This month brings not only Mother’s Day – but also a host of other celebrations like graduations and Memorial Day. Here’s a perfect appetizer for the festivities. Bright and cheerful with its primary colors of red, yellow and green, it will make a great centerpiece for a table full of delicious goodness. We love the  small sweet peppers that are available in almost every grocery store. They are so easy to stuff, grill or slice and the taste is crisp and fresh.

Our herb of the week just enhances the taste of the peppers. Its DILL! Bright and mild, tangy and of course, reminiscent of pickles and capers, its an irresistible addition to these gorgeous peppers.

In fact, for all of our cancer survivors that read this blog, dill’s volatile oils qualify acts as a “chemo protective” food. It can help neutralize particular types of carcinogens, such as those that are part of cigarette smoke, charcoal grill smoke, and the smoke produced by trash incinerators. It also shares the stage with garlic for its bacteria-regulating effects.

So stuff small sweet peppers with this delicious dill rich salad. We’ve found that a deviled egg plate makes a wonderful serving platter for the peppers. On the picture above, we used an artichoke heart to nestle a whole pepper in the middle of the plate!

Sweet Peppers Stuffed with Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

3/4 Cup Quinoa, Prepared as Directed on Box

1/2 Cup Pitted Kalamata Olives, Chopped

1/4 Cup Capers, Drained

1/2 Cup Chopped Sundried Tomatoes

2 Roasted Red Peppers, Chopped

1 Cup Chopped Artichoke Hearts

1 Cup Garbanzo Beans

1 Jalepeno, Minced

1/4 Cup Minced Red Onion

2 TB Chopped Chives

1/2 Cup Chopped Dill

1 Recipe Mediterranean Dressing*

In a large bowl, toss the ingredients together with the Dressing.

Mediterranean Dressing*

2 Anchovies

1/4 Cup EVOO

2 TB Red Wine Vinegar

2 TB Dill

2 Cloves Garlic

Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Place the ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.