Roasted Peppers stuffed with tri-color quinoa, blistered tomatoes, zucchini and oaxaca cheese
We are eating more and more vegetarian meals these days and this recipe is a new favorite. It’s roasted peppers stuffed with tri-color quinoa, blistered tomatoes, zucchini and oaxaca cheese! We first learned about quinoa as an alternative protein source when we visited Miraval Spa in Arizona 18 years ago. It is a gluten free grain that mimics ditalini, a type of small pasta that my grandmother always put in her Italian wedding soup. This is a complete meal for a vegetarian because it is filling and full of flavor. You can make all the components ahead of time and assemble at the last minute. This is also another of our favorite beach picnic meals as it transports very well.
Picture from ’it’s a veg world after all’
Ingredients
3 bell peppers (we used one red, orange and yellow)
1 cup of tri-color quinoa
1 pint of cherry tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic
1 small zucchini
6 ounces of Oaxaca cheese
Olive oil
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Cut the peppers length wise on one side of the stem and remove all the seeds and the fibrous core. Place on a parchment lined sheet pan and brush the outside of the peppers with olive oil.
Toss the cherry tomatoes and place on another sheet pan with the garlic cloves and toss with salt and pepper.
Put both of the sheet pans in the oven at the same time. Roast for between 25-35 minutes. You want to get the cherry tomatoes so that they have a slight char and start to burst and the peppers should have a bit of char as well.
While the peppers and tomatoes are roasting prepare the quinoa. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and place in salted boiling water and cook until just tender - around fifteen minutes. Fluff up with a fork and place in a bowl.
Slice the cheese and cut the zucchini into small pieces. (cubes).
When the peppers are done toss the quinoa with some olive oil, salt and pepper.
Stuff each of the peppers with the quinoa, a few pieces of the zucchini and place the sliced on top and place the blistered tomatoes on top of the cheese.
Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese melts.
To serve drizzle a lit bit of olive oil on top.
