My Favorite - Stuffed Peppers

Since I was little I have loved stuffed peppers.  Vegetable, meat and starch all in one.   Peppers are on sale this week.   Andrew does not like green peppers so I am going to stuff red peppers instead.  The peppers that are the best price are red field peppers, so that is what I am stuffing.   I have made these with ground turkey or chicken and brown rice (when I am on a health kick).  Today I am going to use ground beef and white rice.
You can make these ahead of time and leave them in the fridge ready to bake when needed.
I always make double and freeze half for another meal.  As with anything made with tomato sauce they are even better reheated.

Today's Tip

• When cooking onions it is not a problem if they brown a little.
• When cooking garlic you have to be careful not to let it brown as it makes the garlic bitter
• Add your garlic when your vegetables are cooked just before adding the wet ingredients and heat it just until it is fragrant before adding the next ingredients
• Add spices with the garlic - heat your spices before adding your wet ingredients to bring out their full flavour

Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
Sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon basil
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
1 - 24 oz can diced tomatoes

Peppers
1 cup rice cooked with 2 cups water.
4 bell peppers any colour or 3 very large peppers (like the ones I have made today)
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup shredded mozzarella (optional)
½ cup grated Parmesan (optional)
½ cup chopped Italian parsley
½ teaspoon salt


Instructions
Put rice on to cook
Heat a medium sauce pan on medium heat and add oil.  Add onions and cook until softened (about 5 minutes).  Add garlic and basil and red pepper flakes (if using) and heat through.  Add tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer while you are preparing the peppers.
Preheat oven to 350
Cut peppers in half and remove seeds and ribs.
Arrange peppers in a 9 X 12 baking dish (or what ever dish fits the peppers - divide in two dishes if necessary)
In a medium bowl mix beef, rice, cheeses (if using) parsley and salt (the best way to do this is with your hands).
Stuff the meat mixture into the peppers. 
Pour sauce over stuffed peppers, Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Remove foil and baste peppers with sauce.  Continue baking for 15 minutes.