Stuffed Bell Peppers

It’s been quite rainy here in New Orleans as a tropical depression passes over.  I must admit it has been nice having a break from the smoldering heat!

I tried a new dish the other night adapted from a coworker’s recipe… 

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients

-5 green bell pepper

-1/2 pound extra lean ground beef

-1/2 pound raw, peeled shrimp

-1/2 cup chopped onions

-1 Tablespoon minced garlic

-1 Tablespoon oil

-1 can diced tomatoes

-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

-1/2 teaspoon dried basil

-1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

-1 bay leaf

-2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

-1/2 cup brown rice

-1/2 cup water

-1 cup 2% shredded cheddar cheese

-grated parmesan cheese (optional) 

Directions

Cut the peppers in half while removing the tops and seeds. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the peppers for ~8 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

In a skillet, cook the beef until browned.

In a separate skillet, heat oil and sauté onions and garlic until softened.  Add shrimp and cook ~5 minutes.

Combine beef, shrimp, onions, garlic, tomatoes with juice, rice, water, spices, and Worcestershire sauce into a large skillet.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is tender.

Remove from heat and stir in cheese.

Stuff each pepper half with the beef/shrimp/rice mixture and place peppers open side up in a baking dish.  Top with grated parmesan cheese (optional).

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. (I broiled the peppers the last couple minutes to make the tops crispy!)

Cory and I are used to eating stuffed peppers with breadcrumbs instead of rice but we still really liked this recipe!  We both scored it 8 out of 10.

Have you ever cooked or eaten stuffed bell peppers?  What are you cooking this week?

Kasey