I am enamored of Le Rouge Royale bell peppers! Sweet, colorful, and delicious, they are perfect raw – love them with hummus – or cooked, as in today’s recipe for stuffed peppers. I usually stuff green bells, but I couldn’t resist using these beauties, especially since my local grocer is running a 10/$10 sale – a steal! The only tiny glitch is their size, as they certainly cannot stand up in the same manner as a regular bell pepper. No worries, I sliced them vertically, which worked out perfectly.
When cooked, the flesh of these peppers is so deliciously sweet and creamy, that I added a bit more spice to my stuffing recipe than I ordinarily would. If you’re not into spicy, just omit the Serrano, or use a jalapeno for less heat.
They were a big hit on Sunday; my mom, dad, sister, and nephew came to lunch, and I sent them home with the leftovers, saving one for myself. Yep, you guessed correctly, Brett and Andrew passed on the stuffed peppers…sigh…
Stuffed Peppers Printable recipe
8-10 Le Rouge Royale peppers (or your favorite)
2 cups raw basmati or long grain rice
1 lb extra lean ground beef (93%)
2 medium onions, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano pepper, seeded & diced (optional)
½ Le Rouge pepper, diced
2-3 teaspoons salt-free Cajun or Creole seasoning
1/2 teaspoons salt + more, if necessary
¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
2-3 teaspoons salt-free Cajun or Creole seasoning
1/2 teaspoons salt + more, if necessary
¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
1/3 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Extra virgin olive oil
Tap water
Cook rice, along with 1/2 teaspoon salt, according to package directions; place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Wash, dry and slice peppers vertically, cleaning out seed cavity. Pour tap water into baking pans, about ¼” deep. Place halves in baking pan and set aside while preparing stuffing.
In a skillet, heat 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil, and cook ground beef, along with Cajun or Creole seasoning, until slightly caramelized; add ground beef to rice. Do not clean skillet or turn off heat.
Add 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive to skillet, and add onions, celery, garlic, Serrano pepper, and diced Le Rouge pepper. Cook until soft and golden brown; add to rice/ground beef mixture.
Add parsley and grated cheese; mix well, taste for seasoning, adding salt and/or Cajun/Creole seasoning, and spoon stuffing into prepared peppers.
Cover baking dish with foil, and bake for 40 minutes; remove foil, and continue to bake for an additional 10-15 minutes.
Enjoy!
Today's post is linked to these terrific blogs!
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