Go On … Stuff It!

These days any dishes I make in the Bariatric Cookery kitchen have to work hard for their living! It’s often not enough to just be a tasty accompaniment but also frequently need to be stand-alone dishes too. Many of us just don’t have the time to cook from scratch every day and so mix and match dishes are the way forward – the ones that can be eaten as a dish in themselves; mixed up with others to make a new meal; re-purposed as leftovers; or chill and keep or freeze well for ‘another time’ eating.

This dish ticks all the boxes – I made it today to go with some roast chicken but it will also make a great meal in itself (and a vegetarian option too). I would also be happy to serve this cold as part of a buffet spread and know any leftovers can be used in a bake or popped in the freezer for another meal.

And what’s more it isn’t time-intensive to make – I have even cut down the preparation by using a sachet of ready-cooked lentils (puy and green in a tomatoey mix) so it can be on the table in under 30 minutes.

So I recommend this stuffed Romano pepper/capsicum dish to you – I shall be having it for lunch today as a stand-alone dish sprinkled with a little feta – served on the Bariatric Portion Plate with Bariatric Portion Control Cutlery for accountability.

 

 

STUFFED ROMANO PEPPERS/CAPSICUMS WITH LENTILS

Ingredients

METRIC/US

200 g/7 oz pack or 3 Romano mixed colour peppers/capsicums

low-fat cooking spray or mist

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 leek, finely sliced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

4 sun-dried tomatoes, snipped into pieces

250 g/8 oz pack ready-cooked lentils (I used Merchant Gourmet Tomatoey French puy and green lentils)

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

 

Method

1.  Preheat the oven to 200 C/400 F/gas mark 6.
2.  Halve the peppers/capsicums lengthwise through their stalks. Remove the seeds and spritz on all sides with low-fat cooking spray or mist. Place on a baking tray or ovenproof dish, season well and roast for 20 minutes.
3.  Meanwhile, generously spritz a pan with low-fat cooking spray or mist. Heat, add the leek, garlic and thyme and cook gently for about 10 minutes until soft and golden.
4.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes and lentils and cook for a further 5 minutes.
5.  Add the lemon juice and parsley, mixing well.
6.  Spoon the mixture into the peppers/capsicums and return to the oven for 5 minutes.
7.  Serve hot, warm or cold with a green salad if liked. For a higher protein offering top with crumbled feta, goat’s cheese or grated Parmesan before putting back in the oven for the final 5 minutes cooking.

 

SERVES 3

WLS PORTION: ½-1

V suitable for Vegetarians

 

CALORIES PER PORTION (without cheese): 165

PROTEIN: 7g

CARBOHYDRATE: 19.1g

FAT: 5.7g

 

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