RICE - Quinoa-Stuffed Shiitake Mushrooms

By Aemelia

Ingredients

• Quinoa:
• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water, chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/2 tsp unrefined sea salt
• Quinoa mixture:
• 1/2 small onion
• 1/8 red bell pepper
• 2 -inch piece zucchini
• 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup cooked quinoa
• Unrefined sea salt, to taste
• To assemble:
• 1 1/2 cups basic tomato sauce
• 12 large shiitake mushrooms
• quinoa mixture
• To finish:
• 4 oz mozzarella cheese

Details

Adapted from sense-serendipity.com

Preparation

Step 1

To cook the quinoa, combine the dried quinoa, water (or chicken/vegetable stock) and salt in a heavy medium pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes. When it is ready, small steam holes should appear on the surface. Remove from the heat; place a tea towel under the lid to absorb any steam for about 7-10 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 375º degrees Fahrenheit (or 190° degrees Celsius).

To prepare the quinoa mixture, first peel and mince the onion, and cut the bell pepper and zucchini into small dice. Heat a small pan over medium-low heat. Add the oil, followed by the onions. Then add a pinch of salt and let the onions cook gently until they are softened. Add the bell pepper and zucchini. Cook for another 2 minutes to release their aroma. Turn off the heat and transfer the mixture into a bowl. Add the quinoa and toss to combine. Then season with salt to taste.

To stuff the mushrooms, remove the stem from the mushrooms. Save the stems for making a stock. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper. Then, spoon each mushroom with the quinoa stuffing.

To assemble the dish, cover the base of a glass baking dish (7.5 inch x10.5 inch) with the tomato sauce. Lay the stuffed mushrooms into the sauce. The 12 mushrooms were able to fit in. Then, cover the baking dish with a foil and bake for about 15-20 minutes until the mushrooms are tender.

While the mushrooms are baking, grate the mozzarella cheese.

After about 10-15 minutes, remove the foil and place the grated mozzarella cheese on top of each stuffed mushrooms. Continue to bake for another3-5 minutes (without the foil) or until the cheese melts and dish is nice and hot.

Once done, serve immediately.