Vegetable– and Brown Rice–Stuffed Peppers
This dish is chock-full of veggies, herbs and hearty rice and chickpeas. You can fit four peppers at a time in the Instant Pot, so make two batches or save half for a future meal.
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Mood-boosting meal: The bell peppers in this cheap and cheerful dish provide more than double your daily need for vitamin C. They’re also a good source of vitamin B6, which promotes secretion of serotonin and norepinephrine, the “happy hormones” that are responsible for improving mood, energy level and ability to concentrate.
Total Cost: $18.00
Cost Per Plate: $2.25
Ingredients
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 15-oz BPA-free can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 large stalks celery, minced
1 large carrot, shredded
1 shallot, minced
½ cup finely chopped pitted black olives
2 oz soft goat cheese, crumbled
⅓ cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes + 2 tbsp oil reserved from jar, divided
¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp each dried oregano and basil
1½ tsp garlic powder
¾ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp each ground black pepper and red pepper flakes
8 bell peppers (any color)
½ cup grated Parmesan
Preparation
Freezer
1. In a large bowl, combine rice, chickpeas, celery, carrot, shallot, olives, goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, parsley, lemon juice, oregano, basil, garlic powder, salt, black pepper and pepper flakes.
2. Cut a thin slice off bottoms of any peppers that don’t stand up, without cutting through bottoms. Cut off top of each pepper and remove seeds and ribs. Divide rice mixture among peppers. Drizzle with reserved oil from sun-dried tomatoes. Place peppers standing up in 2 large glass containers or freezer bags; freeze.
To Instant Pot
3. When ready to eat, pour 1 cup water into Instant Pot; place steamer rack trivet on top. Place 4 peppers standing up on trivet. Lock lid and set release valve to Seal. Press Pressure Cook/Manual; set timer to 8 minutes. When cooking is finished, leave vent in seal position and allow pressure to release naturally. When metal pin in lid falls and all pressure is released, unlock lid. Sprinkle peppers with Parmesan.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size 1 stuffed pepper
- Calories 241
- Carbohydrate Content 32 g
- Cholesterol Content 8 mg
- Fat Content 10 g
- Fiber Content 7 g
- Protein Content 8 g
- Saturated Fat Content 3 g
- Sodium Content 416 mg
- Sugar Content 8 g
- Monounsaturated Fat Content 5 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat Content 1 g