These delicious peppers are a great favorite with all my friends. They are NOT vegan. I needed to make something for a friend who is neither vegetarian nor vegan nor wants to be so decided to make these, which I knew they liked.
The recipe came originally from the New York Times and is readily available on the internet. Just search on Stuffed Yellow Peppers with Israeli Couscous and Pesto.
I’ve modified and simplified so I can put it together very quickly and easily. First of all, I use a commercially prepared pesto. As most of you know if you follow foods I make, I almost never use commercial products. Every once in awhile I find one I like and that meets my standards, though, and this pesto is one. I can get it at Costco, and it’s all organic ingredients, all real food, no distressing additives and tastes very good.
I roast the peppers first. The yellow are really pretty, but red or orange or a mixture would be fine. Green would be fine, for that matter, but they taste a little different to me. I cut off the lid of each of the peppers and trimmed away seeds and extra pulp on the inside of each pepper. I rubbed oil lightly on the outside of the peppers and roasted them in a pre-heated, hot oven (550 degrees) for 10-15 minutes until they had a few brown spots and appeared slightly wrinkled and done.
While the peppers are roasting, I prepare the filling, which is just a matter of cooking some whole wheat Israeli couscous and adding some salt and lots of pesto to it. I added a little extra Parmesan cheese as well.
For the sauce, I still prefer homemade to commercially prepared, and it’s so easy to make tomato sauce. I don’t peel the tomatoes — just wash them. I put them in a pot with a little extra virgin olive oil, salt and chopped fresh basil, put the lid on the pot, bring to a simmer, turn down the heat, and cook until well-stewed. If you like a little heat, you can add in some crushed red pepper, and if you love that basil flavor, add in a little more chopped basil at the end of the cooking time.
That’s it! Here are some quantities for 4 peppers:
- 4 yellow, red or orange peppers
- 1 cup dry whole wheat Israeli (toasted) couscous
- Half of a 16-ounce jar of pesto or an equivalent quantity homemade
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 cup extra Parmesan cheese, opt.
- Salt, to taste
If you’re looking for easy and yummy, this is it. I’ll try to come up with vegan version in the not-too-distant future.
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