Before this meal, I had only ever heard of stuffed peppers. I saw them on menus at restaurants, in recipes in health and cooking magazines, and on television cooking shows. Despite their frequent appearance in the food world, I must admit that the idea of eating a whole pepper was somewhat strange to me. But when I realized that I could stuff a pepper with amazingly delicious ingredients like lentils and vegetables, I was suddenly intrigued with the idea of stuffing my peppers! 😉 And stuff, I did!
Italian Lentil Stuffed Peppers
Servings: Makes 4 peppers
Ingredients
EVOO cooking spray
water, for cooking
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 yellow onion, diced
1 small zucchini, diced
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 15 oz can Italian-style diced tomatoes (I only used 3/4 of the can)
2 cups lentils, cooked
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp onion powder
black pepper, to taste
2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
4 bell peppers
1. Spray slow cooker with EVOO cooking spray.
2. Line a large pan with a thin layer of water. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Once hot, lower the heat to medium and add garlic, onion, and zucchini to the pan. Cook for approximately 6-8 minutes, or until softened.
3. Add tomato sauce, tomatoes, cooked lentils, and seasonings to the pan. Stir until well-combined, and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Lower the heat to medium-low. Add spinach and simmer an additional 3 minutes, or until the spinach has wilted.
5. While the lentil and veggie mixture is cooking, cut the top off of each pepper (reserve) and remove the seeds and veins of each pepper.
6. Stuff each pepper with one-quarter of the lentil and veggie mixture. Top with the top of the pepper and place into the slow cooker.
7. Cook the peppers on low heat for eight hours.
And to make your meal even more veggie-rich, you can serve your stuffed peppers with a side of vegetables, like I did ;).
Trust me when I say that these peppers are most definitely tasty! The idea of eating a whole pepper may have scared me at first, but after eating these I am now convinced that when cooked right, eating an entire pepper is most definitely the way to go! The sweet and spicy flavor of the peppers combined with the meatiness of the lentils and the flavorful Italian-styled veggies was a fantastic combination.
I do have one recommendation for those who give these stuffed peppers a try: I recommend using only red bell peppers, unless you really enjoy the spicier flavors of green and yellow bell peppers. I bought a 4-pack of multi-colored peppers, but enjoyed the red bell peppers the most, as they have a slightly sweeter flavor. So, I say…go red!
Oh, and one more thing…
Today just so happens to be March 24th…my birthday!! 🙂
I already celebrated my special day a bit on Friday with coworkers. They so kindly decorated my pod, sung “happy birthday” to me, and gave me a great birthday card and Target gift card. And the best and most thoughtful part of the day of celebration?
That would be the amazingly delicious vegan carrot cake cupcakes that my very thoughtful coworker made for me. These babies were AWESOME! So much so that it was very difficult for me to eat just one!
My coworker so kindly provided me with the recipe, too. You really must make these.
Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes w/ Fluffy Almond “Buttercream” Frosting
Ingredients
For cupcakes:
2/3 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup soy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup grated carrots
1/2 cup chopped raisins
For frosting:
1/2 cup Earth balance
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp almond extract
1 1/2 to 2 TB non-dairy milk
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pans with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, mix together soy milk and apple cider vinegar. Let this sit for a few minutes to thicken up.
3. Add in sugar, vegetable oil, and vanilla, and stir until well-combined.
4. In a second bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices.
5. Combine the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir until well-combined.
6. Stir in carrots and raisins.
7. Fill paper liners 3/4 of the way full and bake 22-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool.
8. Once the cupcakes are cool, beat the Earth Balance with an electric mixer in a large bowl. Add in soy milk, almond extract, and salt and mix.
9. Gradually add in the powdered sugar, beginning with one cup and mixing slowly until fully combined.
10. Top each cupcake with frosting.
I am not kidding when I say that these cupcakes are to die for! The frosting was absolutely delicious and you really cannot go wrong with carrot cake. It is one of my favorites! My coworkers were all very impressed and completely surprised with how delicious vegan cupcakes can be. I think that I am slowly convincing them that vegan food is darn good! 😉
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HAPPPPY BIRTHDAY!! Have a great day!
Thank you!! 🙂
Happy Happy Happy Birthday!! What a nice vegan treat for your coworker to bring to work. I will for sure be making these stuffed peppers, my mom makes them with ground beef and in the oven but I love the idea of using lentils and the slow cooker!
The cupcakes were amazing!
I loved making the stuffed peppers in the slow cooker. It was so easy and they were all ready for me when I got home from work :).
aw Happy birthday!
Thanks so much :).
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! Vegan cupcakes and a Target gift card!?!?! YOU lucked out! I love stuffed peppers, love love them and these look SO good.
Yes, my coworkers sure treat me well! 🙂
Happy Birthday! Enjoy your day!
Thank you!! 🙂
I love stuffed peppers . . . my favorite is to are poblanos. Happy Birthday!! Hope you have a great day!
I am so glad that I tried the stuffed peppers. So worth making! 🙂
Happy birthday girl!
Thank you!! 🙂
Happy Birthday!! It looks like you had a fantastic office celebration 🙂
Thank you! I sure did :).
Happy birthday girl!! This just made my mouth water with the peppers and cupcakes…i keep telling myself i have to make stuffed peppers and you just gave me the perfect recipe to use to do so 🙂
You should definitely give them a try. This recipe is super easy, too :).
Happy birthday!! Hope you had a great day! Those cupcakes look amazing I love carrot cake 🙂
They were so good. You should absolutely make them if you love carrot cake!
I love stuffed peppers! These look great!
And happy birthday!!!!!!
Thank you!!!
Happy birthday! How lovely of your co-workers. Really lovely that they excoriated your pod and made you cakes. They look delicious!
And the peppers look so good too. I’ve never had them before but they look really tasty.
Yes, my coworkers sure gave me a great bday celebration!
Happy Birthday to you! I love crock pot stuffed peppers!
Thank you!!! 🙂
Happy Birthday! My mom loves carrot cake, so I’ll have to remember this cupcake recipe when her birthday rolls around!
It is a great recipe! I hope you give it a try :).
mmmm! I love stuffed peppers! I wish my husband was a pepper fan- I’d make them all the time! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
You either love peppers or you hate them it seems like!!
Nice to hear that your coworkers helped you celebrate. Is that a K State blanket or possible snuggie that I see on your chair?
Yup, that is my Snuggie!! I am always freezing at work.
I absolutely love stuffed peppers and I haven’t had them in ages!! Now you have me craving them!
You should definitely make some…ASAP! 😉
Happy birthday! I nominated you for a liebster award! http://pencilsandpancakes.com/2013/03/24/learn-more-about-me/
Thank you…to both of those things!! 🙂
happy birthday, Hannah! That was so nice of your co-workers, those sound delicious 🙂 The stuffed peppers sound delicous too, I am loving lentils lately, I’ll have to try these
The lentils really add a lot to this dish. So, so good!!
Happy Birthday to you!
Thank you!! 🙂
Happy Birthday! Those cupcakes look great! Carrot cake is one of my favorites but I always feel so guilty eating it. I am definitely going to have to try these. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
This vegan version is definitely a MUCH healthier version, so you can feel less guilty about eating them! 🙂
Happy Birthday, Darling <3 <3
Thank you!! 🙂
Those cupcakes look too delicious, that is too sweet of your co worker! Happy Birthday 🙂
It was VERY nice and thoughtful of her!
Happy Birthday Hannah!! Hope you had a great day. That is great what your coworkers did for you. The peppers look great too, I love stuffed peppers. They freeze well for easy weeknight dinners!
Thank you!
I had not thought to freeze the peppers, but that is a great idea!
Happy belated birthday! Those peppers look amazing- ill definitely be making those for my family soon!
Awesome! Please let me know what you think :).
Happy birthday! your stuffed peppers and cupcakes look to die for!
Thank you…to both! 🙂
Happy Belated Birthday! Good job on those peppers, they look tasty.
Thank you so much! 🙂
Happy belated birthday!! Those stuffed peppers look absolutely incredible… I’ve got to make them asap!
You really should! Please let me know if you try them :).
Oh, Happy Belated Birthday! Those carrot cupcakes sound amazing 🙂
Thank you. And yes, they were SO good!!
I love stuffed peppers and lentils, so I’ll have to try these! And Happy late Birthday!! Hope it was awesome!
Thank you!!
Happy belated b-day!! How nice of your coworkers. That is a great idea stuffing peppers with lentils. I’ve used brown rice, but never lentils.
The lentils tasted great with the peppers!
Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you!! 🙂
Happy [belated] birthday girly! Hope you had a wonderful weekend – too funny about your cubicle decorations 😛
Thank you!! It was good :).
Hope you had a great birthday!! Those cupcakes sound awesome!
I’ve always wanted to try stuffed peppers. I want to try lentils too! Those look really yummy!
I love lentils, but I have never thought to stuff peppers with them. Such a good idea! And Happy Belated Birthday too! 😀 How sweet that your co-worker made you vegan cupcakes!