It had been a little cold over this last weekend and it was tricking me into thinking that Fall was just around the corner. I really started to crave some comfort food but I wanted to stick with something that was simple, vegan, healthy, and contained a good amount of vegetables. Suddenly, I started thinking into my childhood of some great comfort dishes that my Mom used to make. I started to ponder on stuffed peppers and I quickly thought of a great and easy idea to make them vegan and to replace the meat with whole ingredients; skipping the fake meats. The answer...tempeh! I've discovered a new love for tempeh and it works very well in this dish! My husband, the omnivore, was really impressed with this dish. This dish will easily satisfy the non-vegans! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did! The recipe below serves 4.
Ingredients:
4 bell peppers (any color but I think red & green are best)
1 & 1/2 cups uncooked instant whole grain brown rice (you can use regular brown rice but I did instant to get it done faster)
8 oz. package of tempeh
1/2 of a small sweet onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 jalapeno, minced
Veggie broth for sautéing (about 1/4 cup give or take) or you can use 1 tbs. oil
15 oz. can organic tomato sauce (I used Muir Glen)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 tbs. fresh parsley, minced
1 tsp. fresh thyme, minced
Follow your Heart Vegan Gourmet mozzarella cheese (the block kind)
How To:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook rice according to the ratios and instructions per package. My box of instant rice was a ratio of 1 cup rice per 1 cup water for 2 servings so I used 1 & 1/2 cups rice and 1 & 1/2 cups water and it turned out perfect. I just followed the cooking instructions on the box. I used the Minute rice brand. When done cooking, set aside.
In a large pot, fill with enough water to cover the peppers and bring it to a boil. Cut the tops off of the peppers trying not to waste a lot. This is how I like to cut mine.
I like to cut just the top off and then I take the knife and separate and take out what is left in the middle. I then slice a little off of the bottom to make it sit evenely.
When the water comes to boil, add the peppers and cover to cook for 2 minutes. Drain the peppers and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
In a large skillet, crumble in the tempeh, add the onions
& garlic, and add enough veggie broth to sauté. Cook over medium heat until the onions are tender. Add the jalapeno and cook until tender (about 3-5 minutes). Be sure to add more veggie broth if the mixture begins to become really dry.
Reserve 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce. Add the remaining sauce, brown rice, black pepper, parsley & thyme, and cook until heated through.
Stuff the peppers generously with the mixture. Place in a baking dish or a dutch oven. Top with remaining tomato sauce and grate the cheese on top.
Bake covered for 30 minutes. If using a baking dish, you can cover it with aluminum foil. Enjoy!