I love this super easy recipe for couscous-stuffed roasted peppers with hazelnut pesto and feta cheese. I make them with my son Jack and he loves to get stuck in crumbling the feta and stuffing them with the couscous - I always find he eats better when he's had a part to play in it! This dish is rich in vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant, and beta-carotene which is vital for growth, healthy skin, teeth and vision.
What you'll need:
2 large red peppers
salt and pepper to season
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
75g giant couscous
100ml vegetable stock
75g feta cheese, crumbled
For the pesto:
15g basil leaves
20g chopped hazelnuts
1 garlic clove, crushed
20g grated parmesan cheese
60ml extra virgin olive oil
Here's the method:
1 - Preheat the oven to 200C (400F/Gas 6). Slice the red peppers into halves, lengthways through the stems. Deseed them carefully to preserve the bowl-like structure. Rub the halved peppers inside and out with 1 tbsp oil and season well. Bake, cut side up, in an oven-proof dish for 30 minutes or until softened and the edges are slightly charred.
2 - For the pesto, place all of the ingredients, except the oil, in a bowl and blend with a hand blender until they are well combined. With the motor still running, pour the oil in slowly until the mixture is bright green and fairly smooth. Season to taste and put aside.
3 - To prepare the couscous, heat the remaining 1 tbsp of oil in a pan and cook the onion until softened but not brown. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute. Then add the dry couscous and cook for 1-2 minutes, until it starts to colour slightly. Add the stock to the pan, bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 4-5 minutes until the couscous has absorbed all the stock. When it is cooked, put it in a bowl and leave to cool.
4 - Mix the pesto into the couscous, along with two-thirds of the crumbled feta, reserving the rest for the tops of the peppers. When they are cool enough to handle, fill each pepper shell with the mixture, sprinkle the remaining feta on top, and bake in the oven for a further 15 minutes until heated through.
Then enjoy!! These peppers are best eaten warm or at room temperature. The filling can also be served alone as a salad or side dish. You can also make double the delicious pesto and store it in the fridge for a quick pasta topping another day.
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