Quinoa Roasted Red Peppers

Leftover Veggies Here We Come!…

Do you ever have one of those days when you decide to make something new with all of your leftover veggies in the refrigerator?  Well that is how these quinoa roasted red peppers came to be.  It is fun to experiment with a new recipe whenever I have mushrooms and peppers waiting to be chopped up and added to something.  One of the great things about roasted peppers is that it takes surprisingly small amounts of ingredients to stuff them.  I thought it would be fun to try something different than the traditional rice and veggie mixture.  And then there was quinoa in the pantry…

orange and red peppers

To massage or not to massage… that is the question….

I love mixing quinoa with white wine and chicken stock.  You can chop up your veggies while the quinoa is simmering away on the stove.  Orange peppers, mushrooms, and thyme are the beginning layer of flavor for the peppers.  I thought it would be fun to add some massaged kale to the mix.  Massaging your kale is all the rage these days!  It makes the kale tender and even more delicious.

sizzling peppers, mushrooms, and thyme

OOEY and GOOEY never sounded so good!

Roasted peppers would not be complete without some ooey gooey cheese to add the melty goodness.  I decided on fontina and parmesan cheese because they both melt beautifully, and add a nutty rich flavor to the quinoa mixture.  After the peppers are stuffed and ready to go in the oven, sprinkle a little more cheese on the top for the perfect first bite.  Whenever I am roasting peppers, I like to brush them with a little olive oil to enhance the flavor while they are cooking.

roasted peppers

The quinoa roasted peppers are so beautiful!  Especially when you are lucky enough to find peppers with long stems.  The bright orange peppers and the rich green kale look so pretty against the rich red color of the peppers.  They become more incredible as you take your first bite of the quinoa and veggie mixture inside.  These roasted peppers can stand on their own for a lighter meal, or they can be a hearty addition to a grilled meat or fish.

Quinoa Roasted Red Peppers

roasted red peppers stuffed with quinoa, orange peppers, mushrooms, and melty cheese = lets make these right now!

• Author: Sue Larson
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour +
• Yield: 4 big peppers 1x
• Category: vegetable
• Method: stove top and oven

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

4 large red peppers (with pretty long stems if available!)

Olive oil to brush on peppers before they go in the oven

2 TB olive oil

2 cups quinoa

1 1/4  cups white wine

1 carton of vegetable or chicken stock

2 TB butter

8 chopped mushroom caps

1 chopped pepper ( I like orange)

10 sprigs of fresh thyme stripped

1 tsp white pepper

1 tsp salt

3 leaves of “massaged” kale – stem removed, ripped in smaller pieces

3 cloves minced garlic

Juice and zest from 2 lemons

15 chopped basil leaves

1/2 cup grated fontina cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Heat olive oil in a large stock pot.  (you will need additional room later for sauteed vegetables)

Pour 2 cups of quinoa in the pot on medium heat and let “cook” until quinoa pops

Add 1 cup white wine, stir for 1 minute (additional wine is for the bottom of baking dish)

Pour chicken or veggie stock in pot and cover and simmer for about 15 minutes

In a separate skillet melt 2 TB butter

Add mushrooms, peppers, thyme, white pepper and salt and saute for 2 minutes

Add kale and saute until softened

Remove from heat and add minced garlic

Return to very low heat and saute for 1-2 minutes stirring constantly

Remove from heat and set aside

Combine lemon juice and zest with cooked quinoa

Mix in basil, Italian parsley,  fontina and parmesan cheese (reserve small amount of cheese for top of peppers)

salt and pepper to taste

Add pepper/kale/mushroom mixture to quinoa mixture

Cut the tops off of 4 red peppers and reserve the tops

Remove the seeds and membrane from inside the peppers

Spoon quinoa mixture into the peppers

Top with reserved cheese

Place the reserved pepper tops back on filled peppers

Hold peppers together and lightly brush with olive oil

Place in baking dish, leaving space between the peppers

Pour reserved white wine in bottom of pan

Roast in 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until the peppers are softened and slightly charred

Remove from oven and serve