Eating Well Wednesday - Greek Orzo Stuffed Peppers

The second installment of Eating Well Wednesday features another 'Greek' titled recipe. This one titled Greek Orzo Stuffed Peppers. I thought the filling was so tasty that I was happy there was some extra and ate it later in the evening. I enjoyed this recipe although my biggest suggestion is to not steam the peppers as they do, but to bake them the standard way as I found the to be soggy when steamed as they instructed.

Ingredients:

4 yellow, orange and/or red bell peppers
½ cup whole-wheat orzo
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
6 ounces baby spinach, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
¾ cup crumbled feta cheese, divided
¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes (not oil-packed), chopped
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar or red-wine vinegar
¼ teaspoon salt

1. Halve peppers lengthwise through the stems, leaving the stems attached. Remove the seeds and white membrane. Place the peppers cut-side down in a large microwave-safe dish. Add 1/2 inch water, cover and microwave on High until the peppers are just softened, 7 to 9 minutes. Let cool slightly, drain and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add orzo and cook until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.

3. Mash chickpeas into a chunky paste with a fork, leaving some whole.

4. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 4 minutes. Add spinach and oregano and cook, stirring, until the spinach is wilted, about 1 minute. Stir in the orzo, chickpeas, 1/2 cup feta, tomatoes, vinegar and salt; cook until heated though, about 1 minute. Divide the filling among the pepper halves and sprinkle each pepper with some of the remaining 1/4 cup feta.