Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Jeff was a little nervous when I told him there was no meat in these peppers, but he gave them 4 stars anyway when he tasted them. They were tasty!
I only used 1 large carrot, and the cooking time can be increased if you like the peppers really soft. This way they were still just a little crisp, which I like. The author of the recipe said that these freeze well, too. I'll have to give that a try.

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

1 medium onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 ribs celery, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1 Tbs. ground cumin
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes, drained, liquid reserved
1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can vegetable broth
3/4 cup quinoa
1-2 large carrots, grated
2 cups grated pepper Jack cheese, divided
4 large red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, ribs removed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Heat oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and celery, and cook 5 minutes, or until soft. Add cumin and garlic, and sauté 1 minute. Stir in spinach and drained tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes, or until most of liquid has evaporated.2. Stir in black beans, quinoa, carrots, and vegetable broth. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20 minutes, or until quinoa is tender. Stir in 1 cup cheese. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Pour liquid from tomatoes into bottom of baking dish. Place peppers in baking dish and fill each bell pepper half with quinoa mixture. Sprinkle peppers with remaining cheese. Cover with foil, and bake 30-45. Uncover, bake 15 minutes more, or until cheese is browned. Let stand 5 minutes. Transfer stuffed peppers to serving plates, and drizzle each with pan juices before serving.

Serves 8

I found this recipe on pinterest. : )