I’ve spent all summer working out with Lya, my husband’s teenage sister. We’re not aiming to lose weight but to be healthier and get our muscles toned. We don’t diet but we watch what we eat. Today, I prepared multi-colored mini sweet peppers and stuffed them with a combination of mashed plantains, cannellini beans and crushed potato chips.
I kept the menu gluten free and paired the plantain-stuffed mini peppers with garlicky quinoa. It’s amazing how delicious this healthy dish was; it was satisfying, flavorful and quite filling. Now, back to the treadmill!
1. Info for Plantain Stuffed Sweet Peppers
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Servings: 8
- Calories: 694kcal
2. Ingredients for Plantain Stuffed Sweet Peppers
- 3 dozen mini sweet peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- ¼ cup baked chipotle potato chips
- 1 ripe plantain, peeled and sliced
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- 10 ounces cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, freshly grated
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons chipotle tapenade (see tips)
- 2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
3. Directions:
- In a large non-stick pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the shallots and cook until softened. Transfer to a plate, leaving as much oil as possible in the pan. Add the first batch of sliced bananas (I divided it into 2 batches). Reduce the heat to medium-high. Cook for about 3 minutes. Season with cumin, salt and pepper. Gently lift the bananas using a silicone spatula, to check if the slices are lightly golden. Flip the bananas as soon as one side is browned and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Check for doneness; they should be crisp on the outside and soft but still firm on the inside. Transfer to a platter. Set aside. Repeat for the second batch of bananas.
- Place the chips in a food processor and pulse until they become a coarse mill. Set aside.
- Lightly oil the bowl of the food processor with a silicone brush. Add the cannellini beans. Coarsely blend until a thick paste is formed. Season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic, shallots and pan-fried plantains and pulse 3-4 times. Transfer the paste into a bowl. Add the chipotle tapenade, 1 tablespoon parsley and the egg. Using a spatula, mix well. Adjust seasoning with more salt and pepper if necessary.
- Using the same non-stick pan, heat the rest of the oil.
- With a spoon, fill the mini peppers with the plantain filling, dividing evenly among them. Tightly stuff them by gently pressing the filling.
- Place the peppers in the hot pan, filling side down. Cook until a nice crust is formed. Flip the peppers and cook over low heat for about 3 minutes. Remove from the pan.
- Cover a serving platter with garlic-flavored quinoa. Spoon flavorful tomato sauce over the quinoa and place the plantain-stuffed sweet peppers on top. Garnish with parsley.
- Serve warm.
- Bon appétit!
