Vegetarian Recipe #12: ChickPea and CousCous Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed Peppers are beautiful and tasty! Fill them with anything you have in the fridge.  Here's what we invented....

Ingredients:
5 large bell peppers
1 cup pearl couscous
vegetable broth
1 can chick peas
1 lime
1 small tomato
1 small zucchini
1/2 c. broccoli
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
small contained of feta cheese
1 Tbsp. chili pepper
1 tsp. oregano
1 pinch chipotle pepper
salt and pepper
1-2 ripe avocados

Instructions:

Start with about 5 beautiful peppers from your garden or Farmer's Market.  Choose peppers that are multi-colored, bright, and firm.  Cut off the stems and carefully remove the seeds from the center, while keeping the pepper in tact. These will be your bowls. Set them aside.

In a sauce pan, cook the pearl couscous, according to the package, except use vegetable broth instead of water, to add extra flavor.  While that is cooking, chop all vegetables into small pieces.  Saute zucchini, onion, garlic, and broccoli until cooked but still firm (you can also add scrap pieces of the bell peppers for color).

Once ingredients have finished cooking, combine them with the can of chick peas (rinsed) in a large bowl.  Add diced tomatoes, spices, and juice from the lime.  Add in at least half the container of feta cheese.  Taste this mixture before filling the peppers.  Add additional spices if necessary.

Fill the peppers with your couscous mixture and top with the remaining feta cheese.  Carefully cover the peppers with tinfoil and cook for 30 minutes at 350-degrees, or until the peppers begin to soften.  Remove the tinfoil and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes to crisp the tops of the peppers.

Serve warm with fresh sliced avocado on the side.  Eat the bowl and all.

Note:  If you have extra coucous mixture after you fill the peppers, don't throw it away!  It'll taste great by itself the next day.

Vegetarian Recipe #5: Mango Salsa with Cucumber

This recipe idea came from the Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home Cookbook, which I modified slightly.

Ingredients:

2 mangos (the best are slightly soft to the touch and smell sweet)

1 crisp cucumber (un-peeled)

1 small tomato

1/2 red bell pepper

juice from 1 lime

2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro leaves

sprinkle of cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Chop all fruits and vegetables. Remove seeds of cucumber, tomato, and red pepper and discard. Combine. Add lime juice and cilantro. Stir and sprinkle in cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper to taste.

Serve chilled. Makes a great accompaniment to chips or on top of Black Bean Burgers (see Vegetarian Recipe #4)

TIP: Freeze Bell Peppers

Buy loads of bell peppers at a local Farmer's Market when they're in season! Wash and chop them (removing stem and seeds). Pat dry with a paper towel, then spread them out in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer for an hour. Use a spatula to then scoop the pieces into a gallon freezer bag. This method allows the pieces to freeze separately instead of as a big clump!

Your bell peppers will keep their color and texture all winter long. Not to mention you will have paid less and bought produce grown in your area instead of Mexico. They'll always be available to throw into soups, pizzas, pastas, omelets, etc!

Vegetarian Recipe #3: Veggie Stuffed Omelet!

Need to use up some vegetables in the bottom drawer? Try throwing them in this easy Saturday morning omelet. I always recommend free range eggs....you'll see a big difference in the color of the yolk!

Ingredients:

2 free range eggs

a splash of skim milk

a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese

1 clove garlic

salt and pepper

butter or olive oil for pan

1/2 c. chopped raw vegetables (your choice)

My favorite omelet veggies are:

• broccoli
• peppers
• onion
• asparagus
  
• spinach
• sun-dried tomatoes

Chop vegetables and garlic. Saute in small pan. Add spinach and sun-dried tomatoes after other vegetables are almost finished cooking. I prefer leaving the vegetables slightly crunchy.

In a small bowl, crack the eggs and add a splash of skim milk, salt, and pepper. Mix with a fork until egg yolks are evenly distributed. Coat large frying pan in a thin layer of butter or olive oil. Pour egg mixture into pan to form a thin layer.....it will almost look like an egg-tortilla. Let cook on medium heat until the top surface of eggs begins to dry. Use a rubber spatula to make sure the egg-tortilla does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

When eggs are finished cooking, add cooked vegetables to the top of one side of the egg-tortilla, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, and fold the other half of the eggs over the vegetables. DONE!

Gently transfer your omelet to a plate.

Add salt and pepper to taste. If you're lucky enough to have an avocado in the fridge, add a few slices to the top of your omelet. Everything is better with avocado.