The Ok to "Stuff" Yourself

The other day, I was thinking about my moms delicious stuffed peppers she made when I was younger. I think this is when I fell in love with green peppers.  Then I was introduced to the chile relleno and fell even more in love with the poblano pepper. 

Last week, I talked about green vegetables on my TV segment and of course I featured poblanos in my display. Perfect opportunity to whip up my skinny stuffed poblano peppers. 

I start off with ground chicken, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder and a little salt. While that is browning, I cut my poblanos in half and take the seeds out. If you like a little more heat, leave a few in. I will also toss a few seeds into my chicken.

I then add fresh pico made by my favorite supermarket. 

And next goes in the quinoa. I make a batch of quinoa at the beginning of each week so I can easily add it to recipes throughout the week. 

It's time to stuff. I like my meat mixture to be warm because it adds steam to my peppers and makes them soft. 

Place stuffed peppers on a baking sheet and cover with foil so the peppers steam further and get nice and soft. 

With 5 minutes left, uncover the peppers and add 2% sharp cheddar until melted. 

Chop up an avocado, place pico on top and a yummy dollop of fat-free plain Greek on the side. 

Skinny, healthy, packed full of protein, whole grains and flavor!  Cool was proud I had color on my plate and she was a little envious of my lunch today. (BTW she is NEVER jealous of my lunch!) 

Crazy's Skinny Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Serves 4 

1 pound ground chicken (or turkey)

3/4 cup cooked quinoa 

1 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large poblano peppers, divided and seeded

1 cup 2% shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 avocado, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

1 cup of salsa or pico de gallo, divided

1 5 ounce container of fat-free plain Greek yogurt

1. In a medium skillet, brown chicken with cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, salt and black pepper. 

2. Slice peppers in half, lengthwise, and take out the seeds. 

3. As the chicken finishes cooking, add in 1/2 cup of salsa and quinoa. 

4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

5. Stuffed each pepper with 1/4 of the meet mixture. Place on a foil lined baking dish or baking sheet and cover the peppers with foil.

6. Bake for 40 minutes. 

7. Place 1/4 cup of cheese on each pepper and place back in the oven for 5 minutes or until melted. 

8. Serve warm with 1/4 chopped avocado, 2 tablespoons of Greek yogurt and 2 tablespoons of salsa.