Stuffed Bell Peppers

Boyfriend has been working crazy hours this week. He has a project deadline coming up so he's been pulling all-nighters at the office :( Me, being the awesome girlfriend that I am, wanted to cook something for him that was healthy, satisfying, and delicious! I went to my usual website, Tastespotting, for some inspiration. If you haven't been to this website, you should check it out! It's a compilation of different food blogs with amazing photos of food and creative twists to old and new recipes. Plus, it just brightens up my day to look at food!

I have always been a fan of bell peppers. I love the taste, raw or cooked, the shape of the vegetable, and I especially love all the amazing bright colors!

I decided to make some yummy stuffed bell peppers. Most recipes include ground beef or ground turkey in the stuffing, but I just wasn't in the mood to cook meat, so I opted for a vegetarian version. My stuffing consisted of quinoa, black beans, mushrooms, onions, garlic, sundried tomatoes, asparagus, and tomato paste.

By the way, have you ever tried quinoa?? It's one of my favorite rice substitutes. Uncooked, it looks like this:

You can get it at Trader Joe's or Henry's. It has a nutty flavor and goes great with everything! Besides being tasty, it's also very healthy. It's one of the only plant foods that has all the essential amino acids and  is a great source of dietary fiber, iron, and magnesium. It is also gluten-free. I like to think of quinoa as "super food!" 

You can cook quinoa on the stove, but I discovered you can also cook it in a rice cooker! I LOVE my rice cooker. I used equal parts of quinoa and chicken broth (for more flavor, but you can use water or vegetable broth), press the on button, and let the rice cooker do all the work!

I washed and hollowed out the peppers, fill the inside with quinoa stuffing, and baked them with the pepper lids on at 375 for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, take out the peppers and open the lids (carefully, they will be hot and soft!). I sprinkled generous amounts of Trader Joe's Shredded 3 Cheese Blend (mozzarella, monterey jack, and cheddar cheese) over each pepper. Put the lids back on, and back into the oven for another 5 minutes! 

Take the peppers out of the oven and let them cool slightly before handling them.

Grab a fork and knife then enjoy!!!