Remember that delicious and so-good-for-you red quinoa recipe from last week? Well, I was looking around for a use for the rest of it and so…these were going to be stuffed sweet peppers but the portobello caps were SUCH a good price!  (Well, y’know I could not resist!)  I par-cooked the mushroom caps on a grill pan but they would be great done on your outdoor grill too!

We enjoyed these as an entree with steamed broccoli–they were VERY filling!  I figure two caps per person unless you choose to serve these as a side dish.  This recipe fit nicely into our ‘healthy but oh-so-yummy’ point of view!  Enjoy!

Quino-Beef Stuffed Portabellos

ingredients:
4 medium-sized portabello mushroom caps plus 1 extra for chopping
1/2 # ground beef (or turkey, chicken, or lamb)
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup kale (or spinach), stems removed and chopped
1-2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (I used havarti)
1 small red onion, cut into 1/2 moons
2 heaping tablespoons chopped garlic
1/2 cup red wine
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
olive oil

directions:

• preheat oven to 375 (heat grill pan, also, if using)
• in a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat; add sliced onions and cook for 4-5 minutes
• using a spoon, scoop out the dark gills of each mushroom cap. (if they have stems, add these along with the 1 extra cap for chopping.)  brush the caps with olive oil & place rounded side down on the heated grill pan (or onto a foil-lined baking sheet)
• bake for 6-7 minutes; remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly
• chop up the set-aside mushroom cap (and stems, if any) and add to onions in saute pan; cook over medium heat until mushrooms get brown & fragrant (caramelize them), perhaps another 6-7 minutes
• once onions and mushrooms are done, pour into a large mixing bowl along with the cooked quinoa
• (using the same skillet), add ground meat. cook over medium high heat ‘til browned.  lower heat just a bit (don’t want to burn the garlic!) and add chopped garlic and saute for another minute or two stirring constantly
• stir in red wine and chopped kale (or spinach) and cover pan; simmer ‘til liquid is evaporated
• add meat and kale to the veggie/quinoa mixture in the large bowl
• stir in the balsamic and mix the ingredients all together in the bowl. season well w/ salt and pepper
• place scoops of mixture into mushroom caps (I find my hands worked well!) dividing the stuffing mixture equally amongst the caps. top each mushroom with a few crumbles of cheese
• bake for about 12-15 minutes, ‘til mushroom caps are tender & filling is slightly browned.

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God loves you!  ♥  (Don’t ever forget that!)

♥  coleen