Stuffed Red Peppers

So, my mother is going to pass out when she sees this one!

I hate stuffed peppers.

So, why are they making an appearance on my blog? Why, they are one of Megan's favorite foods, so naturally I need to learn how to make it so that when she doesn't have the time in her schedule for a road-trip to her mom's kitchen, she can just place her request for some peppers and consider it done (complete with her own set to take home in an aluminum baking dish that she can pop in the oven and then throw away after consuming the contents, brilliant!)

The results were pretty tasty, I'll consider the major improvement the red bell pepper vs. green bell pepper I grew up eating (stuffed with meatloaf, which you know is also one of my least favorite foods, but one I have two good recipes for since not only does Hubby love meatloaf, it's one of Megan and Tessa's favorites too...so...what's a girl to do ;-) ) Next time I may play with the spices a bit more...remove the cumin and dump up the Italian Seasoning or keep the cumin and add some corn and/or black beans for a more Tex-Mex twist (as you know I love!)

Stuffed Red Peppers

Stuffs 4-5 small/medium-sized red bell peppers

Adapted from Gina's Skinny Recipes

Estimated Point Value: 2.5 per half-pepper

1 lb lean ground beef

1/4 onion, minced

1 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 c tomato sauce

14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes, drained

1 cup chicken stock

1 1/2 cup brown rice, cooked

RF Cheddar Cheese, for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 400 and prepare a large casserole dish with cooking spray.
2. Cook rice according to the package instructions and set aside in a large bowl.
3. Brown beef with onion in a large skillet.
4. Season beef and pour in tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes, and 1/2 cup of chicken stock, breaking up tomatoes into smaller chunks.
5. Allow beef mixture liquid to reduce until basically gone.
6. Combine beef mixture and rice mixture in a large bowl.
7. In the large casserole dish lay out the pepper halves (cut in halve, remove stems, ribs, and seeds).
8. Fill each pepper with as much of the beef and rice mixture as possible (I got just under a 1/4 cup in mine I believe).
9. Pour in the remaining chicken stock around the peppers (not too deep, barely covering the bottom of the pan.
10. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30-35 minutes.
11. Remove the foil and top with shredded cheese and allow to melt, or put back in the oven for a minute or two to speed up the melting process.

I served one pepper (two halves) with sides for dinner last night - broccoli roasts nicely in the 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes...spray with olive oil spray and season with garlic salt and pepper...that's basically all you need unless your dining companion is like my man requires a potato =P) I'm guessing you could freeze individual pepper halves that have been stuffed before the baking and have an easy to pull-out dinner in the freezer waiting for you, not a bad idea if I do say so myself!