Quinoa & Veggie Stuffed Peppers

I've been trying to cook at least 2 meatless dinners each week. It's easier on the budget and our health. Quinoa is packed with protein and iron (ahem...pregnant ladies!) and is super versatile, not to mention much cheaper than any meat worth buying. In one serving, you get 6g of protein, 20% of your DV of Iron, 3g of fiber, and only 2.5g of fat.

I've become a big fan of stuffed peppers, but was not a fan of how long they can take to cook and haven't had much success with crock pot stuffed peppers because I like mine to still have some crunch. I had fresh zucchini from my mom's garden to use up and some organic peppers in the fridge so I threw this together and the hubby and I loved it. Feel free to replace some of the cheese with goat cheese (I would have if I had it!). It is a filling dinner that doesn't leave you bogged down when you're finished.

Begin by cooking your Quinoa. I like to use half vegetable broth and half water for some added flavor. (Chicken broth works well too if you aren't worried about keeping this totally meatless). 

 

While the Quinoa cooks (about 10 minutes), cut your peppers in half, top to bottom to make little pepper boats. These are easier to eat, in my opinion, than the traditional stuffed peppers. Put them face down on a pan (I know...shame on me for using tin foil...but I need a new pan for the toaster oven). Roast them to your liking. I did about 15 minutes in the toaster oven at 400 to keep them a bit crunchy (keep in mind they will cook a bit longer later on).

While those cook, chop up your zucchini and mix with a can of diced tomato (of course you can do fresh if you have it!), Italian seasoning, celery salt (or garlic), and ground flax. *Note: If you prefer your zucchini fully cooked, I recommend sautéing it here. Feel free to mix in the tomatoes and spices after they cook a bit and let simmer for about 10 minutes. I like crunch so I did not cook them first).

Next, mix in your cheese and cooked quinoa:

Then, turn your peppers over and stuff 'em! Top with a sprinkle of shredded cheese and some parsley. Cook for 15-20 minutes at 375 (this is in a toaster oven. Cook for 20-30 minutes in a regular oven).

Enjoy!

 

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Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 4 Organic Green Peppers
• 1/2C Quinoa
• 1/2C Vegetable Broth
• 1 large or 2 medium Zucchini
• 1 Can Organic Tomatoes
• 1T Italian Seasoning Blend
• 1/2C Shredded Cheese (I used Monterey Jack)
• 1t Celery Salt (or garlic)
• 1T Ground Flax (optional)
• 1/4-1/2C Shredded Cheese (for topping)
• Approx 1T Parsley Flakes to make it pretty

Directions:

1. Cook Quinoa in broth and water
2. Cut peppers in half, top to bottom, and remove pith and seeds
3. Roast face down for approximately 15 minutes 
4. Chop zucchini into thin quarter-round slices
5. Mix with tomato, Italian Seasoning, Celery Salt, Flax, and Shredded Cheese
6. Stir in Quinoa
7. Remove peppers and turn over
8. Stuff the peppers, top with cheese and parsley
9. Cook for 15-20 minutes at 375 (toaster oven) or 20-30 minutes in a regular oven. 

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Notes:
Why celery salt? As I will post soon, my husband and I are both allergic to Allium, which is the entire onion and garlic family. We won't stop breathing, but it gives us a headache (just to be by it), itchy lips and throat, and upset stomach. Celery has made a great replacement!

Why the toaster oven? I wrote this recipe when it was still hot out and we don't have A/C so I use the oven as little as possible in the summer. The toaster oven does a lot more than toast bread and cook pizza! I plan to post an entire series by/during next summer so you can save on your gas and electric bill in the summer.  

Apple & Pumpkin Spice Chip Cookes

Last fall, I started experimenting with my favorite holiday cookie recipe. By adding extra cinnamon and replacing the cranberries in the original recipe with chopped apple, I gave them more of a fall taste (see them here). This year, I got a little more courageous and switched up the recipe even more to make these delicious cookies that have been described as Autumn exploding in your mouth.

What really makes these cookies are the pumpkin pie spice chips that I discovered over at The Cupcake Project! I did not shape mine into cute chips like she did, but just rolled them flat onto parchment paper and cut them into little squares after they cooled. I also used maple syrup in place of the corn syrup and it worked out great! I made these the night before (you can make them days before, they will keep for quite awhile) For the chips you will need:

• 2/3 Cup Sugar
• 3T Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 2T Butter (at room temp)
• 2T Light Corn Syrup (I used Maple Syrup)
• 1/4t Vanilla Extract

Mix all ingredients and press out flat on parchment paper and bake your blob at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Let cool completely and then use a butcher knife or pizza cutter to cut out your squares. Save the little crumbs...they are awesome in coffee or to top these cookies or muffins!
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Now for the cookies! (Ingredients/Instructions at the bottom of this post)
Start by mixing your dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon) in a large mixing bowl (I like to throw them all in the sifter (except oats) and then whisk in the oats. In a separate bowl (on your mixer if you have one) beat the butter & sugars until well blended. Then, beat in eggs one at a time and add the syrup and vanilla. Then slowly mix in the dry ingredients as shown below.

I mixed in a 15oz can of pumpkin (although fresh is best!) at this point instead of with the wet ingredients because...well because I forgot I was adding pumpkin until this point. Once the pumpkin is blended well, add a bit more flour a little at a time (up to a 1/2 cup) to thicken the batter. Stir in the white chocolate chips and diced apple (with the mixer is fine). Then carefully stir in the pumpkin pie spice chips by hand.

Now you are ready to drop your batter onto a cookie sheet! You can roll these into balls to get a "neater" looking cookie, but with a baby I found keeping my hands free was much better so I used two spoons to drop them onto the cookie sheet and it worked very well. Keep them spaced about 2" apart to allow for spreading. Top with cinnamon or more pumpkin pie spice!

Bake for 10-13 minutes at 350 degrees (until the edges start looking golden brown. Don't let them get too dark, the batter is already a golden brown because of the pumpkin). Note that the chips will melt onto the pan if they are touching it. They didn't burn and came off easily, but you may want to bake them on parchment paper if you tend to have sticking issues with your cookie sheets.

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Apple & Pumpkin Spice Chip Fall Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2-2.5C. Flour
• 1tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1C. Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2tsp Vanilla
• 1C. White Chocolate Chips
• 1-2 Cups Pumpkin Pie Spice Chips (your preference)
• 1C. Butter (Softened)
• 15oz Can of Pumpkin
• 3C. Oats (I've always used quick oats)
• 1/2tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/2C. Granulated Sugar
• 1T Pure Maple Syrup (or honey)
• 1 medium-large apple, peeled and diced. I used a large Honeycrisp, and had extra.
• Cinnamon or Pumpkin Pie Spice (for topping)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Sift 2 Cups of flour, baking soda, salt, & cinnamon into a medium bowl
3. Stir in oats and set aside
4. Beat butter and both sugars until light and fluffy
5. Beat in eggs one at a time
6. Add maple syrup (or honey) and vanilla
7. Add flour mixture until well combined 
8. Blend in pumpkin 
9. Mix in up to a half cup of flour a little at a time as needed until batter is thickened
10. Stir in apple and white chocolate
11. Carefully stir in pumpkin pie spice chips by hand
12. Drop onto a cookie sheet about 2" apart
13. Sprinkle tops with pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
14. Bake 10-13 minutes
15. Enjoy!

 

Sweet & Spicy Bacon-Wrapped Jalepenos

My husband teaches at a school that actually has quite a few male teachers. Every now and then, they have a "guy fire" in our back yard to relax at the end of the week, and I take it as a time to use them as my taste testers. Typically, the munchies I make include jalapeños because the hubz loves anything spicy (and rarely does he actually think things are hot...he's a little crazy in the taste buds). I'd seen pictures of bacon wrapped jalapeños floating around Pinterest and decided to throw my own version together. I'm a fan of contrast. In art, fashion, and food. I like hot food with a cold sauce, sweet with savoury, and while I'm a wuss with heat, LOVE sweet & spicy. It's a party in your mouth. And what meat-eater doesn't love bacon?

I always suggest using homegrown or as natural/organic as possible ingredients. So if you can, start with organic jalapeños. Cut in half lengthwise and gut the suckers. I highly recommend wearing gloves, especially if you have a baby that may need you at any given moment. Or if you have a hang nail. Ouch.

Mix 1/4C of cheddar cheese with 8oz of cream cheese (softened). I threw in some celery seed here, but if you don't have onion/garlic issues like we do, feel free to add some garlic powder here.

Then, using a spoon, stuff the jalapeño slices. You don't want it spilling over, but feel free to stuff them to the top!

Then, wrap with nitrate/nitrite free bacon. You may cut the bacon in half, or use whole pieces. Half a slice of bacon fits nicely around one average sized jalapeño, but more bacon never hurt.

Here comes the sweet! Top with your BBQ sauce of choice (I prefer honey) and sprinkle with brown sugar.

 I cooked them in our toaster oven (we don't have A/C and I like to avoid unnecessarily heating up the kitchen). Next time, I will use a broiler pan so the bacon grease drains and the bacon gets all around crispy! In the toaster oven, at 350, these took about 20 minutes to cook. In a regular oven I'm sure it will take more like 30 minutes. Just keep an eye on it and cook until the bacon is to your liking.

One fire attendee said, "Duda if you weren't already married, I'd say these are marriage material." I'll take it!

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Ingredients:

• 10 Organic jalapeños (makes 20)
• 1 package Nitrite/Nitrate free bacon (10-20 in a package, make sure to get enough or you can cut some in half)
• 8oz Cream cheese
• 1/4C Cheddar cheese (shredded)
• 1T Celery seed OR garlic powder
• Honey BBQ Sauce
• Brown Sugar

Instructions:

1. Cut jalapeños in half, lengthwise and remove pith and seeds (or keep some seeds if you like it hot)
2. Mix softened cream cheese with cheddar and celery seed/garlic powder
3. Stuff peppers
4. Wrap with bacon (cut in half or full length, up to you!)
5. Top with BBQ sauce & baste
6. Sprinkle with brown sugar (don't be shy!)
7. Bake for 15-25 minutes, depending your oven and bacon crispiness preference.    

Apple Cinnamon White Chocolate Cookies

I've been craving fall food like crazy (who hasn't?) and came up with the idea to alter my favorite cookie recipe (White Chocolate Cranberry cookies). My mom got the original recipe from my Aunt Julie, who I believe got it from Ocean Spray Craisins. They quickly became a favorite...I love just about anything with white chocolate in it. The cookies stay soft and fluffy and delicious, and in my opinion taste better as a little time goes on and the flavors blend.

Ingredients:

• 2C. Flour
• 1tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1C. Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 2tsp Vanilla
• 1C. White Chocolate Chips
• 1C. Butter (Softened)
• 3C. Oats (I've always used quick oats)
• 1/2tsp. Cinnamon (heaping)...I'd add a bit more for more for these
• 1/2C. Granulated Sugar
• 1T Honey - I used pure maple syrup and it worked out great!
• 1 medium-large apple, peeled and diced. I used a large Honeycrisp, and had extra.
• Pumpkin Pie Spice (for topping)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Sift flour, baking soda, salt, & cinnamon into a medium bowl
3. Stir in oats and set aside
4. Beat butter and both sugars until light and fluffy
5. Beat in eggs one at a time
6. Add honey(or syrup) and vanilla
7. Add flour mixture until well combined
8. Stir in apple and white chocolate
9. Roll into 1-2" balls and place on cookie sheet about 2" apart (I did 2" for nice big cookies!)
10. Sprinkle tops with pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
11. Bake 9-11 minutes (since mine were larger, I did around 13 minutes)

 

A Super Yummy Leftover Recipe :)

So I tend to "wing" recipes because I usually don't have all of the required ingredients on hand, or I just feel like making it a different way. I thought I should finally start writing down my successes, and figured why not post them, too! I was inspired for this recipe by a post I saw on the Etsy Blog.

I started with a pizza dough recipe from The Joy of Cooking. For the filling, I grated (very finely) a carrot and stalk of celery. I then cut up our leftover turkey very finely (you could shred it, but I found using kitchen scissors to cut small pieces was so easy and quick!). I also added some leftover mashed potatoes as a binder, and a little leftover gravy to keep it moist and stick it all together.

I rolled out the dough into two 12" circles (what most recipes will yield) and cut each of those into 4 equal pieces. I then loaded in the filling and folded up the corners, baked them at 350 degrees for I'm not sure how long (I just watched it) and voila! We dipped them in leftover cranberry sauce (the awesome recipe from the last post). SO yummy!!