Vegetarian Cinco De Mayo

One of my favorite items to get at an Mexican restaurant is Chili Rellenos. The problem is more often then not, they are fried, flatten and no longer resemble a pepper in anyway. In lue of Cinco De Mayo, today's recipe is a stuffed chili rellenos that happens to be meatfree. Though  my husband is no longer a vegetarian, we do try to eat two to three meat free meals a week.

This recipe uses Tempeh, for those of you unfamiliar with Tempeh, it is a soy product that is made by controlled fermentation which binds the soybeans into a firm cake. Just like all other forms of  soy, it is mild or nearly tasteless, so is a great starting point for any meal.

We eat Mexican fairly often, it happens to be my husbands favorite, so whenever possible I try to make healthier versions of the dishes we both love oh so much. To cut calories and  bulk up the protein, I added a cup of cannellini beans. I would typically use Black Beans but had the cannellini beans on hand so thought I would give it a shot. These peppers pack all of the flavor with half the calories and lots of veggies.


Stuffed Chili Relleno
1 pkg of Tempeh(chopped in bite sizes)
1 c of Cannellini Beans
1/2 onion (chopped)
4 Poblano Peppers
1 c of frozen corn
2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
1 tomato (chopped)
2 1/2 c of Vegetable Broth 
1/4 c of freshly grated cheddar
1/4 c of freshly grated monterey jack
Handful of fresh chopped Cilantro (optional)
Taco Seasoning
2 tsp Chili Powder
1 1/2 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp sea Salt
1/2 tsp ground Cumin
1/2 tsp Oregano
Dash of Cayenne Pepper (or two if you like it spicy)
Pinch of freshly ground pepper


Pre-heat oven to 400 f. Slice your chili down the middle, remove the seeds and place on a cookie sheet. Put in the oven for about 5 minutes, flip and cook on the other side. The chili should retain it's shape, begin to blister yet firm to the touch.

In the meantime, heat a large skillet over medium heat, spray with olive oil or make one turn around the pan. Place chopped tempeh in the pan, cook for about 2 minutes on each side. Just until golden brown, add garlic and stir often, cook until fragrant. Then add beans, onion, tomatoes, seasoning and veggie broth. Cook for about 20 minutes until the liquid is gone and the flavors have melded together.

Fill each pepper with stuffing mix, do not over fill so that it is spilling out, sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Top with cheese and return to the oven for about 3 to 4 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and golden brown. We paired our Chili Rellenos with my version of Spanish Rice, if you would like that recipe as well, email or a leave a comment.

Happy Cinco De Mayo everyone!