Cheesy Quinoa Black Bean Stuffed Bell Peppers
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Category
Dinner
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Cusine
American
What do you need?
How to make?
Ingredients
1 cup uncooked quinoa
Salt
6 large bell peppers, any color
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained
4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, 2 cups for stuffing, 2 cups for topping
3 to 4 green onions, finely sliced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro
Directions
Place 1 cup of quinoa, 2 cups of water, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes, covered. Spread cooked quinoa out in a baking dish to cool quickly.
Cut the top 1/2 to 1 inch off of the bell peppers and remove the core and seeds inside.
Fill a large pot with an inch of water. Place a steamer rack in the pot, place the pepper shells on the steamer rack, cut side up. Bring to a boil, cover and steam the peppers 5 to 10 minutes, until they begin to soften.
In a large bowl mix the cooked quinoa, drained black beans, 2 cups of the grated cheddar cheese, most of the green onion , cumin, and cilantro if using. Stuff the bell peppers with the stuffing you've prepared. You should have plenty of stuffing, you can pack it and mound the stuffing in the peppers. Place 1/4 cup of water at the base of the peppers.
Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes. Then remove from oven, uncover, top with the remaining 2 cups of cheese, and return to the oven to cook, uncovered, until the cheese has melted about 5 to 10 minutes.
Sprinkle with remaining finely sliced green onions to serve.