Ok, not the prettiest meal, but darn tasty!

This recipe was inspired by my mom’s classic stuffed bell peppers, as well as Olivia’s recipe, and finally, Kevin’s love for all things quinoa. This is a veggie recipe that could easily go vegan with the omission of cheese – I’m 100% certain it would still taste fantastic but I had a block of Gruyere just begging to be used. This is another quick weeknight meal: it would probably be under 45 minutes for a good multi-tasker, but definitely less than 45 minutes if you make the quinoa ahead of time. Protein and vitamin-filled, easy and gooey delicious – how can you resist?

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

2 cups mushroom broth or water (I prefer homemade mushroom broth if it’s available, really amps up the flavor)

8 ounces mushroom of choice, sliced (I like the tastes of criminis)

1 zucchini, sliced and quartered

1/2 large white onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup grated Gruyere cheese, optional (can substitute any other melty cheese you’d like)

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

5 large bell peppers

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place quinoa and broth into a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until grains are soft and chewy. Stir every now and then, but no need to babysit (I love that about quinoa!).

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; saute until fragrant, just a few minutes. Add mushrooms and zucchini and saute until soft and just starting to brown.

Mix quinoa with vegetables and season to taste with salt and pepper (although I like to go easy on the salt in this one – you are adding some cheese too, remember). Fold in Gruyere.

Cut the tops off of the bell peppers and remove the seeds, leaving a bowl-like shell. Gently spoon the quinoa mixture into each bell pepper and space a few inches apart on a baking sheet or large casserole dish (the edges help keep not quite perfect bell peppers from falling over). Bake, uncovered, for about 25 minutes if you like your bell peppers a bit crunchy or 30 to 35 if you’d prefer them soft.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound dried beans of choice (as long as it’s something hearty and fit for chili, you use your own judgment)

Olive oil

1/2 large red onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, chopped

2 red bell peppers, chopped

2 zucchini, cut into half-inch slices then quartered

28 ounce can diced tomatoes

3 diced chipotle peppers with about 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (this made for very spicy chili, however, so reduce amount listed here and work your way up to a level with which you feel comfortable)

How beautiful are those colors?

1/2 cup to 1 cup water, mixed with 1/2 a 7-ounce can of tomato paste (vary amount of water based on how thick you want your chili)

3 ears of fresh sweet corn, kernels sliced off the cob

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Pick through and then rinse beans. Cover with a good amount of water and let soak overnight. Be sure to put enough water in there; these babies plump up a lot (I know from experience, mine were a tad crunchy).

Next day, drizzle some olive oil in your chili pot of choice and saute onions, garlic, bell peppers and zucchini over medium heat until soft and fragrant. Add in beans, tomatoes, chipotle peppers and adobo sauce, tomato-paste and water mixture, corn and salt and pepper. Mix well, then cover, reduce heat to low, and let simmer for about 30 minutes. For the vegans, this would be great topped with some chunks of avocado; for everyone else, sour cream or cheddar cheese would also rock.

Ingredients:

Marinade

Juice of 3 limes

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sambal oelek (ground red chili paste, found at most Asian food markets)

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon sea salt

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (double chicken and marinade for a more “normal” fajita ratio)

1 large zucchini

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

1 red onion

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons sambal oelek

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

¾ cup sour cream

4 large tortillas

Can be prepared in approximately 1 hour, Serves 4

Directions:

First, cut the chicken into ½-inch thick strips of about 2 inches in length. Then, mix together all of the ingredients for the marinade. Place the chicken and marinade in a shallow bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the chicken is marinating, chop the zucchini into slivers ¼-inch thick and approximately 2 inches long. Cut the bell peppers into thin strips, and then halve the strips (so that they are approximately 2 to 3 inches long as well). Slice the red onion into similar-sized pieces.

Place the chopped vegetables into a large bowl and toss with the olive oil – this covers them with just a light coating of olive oil, as well as mixes up the veggies for even cooking. Divide the vegetables up evenly into a large pot and a large frying pan. Sauté over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. After 5 minutes, add 1 teaspoon (if you like your food spicy, maybe half a teaspoon if you prefer milder food) of sambal oelek to each pan. Cook for approximately 3 minutes more, or until vegetables seem done (and be careful to keep your face out of the steam, the chili paste will make your eyes water!). Transfer frying pan vegetables into the large pot, and turn the pot’s burner down to low heat so that you keep the vegetables warm while you are preparing the chicken.

Using the same frying pan you just cooked the veggies in, cook the chicken over medium-high heat until done, approximately 10 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. While the chicken is sautéing, chop the cilantro into small to medium-sized pieces and mix with the sour cream – you will need this to cool off the spicy fajitas. You may also want to place the tortillas in a warm oven or the microwave to heat before serving.

Once the chicken is cooked, arrange the chicken, vegetables, tortillas and cilantro-sour cream in bowls and plates and let your guests build their fajitas to taste. Serve with cold beer or a bottle of chilled Sauvignon Blanc.