Stuffed Bell Peppers with Quinoa

May 12, 2014

Check these babies out! Stuffed bell peppers with Italian sausage and quinoa. A simple, healthy and very tasty meal! I've been using quinoa instead of rice these days and I just love it. Its quick and all I hear about is how good it is for you.

I'm using green bell peppers, but you can use any color you like. Cut in half and remove the seeds and white parts. Place in a baking dish.

Brush with a little olive oil and bake in a preheated 400 degree(f) oven for about 15 minutes, flipping over once. The purpose of this is to get the pepper a little tender before we stuff it. Since the stuffing is already cooked and were just heating through, we want the pepper to be mostly cooked through as well. Plus a little char is nice to have and adds flavor.

While you prepare the stuffing, you can get the quinoa cooking. It usually takes about 15 minutes, so it will be done by the same time as the peppers and the stuffing. Just cook as instructed on the packaging. In a hot skillet, brown up some Italian sausage, then add some chopped onions.

I had some mushrooms in the fridge that needed to be used, so I chopped those up and tossed them in. My husband says he doesn't like mushrooms, but he still eats them when they're chopped up and in something like this.

Season with some House Blend.

Now for some fresh herbs. I use flat leaf parsley in pretty much everything, I also had some fresh sage, so I chopped up some of that and added it. You can use any fresh herbs though.

Once the onions and and sausage have become golden brown, you can add the cooked quinoa.

Turn the heat off and some grated Parmesan cheese. Mix everything together well.

Take a little taste and make sure it's seasoned well. If it needs a little salt, then add some.

Spoon quinoa mixture into each bell pepper, mounding it nice and high.

Top each bell pepper with shredded Italian blend cheese. Bake at 400 degrees(f) for about 10 minutes.

Cheese will be melted and golden around the edges. Top with some fresh chopped parsley.

MMMMM!! The quinoa has a slight crunch to it and the sausage is full of spices. The pepper is nice and tender and the perfect little "cup" to hold this delicious stuffing! A great weeknight meal, done in under 30 minutes.

 

RECIPE

STUFFED BELL PEPPERS WITH QUINOA

Prep Time: 10 Minutes  Cook Time: 25 Minutes Difficulty: Easy Servings: 2

Ingredients:

  • 2 bell peppers, cut in half, lengthwise, seeds and white pith removed
  • 1/2 pound Italian sausage
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1/2 cup cremini mushrooms, chopped
  • 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
  • SplenDIshes House Blend
  • 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
  • Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1 cup shredded Italian blend cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 deegres(f). Place bell pepper halves in baking dish. Brush with olive oil and bake for about 15 minutes, turning over once.

Prepare quinoa as instructed on package.

Saute sausage in a hot skillet until it starts turning golden brown, then add onions. Saute until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and saute another 4-5 minutes, then add parsley and sage and season with House Blend. Turn heat off.

Stir in cooked quinoa and mix well. Add about 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese. Then season with salt to taste (only if needed).

Fill each pepper with a generous amount of stuffing, pressing into pepper and piling high.

Top with shredded cheese and bake for 10 minutes until cheese is melted and golden around the edges.

Top with fresh parsley and serve 2 pepper (halves) for each person.




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