Yummy In My Tummy

Since one of the things I do as an au pair is helping prepare dinner, I've decided to start having a little bit of fun with it! Because I was never much of a chef at home, picking what to make for dinner can sometimes be a struggle - all that would usually come to mind back home would be peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or a grilled cheese or a microwavable pizza - but because I'm preparing a meal for a family, I hardly think those things would be good choices! Pinterest has definitely influenced a lot, probably most, of the meals I've made! The past two days have both been recipes I chose from the website! (Which I have become addicted to. Like really. I'm addicted.) Yesterday I made stuffed bell peppers! This was definitely the most delicious meal I've prepared, and it was so pretty! AND easy to make! AND pretty cheap!

Ingredients:

• 4 medium red bell peppers cut in half (I ate two halves and was full - depends on how many people you're cooking for and how big their bellies are!)
• 1 can of black beans
• 1 box of brown rice (I ended up using about 2/3 of it)
• Mexican Blend/ Cheddar cheese
• 1 onion
• Olive Oil
• Turkey/Chicken (The recipe said turkey but I used chicken and it was great!)
• Salsa
• Scallions

Directions:

1.  Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Farenheit.
2. Cut your bell peppers in half. In a dish, put your peppers cut side down into the dish with a half cup of water. Place in the microwave for 1 minute. This softens up the peppers a bit. If you want to skip this step, just leave the peppers in the oven a little longer!
3. In a pan, put some olive oil in and your onions. Cook the onions until they look translucent.
4. Add the meat and cook until brown.
5. Combine above ingredients with the black beans, rice, and salsa and let cook in the pan until warm.
6. Scoop the beans, rice, salsa, meat, and onion evenly into each pepper.
7. Cover the peppers with foil and and place in the oven. Set your timer for 30 minutes.
8. Once the 30 minutes is up, take the peppers out and remove the foil. Sprinkle some cheese atop each pepper and put back in the oven for 5 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.
9. Put some scallions on top of the peppers, serve and enjoy! :)

The dish I made tonight, is a dish I probably wouldn't normally eat - Quinoa. It is defintely an acquired tasted but I added some things to liven it up a bit :)

Ingredients:

• 1 box of Quinoa
• 1 bell pepper (I used red)
• 1 medium cucumber
• 1/2 cup of cilantro
• 3/4 cup lime (I just used 2 limes)
• 1 shallot/onion finely cut (can use a food processor)
• 1 clove garlic (finely smashed)
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2-3 avocados

 

Directions:

 

1. Cook the Quinoa and then let sit for a few hours or refridgerate so it cools down. (This is a dish served cold.)
2. Cut up the bell pepper and cucumber into small pieces, along with the cilantro which you want to cut into very small bits, and mix into the cooled down Quinoa.
3. In another bowl, add the shallot/onion, garlic, and squeeze the limes in there. Let it sit and soak for about ten minutes. Then add the extra virgin olive oil.
4. Mix the dressing you just made into your Quinoa!
5. And then you can either cut up the avocado and place on top when serving, or you can cut into small pieces and mix into the Quinoa which is what I did! Easy Peasy!! Enjoy :)

So I'm definitely having my fair share of fun in the kitchen, and I hope I can learn a lot more recipes to come so I can come home and make them all for you!