Serves 6
6 bell peppers, cut in half vertically, seeds and stems removed.
Lightly blanch the peppers before continuing with the recipe by sprinkling them with a bit of water and microwaving them for four minutes, or you can pop them into boiling water for two minutes. Either way, once they’re blanched, drain the water off them, pat dry, and line a large baking dish (lightly greased with a tsp of olive oil) with the peppers.
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 lb ground turkey, beef, or lamb
1 Tb oregano
2 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1 medium zucchini, grated
1 14-oz can of petite diced tomatoes with the juice they’re packed in
1 cup cooked black beans
1 4-oz can chopped green chilies
1 cup fresh chopped spinach
1 cup corn kernels (I used frozen)
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded (more, if you like it cheesy)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes until they are tender. Add the turkey (or beef or lamb) and sauté, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 7 minutes. Add the oregano, cumin, cayenne, and salt & pepper, stirring to incorporate. Add the zucchini and sauté for a couple of minutes, and then add the tomatoes. Reduce the heat slightly and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes. Next, add the black beans, chilies, spinach and corn. Add the rice and stir well. Remove from heat. Stir in half of the cheese.
Lightly salt and pepper the bell peppers, and then fill each one with enough filling so that it lightly mounds above the edges. Cover your baking pan and bake the stuffed peppers for 20 minutes. Remove the cover, sprinkle the remaining cheese onto each pepper, and bake for another 10 minutes.