutral oil
From weeknight to weekend Make these peppers company-worthy by sprinkling the tops with some breadcrumbs or parmesan cheese, and up the flavour ante by spiking the water bath with a glug or two of white wine!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a pan over medium-high heat, sauté onions with oil for about 5 minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic during the last minute or so of cooking and let cook until fragrant.
- Add remaining veggies and sauté for 5-7 minutes, adding a sprinkle of salt midway through cooking to help the mushrooms release some water. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl, combine the quinoa and sautéed vegetables. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Arrange the pepper halves cut side up on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle lightly with a little oil and sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Using a spoon, lightly pack each pepper with the quinoa mixture, making sure to fill them right to the rim.
- Pour ¾ cup of water into the bottom of the baking sheet, being careful to avoid splashing the quinoa mixture. Cover with foil, and bake for about 40 minutes.
- Remove foil. Turn oven to broil and crisp tops for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.
