It's another noon release for the shmoo. In case you're suffering any lunch box withdrawal, check out what my lovely sister-in-law made this week: stuffed peppers. She used the recipe for nut and bean loaf I had made into Mini-Wellingtons back in October and added a bit of tomato sauce to it. She tells me "They tasted great, travel nicely (I took one to work), and are very filling!"
So there's another great vegan lunch idea, but one you won't see in my shmoo's lunch as he doesn't like peppers (yet?). Do other kids like stuffed peppers?
Ah, my husband is now bemoaning the fact that I never make him stuffed peppers. Thanks, Bernusha, we'll be over for dinner!
31 comments:
when i was wee, and had no choice as to whether i could become vegan because i hadn't the slightest idea how to cook, mom would make accidentally vegan stuffed peppers all the time! i loved em! we made them with brown rice cooked in veg stock, lentils, walnuts, onions and garlic, and a slightly spicy tomato sauce on top.
I just stumbled on your journal a few days ago. I'm not a vegan, sadly, but I'm actually leaning in that direction. It's so nice to see ideas for quick, easy, healthy, *portable* foods! That has always been my main drawback with eating veg*n on the go! thank you SO MUCH for this site!
Sorry, Jennifer. Some of us never latch on to green stuffed peppers. My mom used to make "half and half". She'd make half of the batch stuffed into peppers and half stuffed into foil cups shaped around a custard cup. There were usually empty green cups when dinner was over even with the half and half effort.
When I was growing up there were no red, orange, or yellow peppers readily available in the grocery stores, which would have helped tremendously. I can now eat the colored ones, but the green ones seem to "repeat" for the rest of the day -- if you know what I mean . . . Now have to go off and plan stuffed red peppers for dinner. Cheers!
Where can I get the recipe for Mini-Wellingtons? I am new to the site.
I didn't like green peppers as a kid but I love them now! On the rare occasion I do make them I usually use red, yellow or orange peppers instead (one year we planted a purple pepper plant and made it with them!)
Anonymous~ I think she's putting the Mini Wellington recipe in her forth coming vegan cook book!
I know exactly what you mean, Arline. Peppers have never been my favorite thing, either (thus my hubby's complaining that I never make them!). Maybe stuffed tomatoes for the pepper-intolerant?
no. i'm 19 and i still don't like peppers so much...
Peppers look good, but I don't think they're meant to be eaten :-) I'll bet you could stuff this into little squash(es?)
Still trying to get my brain around the grape jelly...
Speaking of this type of stuff, Whole Foods used to have vegan bulgar walnut loaf, or maybe vegan walnut bulgar loaf, in their deli. They stopped carrying it because of low demand, but I could never get them to fork over the recipe despite that. It came with an indispensable "gravy", without which it was too dry. Anyone have that recipe?
Hello! My name is Angela and I just started reading this site, but I have already gone through all of the archives and looked at every entry. I am not a vegan or even a vegetarian (sorry!) but I think I could be based on your lunches. I work in an office so bringing my lunch to work with me would be so ideal and I love those lunch boxes. I think I am going to buy one for me and one for my partner, who is a vegetarian.
I was wondering though if you had ever thought about putting up a grocery list of the foods you buy? I think that would be awesome. Most of the things you talk about I have never heard of before. The nearest grocery store to me that sells organic and vegan foods is a Wegman's 45 minutes away, but I would not mind the drive if I had in mind what to get.
Thanks for putting up this site. I think you are going to show a lot of people how easy it is to eat vegan.
The Stuffed Pepper Fight of 1971 is one I still remember all these years later. It was THE fight between my little four year old self and my parents because I refused for hours to eat a stuffed pepper. My dad finally conceded that he didn't like brussels sprouts and gave up trying to make me eat everything on my plate. Today, I like all veggies except mushrooms.
When Mama made stuffed peppers, she just put mine in a ramekin to bake. Oh, and she snuck in peppers anyway, by cooking them in spaghetti sauce (with onions, too) until squishy and then whizzing them up in the blender with the sauce. Smart Mama.
hi, i have a really randomn question for angela..who posted above..im going to penn state next year for college and the only grocery store in state college, PA is a wegmans..i saw that you mentioned they carry organic food and things just wondering if you knew anything else about that? ..thanx!
-AP Environmental Girl
Yes I do. Wegman's has THE BEST selection of vegan/vegetarian/organic is the area and the prices are better than the health foods stores. (usually.) They don't say much about organics on their website, but I love it there. They also have a wonderful selection of fresh produce. You should go check yours out. :o)
I've always liked stuffed peppers, even when I didn't like the peppers in any other way! Now I've got to make some for dinner, too!
When I was a kid I would only eat raw green peppers. I loved the crunch and slight bitterness. I'll eat them cooked as well, now, but I'm not a huge fan of the red, orange, etc. colored ones. They're too sweet for me.
There is hope for Shmoo! Maybe try him with the red or orange ones first since they're sweeter. I was a weird food kid. I liked everything bitter, sour, and salty, but would turn my nose up at most sweets.
thanx angela, that only makes me more excited to go to a college that has a health-concious grocery store!
-AP Environmental Girl
mmm I love stuffed peppers. But, I think my daughter and I are the only ones in our house that do. I usually stuff poblano peppers though because they are one of my favorites and have a bit more spice, but not too much for my daughter.
Some colleges are doing really health-conscious dining plans - CSA, the whole works. I can't remember the names... I did a little web grubbing, and found that Amy's has a list of colleges at http://www.amys.com/lemonslice/food_service/index.php and a link to an article on elementary, etc. schools going at least partly organic. Plus UCBerkeley and Yale have options. I'm sure there are more.
It took me 16 years to like peppers...but I love them now!! :D
Someone I know has kids that eat chopped raw red bell peppers as a matter of course, like for snack. Maybe you can stuff a different vegetable with the nut and bean loaf that shmoo would like better?
Jennifer, I just learned of the "vegan lunchbox" and am loving it. When are you publishing your cookbook?
My boyfriend's generally not big on peppers, but my friend and I made some red, orange, and yellow stuffed peppers, and he seemed to like those. Even I don't always like the green ones. The recipe I used isn't vegan, but you can see it here. Maybe you can modify it.
Hey AP Environmental Girl,
My husband went to PSU in state college and their cafeterias definitely have vegetarian food (and if I remember correctly vegan food). I always thought their food was decent for cafeteria food. Wegmans will carry a decent selection of organic items (though I'm not so sure about produce). There's a ton of farms in the area so you may find one that produces organic produce locally. I use www.localharvest.org
This is wonderful! Where can I buy them? You should really considering market them. I know a perfect online place for people who love food and love to cook: HomecookingX.com . You own yourself to sell thess boxes. You can list the menu there and start small by renting a kitchen... Good Luck!
When is your cookbook coming out??????
Wonderful, indeed! I have been looking for vegan-stuffed pepper ideas/recipes!
Sounds like some kids do like peppers, and some grown-ups still don't (I thought I was the only one!).
Re. the cookbook, I wish I could say when it will be ready. I'm writing (and typesetting) as fast as I can!
Re. where to buy the boxes, follow the link to "Laptop Lunches" in the sidebar. They sell the boxes, you provide the food!
hey nicole, thanx for the info about PSU's cafeteria, i did go on the dining services section of their website and found that meals are marked with either an M for meatless, a V for vegan or a check mark for healthy/lite, im really pumped excited about going
-AP Environmental Girl
AP Environmental Girl -
I went to PSU also. They have a great farmers market downtown during the fall. Make sure you check it out. The produce is unbelievably cheap. Most of it is grown by Amish families using horse-drawn plows without the use of pesticides. Very cool!
Also, when I was there, they had a small natural food co-op downtown, though I'm not sure it's still there.
Enjoy Happy Valley!
I'm a kid, and my mom made stuffed peppers the day before yesterday- I loved them!
Try using red peppers instead of green. They are sweeter as they are the fully ripened pepper/capsicum (green peppers/capsicum are not fully ripe).
I can remember never liking the green peppers as a child when mum used them, but whenever she used red they were much better in flavour and I would gobble them up.
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