If you’re trying to incorporate more plant based meals into your diet check out my easy recipe for Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Black Bean Stuffed Peppers that I developed for Mealthy.com. These peppers are stuffed with protein packed quinoa, sweet potatoes, corn and black beans, and then seasoned just right with cumin, lime juice and cilantro.
It doesn’t take too long to pull these stuffed peppers together. Just cook the quinoa, saute the veggies then stuff the peppers. They bake for about 25 minutes so that gives you some time to relax and have a glass of wine or two before dinner. For a timesaver, you can use the bags of precooked quinoa instead of cooking it yourself. You’ll need about 2 cups cooked quinoa. You can also prep the stuffed peppers over the weekend, then just pop in the oven when you get home from work.
I used queso fresco in this photo, but to keep this totally plant based there are a lot of plant based cheese options out there now. Personally, one of my favorite brands is Violife. Their Just Like Cheddar Shreds are perfect in this recipe.
These Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Black Bean Stuffed Peppers are packed with good for you ingredients and are easy way to enjoy good, healthy food. They’re vegan and gluten free. Remember, eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring. Enjoy!
- 1 cup tricolor quinoa
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion , chopped
- 2 jalapeño peppers , seeded and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 large sweet potato (about 12 oz.) cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 cup black beans
- 1 cup corn
- 1 1/2 cups shredded vegan cheese or queso fresco
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro plus additional for garnish
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 4 medium red bell peppers halved lengthwise and seeded
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Preheat oven to 375°F.
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Combine quinoa, salt and 2 cups water in medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 15 minutes or until quinoa is tender.
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Meanwhile, heat oil over medium heat and cook onion, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in jalapeno peppers and garlic and cook 1 minute. Add sweet potatoes and cumin and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender-crisp, about 6 minutes.
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Stir in beans, corn, cheese, cilantro and lime juice.
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Arrange pepper halves in 3-quart baking dish. Evenly fill peppers with quinoa mixture. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake 25 minutes or until hot and peppers are tender.
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To serve, sprinkle peppers with cilantro.
