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Something magical happens when a vegetable gets stuffed. What once used to be the same old, plain old blah-di-blah veggie suddenly becomes wondrous, worthy of a place amongst the A-list stars of the appetizer menu — for the best in culinary sampling— or even warranting main dish status, the top billing for any and all edible elites. In other words, if you want to impress somebody, this is one surefire way.
And, therein lies the great question and the great motive for today’s exploration into the world of plant-based eating: Just which vegetables are best set for the filling? And, if we are going there anyway, why not include a few suggestions and recipe links for what exactly a plant-based cook might put into said vegetables? It’s going to be fun, enlightening and revolutionary for our ever-expanding list of personal specialties.
Let’s get to stuffing.
1. Squash
Think of it like this, squash has a firm outer shell with a scoop-friendly inside, especially the autumn and winter varieties like acorn or carnival. Anytime a vegetable’s skin can basically act as its serving dish, that makes for good stuffing. Just roast them whole at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for roughly 50 minutes, slice the halves open, and stuff away!
2. Peppers
Um, it’s almost as if peppers were grown to be stuffed. They are already hollow and seems to just beg for something delicious to go inside. And, don’t forget, it doesn’t only have to be bell peppers, stuffed jalapenos, Anaheims, and poblanos are fantastic.
3. Mushrooms
We won’t argue about what is and isn’t a vegetable on this one, and simply accept that mushrooms are sold alongside veggies and, when stuffed, maybe with spinach and pine nuts, are the ultimate appetizer.
4. Potatoes
Truthfully, there is not much that a potato can’t do well, stuffed just being another sparkle on an inescapably endless list of talents. What’s more, the stuffed potato can take so many cultural spins, such as the Indian-fusion stuffed potato skin.
5. Greens
Really more like a wrap, leafy greens are fantastic for filling. Cabbage is usually the choice here, but we’d be foolish to weed out all of those other hearty, healthy greens, such as collard greens, kale, and chard. And, another beautiful part of doing it with greens is doing it raw.
6. Eggplants
Yet another vegetable with skin thick enough to tolerate the bullying. Stuffed eggplant makes for a great main dish, usually fostering in some sort of healthy whole grain and other fresh vegetables, perhaps a little chopped nuts. Or you can go with stuffed eggplant rounds, such as Eggplant Hummus Rounds instead.
7. Artichokes
The beauty of stuffing an artichoke is twofold or more. First of all, it comes apart as a wonderful finger food, perfect for nibbling, and secondly, the flavor is mild and accommodating to whatever might be stuffing it, maybe even spinach and artichoke dip. Artichokes can easily be stuffed during cooking, or afterward.
8. Tomatoes
Yet another instance in which we won’t quibble about technicalities and simply accept that juicy tomatoes make for moist, delicious stuff “vegetables”. Pesto sauce with a “Parmesan” crust works wonderfully, and you can also add grains and other veggies to your tomatoes once they’re roasted.
9. Zucchini
The hip way to refer to stuffed zucchini is by calling them boats. Essentially, slice the zucchini in half lengthwise, scoop out the middle, and fill it with all sorts of delightful treats, such as Clean Eating Zucchini Boats with Garlic Sauce. It makes for a lovely presentation, not to mention a delicious meal.
10. Avocados
Hey, hey, hey! We could’ve listed out different types of squash or greens if we wanted to simply come up with ten actual vegetables. But, we were going for something more here, grander: real variety. Avocados — whatever their technical identities are — are perfect for stuffing. Keep it simple, and raw, and go the salsa route. Or, roast them, but be sure to remove the shell first.
Vegetables (and their closely associated produce aisle pals) are versatile vixens, ready for the adventure and voluptuous variations, and who are we — the vegans, the plant-based eaters, vegetarians, or even omnivores — to deny them such spotlight moments, the fifteen minutes in which they become the feature and the rest of the meal the sides and accouterments. It seems fairly apparent here as the article winds down that we have a duty to get out there, stuff those vegetables, and make some dreams come true.
Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home
Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental well-being, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, and prostate cancer, and has many side effects.
For those of you interested in eating more plant-based we highly recommend grabbing our favorite plant-based cookbooks and downloading the Food Monster App — with over 20,000 delicious recipes it is the largest plant-based recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals, and get healthy! While you are at it, we encourage you to learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.
Here are some great resources to get you started:
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