Italian Stuffed Peppers

I was really excited when I saw that bell peppers were making their first appearance at the farmers' market this summer, with my thoughts instantly drifting to stuffed peppers. Stuffed peppers can take on Mexican, Italian, or Mediterranean flavors, and there were so many possibilities that I failed to find pick out a recipe or pick up any specific ingredients before the night before that I was planning on making stuffed peppers for dinner. Taking a quick look through my freezer, fridge, and cabinets, I was able to find the makings for these delicious Italian-style stuffed peppers. Just like so many of my other favorite types of dishes to make, stuffed peppers have nearly infinite possibilities and allow you to use up all kinds of leftovers and odds and ends of ingredients you already have on hand. The Italian sausage and prepared marinara pack the peppers with flavor without any effort on your part, provided you have good sausage and sauce; I used sauce from R.P.'s Pasta Company and Italian sausage from Willow Creek Farm, both local companies that produce tons of fantastic products. Top that with rich, melty cheese and you have a dish that's sure to please nearly everyone. If you want to make this dish vegetarian navy or cannellini beans can be substituted for the Italian sausage, though you will be doing so at the expense of flavor.

I also try to make large batch of grains (brown rice, quinoa, etc.) and beans and freeze the extras so I have a blank palette ready to go in the freezer for a quick lunch or dinner anytime. Prepared grains and beans offer up the possibility of tons of delicious salads and wraps; I frequently combine them with veggies and sauce for nutritious, tasty lunches to bring to work. I keep enough different beans and grains in the freezer and veggies in the fridge that I never get bored with my lunch and don't have to sacrifice taste when I have little time to put a meal together for myself on a busy night. Letting some rice cook in the rice cooker or beans cook on the stove while doing other chores around the house is well worth the small sacrifice in time on the weekend to make the work week a bit more harried.
 
Italian Stuffed Peppers
serves 2

2 green or red bell peppers, halved, seeds and ribs removed
Canola oil cooking spray
4 ounces Italian sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed through a garlic press
1 cup marinara sauce
1 cup cooked brown rice
2 slices provolone cheese, cut in half
 
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Place peppers, cut side down, on prepared baking sheet and spray top side lightly with cooking spray. Roast peppers, rotating baking sheet halfway through, until peppers are tender but not falling apart, about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, preheat a pan over medium heat and add Italian sausage, breaking up any large pieces with a wooden spoon or spatula. Once the sausage has rendered some fat, add chopped onion and garlic and continue cooking until onions are translucent and soft, but not falling apart, about 9 to 12 minutes. Add brown rice and marinara sauce, stir well to combine, and continue cooking until mixture is heated through.

3. Divide rice mixture evenly among the four pepper halves (about 1/2 cup per pepper), top each with a half slice of provolone, return to the oven, and cook until cheese is melted and just starting to brown, about 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

Southwestern Rice Salad

Black beans are corn are an irresistible combination. The Bon Appetit recipe that inspired me didn't have black beans, a huge oversight in my book. It was intended as side, but adding black beans transforms it into a healthier, more filling dish that can be either a light main course or side. This can be served cold, room temperature, or warm and makes a great lunch or light dinner. Quinoa would be a nice substitute for the brown rice and would increase the nutritional value, but most people aren't familiar with quinoa and it is significantly more expensive than rice. Lime juice would also make a nice substitute for the lemon juice, any kind of peppers or summer squash could be used (add a jalapeno, habanero, or serrano for some heat), and white or yellow onions could be substituted for the green onions, cooking them with the peppers and squash.


Southwestern Rice Salad with Corn and Black Beans
adapted from Epicurious, who got it from Bon Appetit

serves 4 as a main dish, 8 as a side-dish

1 cup brown rice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Freshly ground sea salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (cut from 2 ears) or frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup chopped fresh poblano chiles or green bell pepper
1 cup diced seeded red bell pepper
1 cup 1/2-inch cubes yellow zucchini
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Prepare rice according to package directions and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice and 3 tablespoons oil in small bowl. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add corn, poblanos, red bell pepper, and zucchini. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté until vegetables are just tender, 6 to 7 minutes, adding black beans in the last minute or two of cooking (just to heat them through). Scrape into large bowl. Add rice, green onions, cilantro, and dressing; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Couscous and Farmer Cheese Stuffed Peppers

This week I won't be participating in Meatless Monday, as it's my husband's birthday and I'm going to make  him a meal he loves, which most definitely involves red meat. After going out to Famous Dave's for his birthday last night, having a non-vegetarian (and not very healthy) meal tomorrow, and having birthday cake (I made a pineapple upside-down cake), I wanted to have a healthy, vegetarian dinner on Sunday. We've been having corn-on-the-cob every Sunday lately since it's in season and we can't get enough of it, so I needed something that goes well with corn. I bought some beautiful, organic peppers at the farmer's market, so I decided to try out a new stuffed pepper recipe.

This recipe could fill 8 or more peppers (depending on size), but I filled 4 peppers and had three cups of couscous mixture left over that will make a nice lunch for one or two later in the week. How many peppers the stuffing fills varies greatly depending on the size of the peppers you can find. The filling is delicious all by itself, so fill as many peppers as you want and save the remaining couscous salad to have for a lunch or a quick dinner later in the week.

Couscous and Feta Stuffed Peppers
adapted from Epicurious, who got it from Self
serves 6 to 8  (or more)

Vegetable-oil cooking spray
1 1/4 cups fat-free chicken or vegetable broth
2/3 cup whole wheat couscous
6 to 8 bell peppers, depending on size of peppers
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 oz zucchini, cut into a large dice
6 oz yellow squash or yellow zucchini, cut into a large dice
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp kosher salt
15 oz canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
4 oz cubed or crumbled farmer cheese (about 1 cup)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F F. Coat a small baking dish with cooking spray. 

2. Bring the broth to a boil in a saucepan, add the couscous, cover the pan and remove it from the heat. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut the stems and top half inch off the bell peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Boil trimmed peppers for 5 minutes, then drain them upside down. 

3. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet. Add onion, zucchini, yellow squash, oregano, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened. Remove from heat and stir in the chickpeas. Using a fork, scrape the couscous into the skillet and toss with the vegetables. Stir in the crumbled feta. Place peppers upright in the baking dish and fill them with the couscous mixture. Bake 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

Easy Stuffed Peppers

I impulsively bought three bell peppers at the farmer's market with no particular recipe in mind, but a vague notion of making stuffed peppers in the back of my head. After indulging in too much pork at The Haze BBQ, I thought it would be nice to have a vegetarian dinner and threw together a simple stuffed pepper recipe with what I already had on hand at home. This recipe is infinitely flexible and can be scaled up or down to feed any number of people and a great quick and easy vegetarian dinner for any night of the week.

Easy Stuffed Peppers
serves 3

3 bell peppers, halved and seeded
1.5 c. cooked grain such as brown rice, quinoa, couscous, or bulgur
6 T. salsa (I used Newman's Own black bean and corn salsa)
6 slices cheese (I used either smoked cheddar or smoked butterkase)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place the peppers cut-side down on a lightly greased baking sheet. Roast 25 to 30 minutes or until peppers are tender and their skin starts to brown. Remove peppers from oven and increase heat to broil.

2. Spoon 1/4 c. rice into each of the pepper halves and top each with 1 T. salsa. Place a cheese slices on top of each pepper. Return peppers to oven until cheese is melted and just starting to brown, 4 to 6 minutes.

Portabella Mushroom Melts

In general, I'm not a fan of recipes for sandwiches. Do people really need instructions on what to put on bread? Occasionally I'll come across a worthwhile sandwich recipe, but most of the time they just seem obvious. Even though it's not something I'd normally do, I'm presenting a sandwich recipe today because it's true to the way I'm approaching food right now. First of all, it's a vegetarian meal. I'm really trying to cut down on my meat consumption, both for health and because of the environmental impact. I'm also trying harder to embrace local products (again for health and the environmental impact); the mushrooms, bread, spinach, and cheese all came from the farmer's market. I am fortunate to live in Madison, home of the country's largest producer-only farmer's market, so I am never at a loss for local ingredients. Now that the farmer's market is back outside for the summer (and thus much larger than the indoor winter farmer's market), much of my cooking inspiration will come directly from what I find at the farmer's market each week. In addition to being healthier and better for the environment, food from the farmer's market just tastes better and I feel good supporting my local economy. I can't begin to say how much I missed the Dane Country Farmer's Market during my years in Iowa.

I don't have any specific measurements in this recipe other than two mushrooms, because the perfect sandwich is different for each person. I say throw whatever veggies like and have in the fridge on the sandwich and top with your favorite cheese and condiments. Who can go wrong with good bread, a pile of veggies, and a delicious cheese?


Portabella Mushroom Melts
serves 2

Four slices good quality bread (I used caraway rye from Cress Spring Bakery)
Butter or olive oil
Mayo or Miracle Whip
Two whole portabella mushrooms, thoroughly washed with stems removed
Green peppers, thinly sliced
Red onions, thinly sliced
Spinach, washed
Sliced cheese (I used raw milk cheese; swiss or white cheddar would also be good)

1. Preheat broiler. Spread butter or oil over the bread and toast under the broiler until the bread is golden brown, a few minutes. Remove bread from oven and spread with mayo.

2. Place mushrooms on bread and top with desired vegetables and cheese. Put back under broiler until cheese is melted, a few minutes. Enjoy!