Stuffed Peppers and Hummus

Well, ever since we discovered the awesomeness that is the Lebanese Vegetarian Cookbook, we’ve been Lebanese-stuffed-vegetable-making-fiends.  Or something to that effect.  Josh actually did most of the work here; I was primarily responsible for the hummus–so, I’ll tell you a little bit about what I did there, and then simply relate the recipe for the peppers as it’s presented in the book.

I make hummus much the same way I make anything: putting stuff together and tasting it until it seems right.  So, less measuring than guessing…but you know how it is.  Fortunately, the whole thing is pretty simple: combine the following ingredients in a food processor until smooth:

• 1 can of cooked chick-peas
• 2 (ish) cloves of garlic
• tahini paste (I start with a little more than a tablespoon)
• lemon juice (probably about 1/4 cup)
• pinch of salt
• cayenne pepper (somewhere between 1/4 and 1/8 tsp)

I also usually add a little water in the beginning, which helps to get things moving.  Once these are combined, I taste it, and decide what it needs–I usually like a strong tahini flavor in my hummus, but you might like more lemon juice.  And the beauty of this, of course, is that you could add whatever flavors you liked (roasted garlic or roasted red pepper would be great).  Or you could bypass the whole thing and just buy your hummus in the store (and sometimes that does seem more viable, given the price of tahini)–but I’d encourage trying to make it at home because 1) frankly, it’s better than most of the stuff you’ll get in the store and 2) once you factor in the servings of hummus you can get out of a single jar of tahini and a few cans of chickpeas, it’s actually more cost-effective.

But enough of my preaching.

Here’s what we Josh did with the peppers: Cut the tops off of 4 green peppers (you could use red or yellow as well, of course, but green is cheaper), remove the seeds and rinse.  In a bowl, mix together the following:

• 1 cup uncooked white rice
• 1 large tomato, diced
• 1 small white or yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. allspice
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup olive oil

When combined, divide the mixture into 4 servings, filling each pepper.  Place the 4 filled peppers into a large pot (in which they can stand up without being overcrowded).  Mix together 1 cup tomato sauce and 1/2 cup water, and pour over the peppers.  Cook for 35 minutes on medium low heat, adding a little water if necessary to keep some liquid in the pot.

When the rice is tender, the peppers are done.  To serve, we removed them (carefully!  use tongs, if you have them) from the pot and topped them with a bit of tzatziki (a lovely yogurt and cucumber sauce that’s great with lemony-garlicky stuff), plus the hummus and some pita bread on the side.  So, it was a garlic-fest–the best kind of fest, incidentally–full of flavor, with a great balance of acidity from the lemon and tomatoes, and creaminess from the tahini and tzatziki.

BONUS: This is super cheap to make, and makes a lot of food.

DOUBLE BONUS: If you want it to be vegan, just leave off the tzatziki.

TRIPLE BONUS: It’s delicious.  What more do you want?