Recent Cooking Adventures

Paring down my budget even more recently has led to EVEN MORE COOKING yay!
Here are some recent triumphs:

Caprese Omelette

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for drizzling, if desired
2 large eggs, beaten with a fork
1 1/2 ounces mozzarella, cut into 5 or 6 thin slices
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes (mixed colors), halved
Small fresh basil leaves and coarse salt, for serving

Heat skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and allow to warm for one full minute, swirling the pan to coat. Add the eggs.

Swirl the pan above the heat a few times. As the eggs begin to set, lift up one side of the omelet with a small heatproof spatula and allow the oozy eggs to run underneath. After about two minutes, when only a bit of jiggle remains, scatter the cheese slices and tomato halves (cut side up) atop the eggs. Cook 1 minute longer.

Slip the eggs under a hot broiler for 2 to 3 minutes (I did this just in the oven at 450 for 4-5 min), until the cheese melts, the eggs turn golden brown in the center, and the edges crisp. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with fresh basil leaves and coarse salt. Drizzle with a thin stream of additional olive oil, if desired.

***Recipes says add basil leaves at the end but I added them at the same time as the tomatoes and kinda liked it because the last minute oven cooking brought out their flavor more**

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
serves 6
1 c water
1/2 c quinoa
3 large bell peppers
2 t olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 small squash, chopped (I actually substituted a bag of shredded carrots here because a. it's winter, squash options are limited and b. chopping squash is a lot of work)
2 t fresh thyme leaves
1/2 t salt
1 c cherry tomatoes, quartered
3 T tomato paste
15.5-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 c parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350F. In a saucepan, bring water to a boil, add the quinoa, cook 10-20 minutes (according to package directions). While quinoa is cooking, cut the peppers in half length-wise, remove the stems and scoop out the seeds. Place peppers cut side up in a non-stick baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and roast for 25 minutes.

In a large skillet, heat oil and add onion, garlic, squash, thyme, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened. Remove from heat and stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, chickpeas, cooked quinoa and parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fill roasted peppers with the vegi-quinoa mixture. Bake 10 minutes.

**This was so good but there was too much filling for the peppers.  However the filling was so good I made an entire meal out of just eating the extra filling**