Happy Friday! Here is an healthy and easy stuffed peppers recipe to consider for next week when life gets busy again. Unfortunately, this is also another one of those meals that is just not all that congenial to take photos of. I guess I could have styled it and tried to shoot it during the day in a very vibrant environment — but let’s face it, after a workout is probably not the best time to put your best artistic foot forward food-wise. And I’m pregnant and constantly HANGRY. And this meal was amazing, so you’re just going to have to give me a little license, and take my word for it.
It’s not Paleo because we included rice and a tiny bit of cheese, but it can easily be omitted.
Ingredients
4-6 green bell peppers
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 can (14.5 ounces) stewed tomatoes
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
2 teaspoons salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 egg
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef or chuck
1 1/2 cups cooked long-grain rice
Pinch of shredded cheese of choice (optional)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Slice tops off of peppers and remove seeds and membranes. Keep the pepper tops and set aside. Bring a pot of water to boil. Salt the water and blanch the peppers for 3-5 minutes, then remove from water and set aside.
- Saute onion, pepper tops, and garlic in olive oil for 3-5 minutes. Add one can tomato sauce and 1 can diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer for 3-5 minutes.
- Combine rice, ground beef, egg, oregano, basil, salt, pepper in a non reactive bowl and mix well. Add the tomato and onion mixture. Incorporate well.
- Add beef mixture to the bell peppers, overfilling if desired. Place filled peppers into a glass baking dish and pour the last can of stewed tomatoes around them.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes.
- Add pepper to plate or bowl and pour remaining stewed tomatoes from baking dish over the pepper. Top with a sprinkle of shredded cheese if desired.
See!? Not pretty, but so amazing!
We did enough peppers for two days-worth of dinners and they reheat beautifully. As I tend to get hooked on the things I like lately, we’ll definitely be making these again soon! Enjoy!
