Tomorrow is Go Red for Women Day, so I thought I would make the petite pilaf I featured last week and use it to stuff red bell peppers. According to http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables, red bell peppers are very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. They are also a good source of Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Potassium and Manganese, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Vitamin B6 and Folate. (While this web page notes a large portion of the calories in this food come from sugars, I think that since these are naturally forming sugars as part of the plant, they are acceptable, unless you are allergic to nightshade veggies. es)
I used the quinoa/aduki pilaf from last week’s recipe* to stuff these.
Utensils: Shallow saucepan for pilaf; steamer basket & pot for steamer; oven proof dish
Prep. Time: About 10 minutes, but part of cooking time
Cooking Time: About 15-20 minutes
Categories: Gluten-free, Dairy Free, Sugar Free (no sugar added, not the natural sugars in the peppers), Salt optional
Ingredients
See pilaf recipe by scrolling down to last week’s posting called Quinoa/Aduki Petite Pilaf
Red Bell Peppers, washed, cut in half lengthwise, seeds and membranes removed
* You will need about 1/2 cup pilaf for each pepper half, more or less depending on the size of your pepper.
Directions
1. While preparing the beans and the quinoa from last week’s postings, put water in steamer pot & bring to a boil, place pepper halves in steamer basket, and steam for 8-10 minutes. Peppers should still be a little firm, but more tender than raw.
2. Place pepper halves into an ovenproof pan. Scoop cooked pilaf into the halves and bake for just a couple of minutes. (If you make the pilaf earlier in the day or the day before, you will have to bake the peppers long enough to heat the pilaf.) Because the peppers are in half and less deep than stuffing the whole pepper, watch that you don’t burn the peppers.
3. Serve hot with a side salad and green vegetable. For additional protein (quinoa is highin portien), place some grated cheese on the pilaf before putting peppers in the oven.
Note: I made my stuffed peppers this morning and heated them in a 400 degree oven tonight. The pilaf was a little dry from standing in the frig, so I added a little oil to the top of the pilaf. The dish was very colorful and tasty! I served it with oven-grilled asparagus, since the oven was already on.
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P.S. On my Home Page I posted this website: www.goredforwomen.org/wearredday. The site mentioned Go Red stickpins were available for $2.00 at Macy’s for the next few days. Also, you receive a 20% discount if you buy the pin & also another item or if you are wearing red. Since I was going to Trader Joe’s & Macy’s is around the corner, I bought a pin and also some red socks to wear tomorrow. So find something red to wear to raise awareness of women & heart disease. The pin is tiny, but the color & shape are eye-catching.