Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

I had a few beautiful peppers sitting in the refrigerator that I was determined to stuff this week, only problem being my limited ingredients to stuff with. So, I threw what I had in a pot and these hearty fire crackers were created. I wanted to keep them on the lighter side so I went easy on the dairy, I encourage you to throw another pile of cheese on after they are cooked and give it a broil before serving. You only live once...

Ingredients:

(Quinoa Mix)
2-3 1 cup quinoa
1/4 cup pepper jack cheese
1/4 cup american cheese
1/4 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/2 chopped jalapeno
2 cups water
1 garlic clove minced
salt/pepper
1 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme

2-3 large sweet peppers
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon 'slap ya mama' seasoning (optional)
1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley (garnish)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

In a small pot add all off the quinoa mix ingredients, bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer for 10-15 minutes or until liquids are almost completely absorbed. (you don't want it to be too dry)

Take the peppers and carefully cut them open from the top down, making sure to not cut through the bottom. You want to create a boat to hold your quinoa filling

Remove all seeds from the peppers

Carefully spoon your quinoa mixture (allow to cool first if needed), completely stuff the peppers to the top

Lightly coat the peppers with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, lay flat onto a baking pan and bake for approx. 20 minutes or until the peppers are blistered and tender. Sprinkle additional cheese on top of cooked peppers and allow to cook until melted (optional)

For best results serve immediately