Tag: Lentils

Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

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It seems too early to be transitioning from fall to winter, but it’s kind of already happening. Why the heck is it so cold? And why is the sun rising at like nine and setting at like six? These are questions we have yet to answer, my friends. But in the meantime, we might as well embrace the freezing darkness that is winter and enjoy these stuffed peppers.

Stuffed peppers are an amazing comfort food🥰 They’re hearty and delicious, perfect for a cold winter night. These ones also happen to be super healthy, as well as vegan and gluten free. I used lentils and quinoa for the meat substitute, and it makes a filling that is INCREDIBLE. My advice is to double or triple the recipe so you can have tasty peppers for lunch all week long.

Also, if you don’t feel like cooking for hours or washing a TON of dishes, these are for you! I used canned lentils and already cooked quinoa for increased simplicity. You just need to fry up some onions and basically mix everything tightest in the pot. Then stuff your peppers, pop em in the oven, and let them get nice and soft on the outside, warm on the inside, and crispy on top😍 (Those crispy bits are the best part). You’re left with a meal that is so flavourful and filling that you’ll be like, take that, stupid winter. So yeah, the season might not be too bad if you’ve got these hanging around!

Hope you enjoy this recipe!:)

Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Serves: 2

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 2 large bell peppers, any colour
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 can of tomato paste (6 oz)
  • 1 cup cooked lentils (I used the brown canned variety)
  • 2/3 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 cup packed spinach
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. In a medium sized pot, heat the olive oil. Add in the diced onions and cook for 6-8 minutes, until translucent.
  2. Add the minced garlic to the pot and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Then dump in the tomato paste, lentils, quinoa, balsamic, soy sauce, herbs and spices, and stir to combine.
  3. Let the mixture cook for about 5 minutes, then add in the spinach and continue to cook until it’s wilted. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from the heat.
  4. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut out the tops of your peppers so that a round hole is left. Full each pepper with half of the lentil and quinoa filling, then place in a glass baking dish.
  5. Bake the peppers for about 15 minutes in the oven; then reduce the heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the top of the filling is crispy.
  6. Remove from the oven and enjoy!

Hope you guys are having a great week! I have another great pumpkin recipe for you guys on Friday. We’ve got to milk this pumpkin and apple stuff before fall is over, am I right? See you then!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Lentil and Quinoa Salad

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I haven’t had lentils in a looooooong time, mainly because I usually reach for chickpeas or other beans. Lentils take a little bit longer to cook, so that’s probably why. I guess I could buy the canned variety, but they’re just not the same. Yesterday I was kind of craving them, which is something I thought I’d never say. Honestly though, I wanted a good lentil salad where the lentils still had a bit of bite and there was a good freaking dressing! So I got in the kitchen because when I’m craving something, I get to work.

We didn’t have a lot of veg in our fridge, but we had everything you need for a good lentil salad. Quinoa, red onion, parsley, hummus, balsamic, olive oil, and of course, lentils. Yes, I included hummus in the dressing. Hummus makes EVERYTHING better, and in this case it adds flavour and some volume to the dressing. The parsley and red onion add some great colour to this salad. Oh, and I used red quinoa, which is fun! As far as I can tell it tastes the same as regular quinoa, it just has a nice colour. Try it out!

The lentils only took about 25 minutes to get tender. I took them off as soon as they were soft, because I didn’t want them to get too mushy. Then I mixed them up with the quinoa, parsley, onion, and that awesome hummus and balsamic dressing! So simple and so yum and so fresh. On the side of my salad I had some more hummus (duh) and sweet potato, which went really well. If you want your salad a bit heartier you could try tossing the sweet potato right in there.

Hope you enjoy this light salad that’s perfect for a quick lunch or side dish!!

Lentil and Quinoa Salad

Serves: 2 as a main, 4 as a side dish

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/2 cup dry green lentils
  • 1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp hummus
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Give your lentils a little rinse, then toss them in a small pot with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down a bit and let the lentils simmer for about 25-30 minutes, until they’re tender but still have some bite, and most of the water has been absorbed.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together the hummus, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and some salt and pepper.
  3. Toss together the quinoa, cooked lentils, parsley, and red onion with the dressing. Serve with more hummus, and some roasted sweet potatoes.
  4. Enjoy!

This is one of my favourite simple salads to make, and I’ll definitely be making it again sometime soon. See ya later!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Stuffed Pepper Stew

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Hey there! Hope you’re all doing well;)) I find that cooking is a great way to stay busy, so I’ve been trying to at least plan out new recipes every day. I wanted to make stuffed peppers, because they’re so comforting and delicious. But it turns out that I only had one big pepper, and two mini ones. Here’s where some quarantine problem solving comes in! This Stuffed Pepper Stew combines all of the flavours of a stuffed pepper, but in stew form. It’s so good and uses super simple ingredients! It actually might be better than a stuffed pepper, because it reminds me of an amazing Hungarian pepper dish that my Mom and Grandma make. Plus, there’s lots of protein in there from lentils. I also used some soy sauce to boost the savoury flavour, which is a trick I learned from The Stingy Vegan. All the veggies get simmered in a delicious broth that’s loaded with herbs and spices, and it’ll make your house smell really good;)) This stew is also one of those things that tastes better the next day, because all of the flavours sit together overnight. Check out the recipe down below;))

Stuffed Pepper Stew

Serves: 4

Total Time: 90 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 bell peppers, any colour, chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • 1 sprig of oregano, finely chopped (or 1/2 tbsp dried oregano)
  • 1/2 tbsp basil
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 1/2 cup green lentils
  • 1 can of diced tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp of tomato paste
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add in the onion and cook until translucent, about 6 minutes.
  2. Add in the peppers and garlic, and cook for another six minutes until the peppers are soft.
  3. Dump the diced tomatoes, spices, soy sauce, herbs, and lentils into the pot and stir until combined. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn the heat to low and simmer for about an hour, until the lentils have cooked through.
  4. Once the lentils are cooked, stir through the tomato paste and season with salt and pepper.
  5. Enjoy with rice, quinoa, some bread, or by itself!

Keep cooking and creating!

Yours Truly,

MyDayIsBooked

Lentil and Barley Stew

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Hi there! I love cooking dishes that are part of my heritage, and this Lentil Barley Soup is my take on Hungarian Goulash. It’s a hearty, filling stew that uses a bunch of veggies, lentils and barley to create flavour. This stew is also great for freezing, so my freezer is stocked full of this stuff👍 Enjoy!

Lentil and Barley Stew

Serves: 6

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 bell pepper, diced (any colour works; I used half green and half red)
  • 1 large carrot, chopped
  • 1 tbs paprika
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 3/4 cup green lentils
  • 1 cup pot barley
  • 8 cups of water
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add in the onions and peppers and cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the paprika, chilli powder, carrots, barley and lentils. Place back on the heat and dump in the water.
  3. Bring the soup to a boil, then bring down to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 30 minutes, until the lentils and carrots are tender and the barley is cooked. Stir in the soy sauce.
  4. Enjoy! This soup can be frozen in resealable bags once cooled.

Hopefully this stew make your winter a little more bearable!!

Yours Truly,

MyDayIsBooked;))

Golden Lentil and Coconut Soup

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Hey there! Soup is one of the best parts of winter- after spending an afternoon sledding or making snowmen, coming inside to a warm bowl of deliciousness is heaven! This Golden Lentil and Coconut soup is full of onion, garlic, coconut milk and ginger, packing it full of flavour and richness. Turmeric lends it’s signature golden colour, and carrots and sweet potatoes offer a slight bit of sweetness to round out the savoury notes. Only 45 minutes are needed to whip up this divine soup. And those 45 minutes are DEFINITELY worth it! Enjoy;)

Golden Lentil and Coconut Soup

Serves: 4-6

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbs coconut oil
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 4 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tbs ginger
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tbs turmeric
  • 1 small sweet potato, chopped into small cubes
  • 2 large carrots, chopped
  • 1 cup green lentils
  • 4 cups veggie broth
  • 1 can of light coconut milk
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. In a large pot, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add in the onion and cook until translucent, about 6-8 minutes.
  2. Add the garlic into the pot and cook for 2 more minutes. Next, measure out the ginger, coriander and red pepper flakes, then dump them into the pot as well, cooking for another minute until fragrant.
  3. Pour the veggie stock and coconut milk into the pot and stir well. Add in the carrots, lentils, sweet potato and turmeric and mix until combined. Bring soup to a boil then let simmer for 30-35 minutes, until the sweet potato is soft.
  4. Serve with some sprouted grain bread and enjoy!!

I actually think that I’m in love with this soup…. it’s so rich and satisfying, yet fresh tasting because of the ginger and aromatics. Make sure to check my blog again on Friday for another post!

Yours Truly,

MyDayIsBooked;))