Vegan Stuffed Peppers:

I whipped this up last night and so many people asked for the recipe I had to add it to the site today. Feel free to up the spices. I cook without measuring so these measurements are a guess. The heat of your poblanos is always going to be a guess, so if you're afraid of heat don't use the red pepper flakes. If you cannot find poblanos, you could substitute another thin walled pepper like a large cubanelle, if you need to use bell peppers - which are fine just have a thick wall - I recommend cooking longer in the pan on step 6 and to cook on both sides. I also cook for 3 usually - my husband and I for dinner and one serving for my lunch the next day. If you need to serve more people, but don't want to double the recipe, increase the number of peppers and use a larger sweet potato.

Vegan Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Serves 3

Peppers:
3 poblano peppers
4-6 mushrooms - chopped tiny in a food processor
1/2 of a small onion - diced
1/4 cup red bell pepper - diced
1 small sweet potato
fresh corn from 1 ear
1 carrot - shredded
Olive oil
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayanne
dash of red pepper flakes
1/4 cup red salsa (Trader Joes Salsa Authentica)
fresh tomato
4-6 radishes

sauce:
1 ripe avocado
Juice of 1 lime
6-10 basil leaves

 a small baking pan - I used a 7" x 11" pyrex
cast iron skillet

Cooking the peppers:

1. Reheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Spray baking pan with olive oil
3. Poke holes in sweet potato and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes (depending on the strength of your microwave.) Set aside to cool.
4. Cut your poblanos in half lenghtwise
5. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a cast iron skillet
6. Place the peppers cut side down in the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes until the edge is cooked.
7. Remove the peppers and set cut side up in the baking dish
8. Add onion to the pan and cook 5-6 minutes until translucent or browned
9. Add chopped mushrooms and cook for 6 more minutes.
10. Add peppers, carrot and corn and cook for 8 minutes.
11. Dice sweet potato and add to the pan along with spices and salsa. 
12. Mix everything together for a minute of two
13. Stuff your peppers, cover with foil, and bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes to crisp the tops. (If you wanted to add vegan cheese this is when you'd melt it on the top.)
14. Chop the tomato and slice the radishes while it's baking.

Making the Sauce

Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor. (I have a stick blender with a mini food processor that I used for chopping the mushrooms, so I rinsed it out and used it again.)

Blend until smooth.

Plate it

I placed 2 halves of pepper on each plate and topped with fresh tomato and radish slices and 1/3 of the avocado sauce.

Enjoy!

Down Day Turkey Chili Recipe

Creating recipes for this diet doesn't make beautiful food, I does however create delicious meals. The photographs are not super attractive, but I can assure you, it doesn't feel like you're only eating 185 calories!

Good luck on your Down Days!

Down Day Turkey Chili Recipe

Makes 3 servings, 187 calories

1/2 cup, Onion, Chopped
1/2 cup, Chopped Green Bell Pepper
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 cup, Water
1 tbsp, paprika
1/2 tsp, Basil
1/2 tsp, Oregano
1/2 Cup, Diced Tomatoes - No Salt Added
1 can Pinto Beans
8 oz, Ground Turkey (99% Fat Free)
1 teaspoon, Ground Cumin
1/2 cup frozen corn
6 tbsp, Trader Joe's Salsa Autentica

Using a non-stick pan, cook onion through
Add ground turkey and spices and cook through
Add bell peppers and cook for 5 minutes
Add water, corn, drained beans, canned tomatoes, and salsa
Simmer for 20 minutes to integrate flavors
Separate into 3 servings and serve.

Trying a new dieting plan and Roasted Veggies and Spaghetti Squash Recipe

We have been doing the Up Day Down Day Diet or Alternate-Day Fasting. The basic premise is extreme but it seems to be working. Every other day you only consume 500 calories. This is a nice diet because you know you can eat tomorrow. However, the recipes are really lacking. So I started writing my own.

DD Roasted Veggies and Spaghetti Squash
Serves 4 - 210 calories

4 cup Spaghetti Squash - Spaghetti Squash Cooked
2.5 Cup Zucchini cubed
4 cup, cubes Eggplant, raw
1 Cup, Chopped Red Onion
25 fluid ounce Organic Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
8 oz (112g) Trader Joe's - Lean Ground Turkey 99% Fat Free Corrected
1 tsp Oil - Olive Oil (1 Tsp)
1 Cup Peppers, Red Bell, Generic - Peppers, Red
tbsp dried oregano
tbsp dried basil
fresh ground pepper to taste
Olive oil spray

Pre heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cube the eggplant, place in a colander over the sink and salt. Let tenderize for 20 - 30 minutes. Then rinse,

Cube the zucchini, bell pepper and onion.

Place all cubed veggies in a large bowl and mix with the dried basil, oregano, olive oil and cracked pepper. Reserve a few pieces of onion and pepper.
Spray a baking sheet with oil and spread the cubed veggie onto the sheet.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until cooked.

Cut the Spaghetti Squash in half and roast cut side down until it's tender. 20 - 30 minutes

Chop the reserved pieces of onion and pepper.

Cook them in a nonstick pan for 5 minutes, Add the ground turkey and cook through. Add the jar of tomato sauce. Simmer while the veggies are roasting.

Once the spaghetti squash is done roasting, shred it into spaghetti.
 Place into a large bowl, add the roasted veggies and pour sauce over the entire bowl.
Mix together and enjoy.