Stuffed Bell Peppers with Quinoa

We had these last night (and I just ate the leftovers!).  They were great!  I bought some quinoa from Costco because it was the cheapest around.  Pretty much I have 4 lbs of quinoa that I don't quite know how to use.  Now I have one recipe I know we like.  It's a start!

My changes: I skipped the green chilis. I doubled the ground beef. I didn't have taco seasoning, so I used garlic powder, cumin and kosher salt until it tasted right (I started with 1/2 tsp of garlic and 1/2 tsp cumin and sprinkled kosher salt over it all  I tasted it after it had simmered a little.  It was really bland, so I sprinkled more garlic powder and cumin and kosher salt over the top and stirred it in.  Luckily I didn't over do it this time.).  I used regular diced tomatoes. I filled 2 orange peppers and baked them as directed. The rest of the filling the boys used for tacos on tortillas with sour cream, lettuce and cheese.

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• 1/2 TB olive oil
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 pound ground turkey or ground beef
• 1 14 oz can black beans drained and rinsed
• 1 14 oz can fire roasted tomatoes plain is fine too
• 1 7oz can diced green chili
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1/2 TB cumin
• 1 TB taco seasoning
• 4 bell peppers halfed length wise, ribs removed
• 1/2 cup mozzarella shredded cheese
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Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Add onion and cook until translucent ( about 3 minutes). Add in meat and cook until browned. Drain any excess grease.
2. Add in black beans, tomatoes, green chilies, water, quinoa, cumin, taco seasoning, salt and pepper if desired. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium/low and simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa is done.
3. Heat oven to 375. Place peppers in 13 x 9 baking dish. Spoon in filling and top with grated cheese. Cover pan with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and serve with sour cream or salsa (optional). Enjoy!

I found this recipe here.  Enjoy!