I love stuffed green peppers. I always have. Even as a small child I favored them over a simple meat and potatoes dinner. There was just something delightful about each of us having our own delectable container filled with seasoned meat. I liked the tidiness of the presentation. And along with the stuffed pepper would always come our very own baked potato. Again a tidy package on which to heap all kinds of lovely ingredients like butter, salt, and pepper. No sour cream, bacon, or sliced green onions in those days. But as much butter as we wanted. (We had our own cows and my grandmother churned our butter. So butter was not a luxury, it was simply taken for granted and eaten enthusiastically.) Sigh……..
So yesterday while we were at the grocery store, I noticed that green peppers were on sale. I looked at Mr. C, he looked at me, we nodded yes simultaneously, and the making of our dinner menu was hatched right there in the produce section of our local IGA. (It’s OK, we’re married! Hatching dinner plans in public is still considered acceptable behavior for married couples!)
Anyway, when we arrived home I decided to work up a recipe for stuffed peppers featuring Mexican ingredients and seasonings. So I began my task and came up with this recipe. I hope you enjoy it. And don’t hesitate to serve it to your children. They might balk at the pepper part, but I bet they will love the filling. And to its credit, the filling is high in protein and some other really-good-for-growing-children ingredients. Including, and this is the fun part, you can sneak wheat germ into the filling and your kids won’t even notice. Hah – is that great or what?!?! For this recipe, I would suggest about a quarter cup of wheat germ. At least, that’s the amount I used per pound of meat while I still had kidlets at home.
For more information about the health benefits of wheat germ for children, visit www.parentinghealthybabies.com, then search under Health Benefits of Wheat Germ for Children.
Please note: For my recipe for a delicious, unmistakably Italian stuffed green pepper, search under Stuffed Green Peppers on this site.
- 4 green peppers, tops sliced off and seeds and membranes removed and discarded (save the top to finely dice and add to the filling)
- 2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- ½ small onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño, minced (first carefully remove the seeds and membranes)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp. smoked paprika
- ½ tsp. ground cumin
- ½ tsp. dried oregano (Mexican preferably)
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 (8-oz.) can tomato sauce
- 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- ½ c. cooked brown rice
- ½ c. low-fat sour cream
- ½ c. grated shredded sharp cheddar or cheese of choice, plus more to sprinkle on top for presentation
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and fry until cooked through and browned. Add onion, jalapeño, and the finely diced flesh from the top. Cook until the veggies are slightly softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add salt, pepper, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, chili powder, tomato sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Cook for about 2 minutes to blend flavors. Remove from heat and add the cooked rice, sour cream, and cheese; mix well. Adjust seasoning.
Lightly grease an 8×8-inch baking pan. Place the peppers, cut side up in the pan and fill with the meat mixture. (If you have extra filling, bake it in another small baking dish.)
Bake the peppers in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 75-90 minutes or until the pepper is very soft and starting to brown. (If the filling gets too brown during the baking process, cover with aluminum foil.)
Remove from oven and sprinkle with a small amount of grated cheese. Serve immediately.
[contact-form][contact-field label=’Name’ type=’name’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Email’ type=’email’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Website’ type=’url’/][contact-field label=’Comment’ type=’textarea’ required=’1’/][/contact-form]