Made in partnership with Mezzetta. All opinions are my own.
Don’t know what to cook for your Christmas appetizer? These fun, colorful, and delicious vegan stuffed bell peppers might just do the trick!
To add an extra ‘oomph’ to the recipe, I used ingredients from Mezzetta:
These peppers are much simple to make than you might think! All you need to do is:
- prepare the bell peppers by removing the caps (and saving any scraps)
- cook up the filling: a mixture of onion, spices, TVP, olives, peppers, and artichoke hearts
- stuff the peppers with the filling
- top with (vegan) cheese — optional, but delicious!
- bake!
In less than an hour, you’ll have these fabulous peppers ready to serve. They’re low-effort, high-reward, and perfect for the holiday season (or any season, really.)
To be honest, I can eat the filling mixture straight out of the pot, any time of the day. It has an almost ‘meaty’ texture that comes from the TVP, plus tenderness & chewiness from the bell peppers and olives. The flavor is nutty, savory, and full-bodied.
Using one adjective only: these stuffed peppers are wonderful. I hope that you get to make these and impress your loved ones at Christmas dinner! 🙂 Maybe nobody will even think twice about the fact that these are vegan, since the filling mixture does a solid job at creating texture.
Additionally, for garnish, I added some dairy free cheese + sliced green onions. (Note: in my IG Reel, I used shredded vegan mozzarella — but then it didn’t melt well, so I ended up just adding homemade vegan cheese on top. Whoops!)
Free free to omit the vegan cheese, or add some other sauce that you like (such as tomato sauce). I’m sure these peppers will be delicious no matter how you garnish!
Stuffed bell peppers (vegan, GF)
Ingredients
- 4 bell peppers any color
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground sage
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 cup textured vegetable protein (TVP) soaked in 1/2 cup boiling water for 5 minutes
- 1/4 cup Mezzetta artichoke hearts chopped
- 1/4 cup Mezzetta kalamata olives minced
- 1/4 cup Mezzetta roasted bell peppers chopped
- dairy-free cheese optional; to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F/200C. Grease a baking tray of your choice.
- Wash the bell peppers and remove the caps. (If there are any scraps, chop them up to be used later.) Place into the baking tray.
- Prepare the filling: in a pot, heat the olive oil and add the onion. Fry for 5 minutes, or until fragrant.
- Add in spices and incorporate well.
- Add in soaked TVP and stir well. At this point, you may also add in the bell pepper scraps. Cook for 5 minutes. If needed, add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup water to prevent sticking.
- Add in artichoke hearts, olives, and red peppers. Stir until incorporated.
- Fill the bell peppers with the filling mixture. If desired, top with vegan cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes, then serve warm.
Leave a Reply