I promised I wouldn't just feed you a bunch of Greek food, right? I made good on this promise. I am bringing you a some Latin flava! Arrrrrrrrriba! ( I never could master the tongue roll though)
What is not to love about Latin culture- the food, the spices, the comfort, the music and plantains!
If you haven't tasted a plantain or even seen one, they kinda look like really big bananas, but they are more starchy and generally not as sweet.
This love affair and need to experiment with Latin cuisine started when I watched "Chef". If you haven't seen it, well you'll have a foodgasm over and over again watching. So much cooking and a whole lotta Latin food in Miami!
In fact I became so damn obsessed I decided I needed to go to Miami STAT--- and just like that I'm going next month to the South Beach Food and Wine Festival in Miami. I have never ever spur of the moment decided to fly somewhere. I hardly ever travel far since it can be pricey. So this is HUGE for me! I basically feel like a balla- balla on a budget though yo. Luckily I scored tickets for free!
Back to these vegetarian delights... They have bell pepper, onion, quinoa, Latin spices and a little tomato paste. Then that delish stuffing is packed into a plantain and covered in CHEESE!
Holy CHEESUS!
Yeah cheese always kicks shit up a couple notches in flava town!
So make this and make all your friends think you have Latin roots and you are still kickin it pretty healthy. Duh it's all good it's got quinoa!
We're at the tail end of the holiday detox, so a little cheese won't hurt!
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Quinoa Stuffed Plantains
by
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 2o minutes
Keywords: appetizer entree gluten-free healthy vegetarian nut-free Latin food
Ingredients (4 servings)
- 4 plantains (ripened), cut 3/4 of the way down vertically
- coconut oil spray, or cooking spray of your choice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced bell pepper
- 1/2 cup diced red onion
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped fine
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
Preheat oven to 415ª
Place plantains on a baking sheet and spray well with coconut oil
Bake for 15 minutes
While plantains bake, heat a skillet on medium heat with olive oil
Add bell pepper, garlic and onions, cook until slightly browned and fragrant (about 5 minutes)
Add spices and stir til fragrant
Pour in your cooked quinoa and add tomato paste, stir until well combined
Remove from heat and stuff the baked plantains with the quinoa
Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese
Bake for 10 minutes.
Enjoy!
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