Stuffed Red Peppers
A great vegetarian entree or delicious side dish, these Stuffed Red Peppers are substantial and filling. I often use leftover rice since it’s drier than freshly made rice. When cooking, I’ll let the grains get a little crispy – the texture is a great complement to gooey mozzarella. I love a mixture of rices but you could use whatever you have on hand. Even quinoa, lentils or other grains.
Stuffed Red Peppers
Equipment
- Grill (optional)
Ingredients
- 3 red peppers
- 3 cups brown & wild rice prepared (leftover is great!)
- 8 oz fresh ciliegine mozzarella drained
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- 2 tbsp olive oil divided
- 1 tbsp butter
- ¼ cup basil chiffonade
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 8 oz grape tomatoes halved or quartered if large
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Prepare grill. Alternately, heat oven to 400°F.
- Slice peppers vertically through the stem, leaving stem intact. Scoop out seeds.
- Place peppers in a baking dish and drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper.
- Grill peppers on med-high heat until char marks forms and peppers soften a bit. If using the oven, roast peppers for about 10 minutes, until the soften and begin to brown. Remove from heat. If grilled, place in a baking dish, cut side up.
- Lower oven hear to 350°F.
- While peppers are cooking, place a large saute pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp butter. When butter is melted and begins to foam, shake the pan to blend the oil and butter. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add prepared rice. Increase heat to medium high and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes and cook until heated through, another minute or so. Remove from heat and place rice mixture in a large bowl.
- Add mozzarella, parmesan and basil to the rice mixture. Mix well and fill each pepper half with the mixture.
- Bake for about 20 minutes until cheese is melty and bubbly.