This recipe is quite versatile – serve on its own as a light lunch or add a salad and some meat or fish on the side to make it a complete meal. You can even add some lean mince to the mixture if you are a meat-lover – the options are endless! The olives, cumin and mix of nuts and seeds make it a very flavourful and punchy dish, yum!
FYI Freekeh is young green wheat that has been toasted and cracked. It’s available in the health food isle at Supermarkets and has the same light texture as qunioa.
- Serves: 4 capsicum halves
Ingredients
- 2 large red capsicums halved and de-seeded
- ½ cup raw freekeh
- ¼ cup uncooked red lentils
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ red onion finely diced
- 1 zucchini grated
- 1 cup spinach chopped
- 4 cup mushrooms chopped
- 1 tomato chopped
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 1 tbs each of roasted pumpkin seeds, slithered almonds and pine nuts
- 3 tsp cumin
- ¾ cup reduced-fat grated cheese
- pepper to taste
Method
- Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees (fan forced)
- Halve and de-seed red capsicums and set aside
- Put ¼ cup red lentils into a bowl and add boiling water until lentils are submerged, set aside
- Wash ½ cup Freekeh well and put in saucepan with 2 cups boiling water. Once water boils, reduce heat and cover with lid stirring occasionally for 20-25 minutes until soft
- Whilst Freekeh and red lentils are softening, get a large fry pan and add small amount of olive oil (approx ½ tbs). Add garlic and onion. Once golden brown, add grated zucchini, mushrooms, tomato, cumin and pepper
- Once vegetables have softened, turn off heat and add cooked and drained Freekeh and lentils, as well as parsley, pumpkin seeds, slithered almonds, pine nuts, spinach and cheese. Mix together well
- Spoon mixture into capsicum halves and bake for approx 20-25 minutes
- Garnish with some fresh chopped parsley and you’re done!