Wave 2 - Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

  • This is from Light & Tasty, Feb/March 06. I haven't tried it yet, but it looks to be Sonoma-friendly, so I thought I'd post it. I only made one adjustment - to replace the sunflower kernels with pine nuts or almonds.

    Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

    Yield: 6 servings

    1 can (14.5 oz) vegetable broth
    1/4 cup water
    1 bay leaf
    1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
    2 each medium sweet red, yello, and orange peppers
    4 medium carrots, finely chopped
    2 medium onions, finely chopped
    1 tablespoon canola oil
    2 tablespoons pine nuts or almonds (slivered? sliced?)
    2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/2 teaspoon dried basil
    1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
    1/2 teaspoon paprika
    1/8 teaspoon dried marjoram
    1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
    Dash cayenne pepper

    In a small saucepan, bring the broth, water, and bay leaf to a boil. Add quinoa. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Discard bay leaf.

    Cut peppers in half lengthwise and discard seeds. In a large kettle, cook peppers in boiling water for 3-5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse in cold water; invert onto paper towels.

    In a large nonstick skillet, saute the carrots and onions in oil until tender. Add the quinoa, pine nuts/almonds, and seasonings; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until heated through. Spoon into pepper halves. Place in a 15x10x1-inch baking pan coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees or until peppers are tender.



    Note -- vegetable broth and pine nuts are not on any of the wave lists, but are in recipes, so I'm assuming those are okay. I'm not sure what form of almonds would be best - I'm thinking slivered...

    Let me know what you think!
  • what's wrong with sunflower kernels? They are an excellent source of monounsaturated fats, just like the nuts you listed.
  • Are they? Good to know - I didn't see them on either of the Wave lists, so I figured I'd better substitute them.

    Thanks!
  • Thanks for this recipe! Peppers are the one part of Sonoma that I just can't abide ;-( but I'm sure the stuffing would also be good in tomatoes!