Serves
four as a side dish, two as a main course. Quinoa is a great endurance food and high in protein, vitamins and minerals. This dish has additional vitamin C to protect from colds and garlic is a wonderful immune booster. For a super immune enhancing meal, substitute shiitake or maitake for regular mushrooms.
Put the quinoa into a fine strainer,
and run water through it until the water is clear and no longer sudsy. In a 2-quart
pot, bring the water to a boil. Stir in the wet quinoa and simmer over low medium
heat uncovered until done, about 12 minutes for white, or 15 minutes for black.
Quinoa is fully cooked when the germ has separated from the grain. It looks like
a small white "C" shape surrounding each grain. If any excess liquid
remains, pour it off and raise the heat to quickly boil off the rest. Stir in
the salt.
2 large sweet red bell peppers
1/2 pound mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 Tbsp. butter or ghee
1 recipe cooked quinoa, black or white
2 Tbsp. fresh, chopped chives
1 tsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
salt and freshly ground pepper (optional)
Heat the grill. Cut peppers in half
lengthwise. Core and seed, making sure not to pierce the sides. Set the peppers
aside. Sauté the mushrooms and garlic in butter over medium heat for ten
minutes. Add the cooked quinoa and heat through. Stir in the chives, lemon juice,
salt and pepper to taste. Fill the peppers and place on a hot grill. Cook until
the peppers are cooked through but still sturdy enough to hold the filling, about
10 minutes.
Alternatively, substitute green bell pepper for
the red. Place bell peppers in a low baking dish, cover with tomato sauce and
sprinkle with cheese. Cook at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. This makes an excellent
vegetarian meal with additional grilled vegetables and accompaniments.
A meaty variation is to use ½ lb ground meat (turkey, pork or
beef). Brown the meat first, then add mushrooms and garlic. Follow recipe above
but use only 1/3 quinoa recipe. Add all other ingredients, cover with tomato sauce
and bake covered at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then uncover and sprinkle with
cheese. Bake an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. This is an extremely
protein dense and satisfying meal.
