Santa Fe Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers-a fresh healthy treat!
What do you do when you accidentally buy seven bell peppers and you already had five at home you forgot about?? I was racking my brain, trying to the of the perfect recipe to make, and then it came to me. Stuffed Bell Peppers!
You can stuff bell-peppers with so many different foods. It’s fun to be creative and come up with a vast array of combinations. Because I was new to stuffed bell peppers I thought I’d start with a salad dressing we use frequently as a base and go from there. A Sarr Family favorite when we eat salads is just to use 2 parts organic olive oil to 1 part of some kind of vinegar. I thought I would use quinoa to stuff the bell peppers with equal parts olive oil and vinegar since we are trying to add more apple cider vinegar with “The Mother” to optimize our gut health.
The Verdict: We thought the stuffed bell peppers were easier to eat when they were cut lengthwise. The quinoa is moist and very flavorful. We have already added this into our rotation a few times. Avocados and tomatoes would be a great addition, too.
I cut the bell pepper into fourths when we had guests over for more of a snack size and so the bell pepper wasn’t overwhelming. Also, you don’t have to use all of the quinoa for stuffing, but it stands alone and can be used as a great main or side dish.
A Trick: If your bell pepper won’t lay or sit flat, ever-so-carefully slice off a little piece of the bottom to make a flat base so the bell pepper can rest easily.
Santa Fe Quinoa Stuffed Bell Pepper
Ingredients
- 4 cups cooked organic quinoa which is 1 cup dried; rinse & cook just like rice
- 1 can organic black beans rinsed (1 1/2 cups)
- 1 cup organic corn
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- handful of raw spinach finely chopped
- ½ red onion diced
- 1 T chili powder
- 1 T minced garlic
- 1 t cumin
- dash of salt
- 7-8 bell pepper color of your choice
- optional cilantro as a garnish
Instructions
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Combine apple cider vinegar, olive oil, chili pepper, garlic, cumin, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
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Add cooked quinoa, black beans, corn, spinach, onion, and mix well.
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Cut the stem off of each bell pepper, and remove the seeds and membrane.
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Cut the bell pepper length-wise or even out the top of the bell pepper, depending how you want to fill it.
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Fill the bell pepper with the quinoa stuffing, and garnish with cilantro.
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Serve the bell pepper raw, and enjoy!
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Optional, top with Monterey Jack Cheese and broil at 500 degrees for approximately 7 minutes, or until the cheese is a golden brown. Omit cheese for dairy-free/V.
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Optional, you can also bake them at 400 degrees for 30 minutes covered with foil, then uncover, add cheese and bake for another 10-15 minutes if you want a tender bell pepper.
Go here for the complete list of recipes. Updated 5/14.
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Oooh, these sound so tasty!! I love quinoa salads, and I probably eat at least one pepper each day. Great way to combine my two loves! 🙂 Thank you!
Hi Heather, You are welcome! Thanks for visiting!
Oh yum! This is definitely something I want to try! And I happen to have some peppers in the fridge!
Hi Heather, It is quick and easy, and so moist and tasty. Hope you enjoy, and thanks for visiting!
I am always looking for quinoa recipes! These look great! I would love it if you could link these up today at Thrifty Thursday! http://www.juliakendrick.com/2013/03/thrifty-thursday-blog-planner-and-linky.html I hope you have a great day! Julia
This recipe looks great! Thanks for sharing the tip about cutting the peppers lengthwise.. all these years of stuffing peppers from the top and having them fall over 🙂
Hi Sherri, You are welcome, and thanks so much for visiting!
This sounds so yummy. I can’t wait to try it. I believe we have all ingredients on hand. Love your site. 🙂
Hi April, Thanks so much for the encouragement and for visiting!
I’ll chime in. While these were surprisingly tasty when done dairy-free, they were super yummy when topped with the cheese and broiled. And very moist, too. Way to go, Sonja. 🙂