Stuffed Peppers With Chickpeas and Cheese

Amarante

Tue, Jul 02 2024, 7:28 am

I prepped these in the morning and just popped in the oven for dinner.

Per the notes, can be served at room temperature so leftovers would be good

Stuffed Peppers With Chickpeas and Cheese
Source: Melissa Clark

Yield: 3 to 4 servings

Cozy, cheesy stuffed peppers are made vegetarian by using chickpeas instead of the usual ground meat. The cumin, tomato paste and chili powder give the filling its depth and heat, and plenty of scallions and herbs keep it bright and fresh. If you’d like to assemble the peppers ahead, you can. They’ll keep in the fridge overnight. Just pop them in the oven and add a few minutes to the baking time. Or bake them ahead and savor them later; these peppers are equally good served hot, warm or at room temperature.

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
3 large red, yellow or orange bell peppers (a mix is nice), halved crosswise, seeded and membranes scooped out - in other words halved lengthwise as this is a bit confusing
Fine sea or table salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch scallions, white and green parts thinly sliced
1 jalapeño, seeded, if you like, and diced - seeds and the white pith on the interior carry the heat so discard seeds and cut off pith or use depending on level of heat you want
3 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
2 (15.5-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder, more to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
1 cup/4 ounces grated extra-sharp Cheddar - any cheese you like would work
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, mint or cilantro

PREPARATION

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Generously oil the cavities and exteriors of the bell pepper halves. Season the cavities all over with salt and pepper. Place peppers cut side up in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

Add 2 tablespoons oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add white and light green scallion slices (reserving the dark green scallions for garnish) and jalapeño. Cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add chickpeas, tomato paste, cumin, chili powder, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Stir to combine and cook until tomato paste and spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any bits stuck to the skillet (if there’s still browned bits at the bottom of the skillet, add a tablespoon or two of water to loosen them; the browned bits have all the flavor). Taste a chickpea and add more salt, pepper and chili powder if you like.

Spoon the chickpea mixture into the pepper cavities, filling the peppers up to the top. Cover the baking dish with foil. Bake the peppers for 30 minutes.

Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes. Top peppers with the cheese and continue to bake until the peppers have fully softened and the Cheddar has melted and browned, 15 to 25 minutes.

Drizzle peppers with more olive oil and sprinkle with parsley and reserved scallion greens. Drizzle remaining lemon juice over peppers. When serving, be sure to scrape up any crispy bits on the bottom of the dish.

Last edited by Amarante on Tue, Jul 02 2024, 7:44 am; edited 3 times in total