Greek Stuffed Peppers

Friends,

Hello and Happy New Year!  Pictured above are Greek Stuffed Bell Peppers.  Side note: I can't always guarantee that our pictures will be fabulous like other blogs', but I can guarantee that we will only ever post blog-worthy recipes.  These peppers are just that.  I have adapted this recipe from Food Network's.  I have never made stuffed peppers before but I can tell you that after trying these, I will be making them a whole lot more now!  The  mix of the sweetness from the roasted peppers, plus the saltiness from the feta, and hint of cinnamon made these peppers a total hit.  I recommend reading the recipe once before you start because it has a few different steps.  Recipe below:

Serves 4

Time: about an hour total (maybe less if you have two people working)

Ingredients:

4 bell peppers (green=gross, so stick to the red, orange, or yellow)

Filling:
Ground turkey/beef/sausage/pork (8 oz)
3/4 tspn garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Dash of oregano
1 1/2 C brown rice (we used 1 package of Uncle Ben's instant brown rice.  Feel free to use any filling you want- orzo, bulgur, quinoa, etc)
1/4 C golden raisins
1/2 C toasted walnuts
Big bunch of basil, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1 1/2 C shredded mozzarella (reserve about half of this for tops of peppers)
1/2-3/4 C feta
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
3/4 tspn salt; 1/2 tspn pepper

Sauce:
15 oz. can tomato puree (just plain ole' tomato sauce is what this is)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cinnamon stick (or a few generous dashes of ground cinnamon)
1 tspn oregano
Pinch of salt
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Drizzle of olive oil for pot

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 425.  Cut off tops of peppers; scoop out all seeds; drizzle olive oil inside peppers and on outside and place face down (cut side down) in an oven proof dish.  Roast for 15 minutes or until blistered

Start sauce.  Heat small pot with drizzle of olive oil over medium low heat and add your minced garlic to cook for a couple of minutes.  Now add your tomato sauce and remaining seasonings and allow to simmer while you make your filling.

Filling:

In a pan, start cooking your meat with the 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder (or just use real garlic if you don't have this), 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, and dash of oregano.  Cook until done.  Set aside in a bowl.

While your meat is cooking, heat up some water in a bowl until very hot- about 2 1/2 mins in microwave. Place your golden raisins in this bowl and cover with plastic. This will re-hydrate the raisins and make them plump.  YUM.

***don't forget to toast your walnuts somewhere in here. Just stick 'em on a sheet pan in with the peppers for about 4 minutes TOPS***

After meat is done, the raisins should be done (maybe 5-7 minutes or so for this whole process).

In a bowl, combine raisins, meat, big bunch of chopped basil, scallions, zest of the lemon, lemon juice, minced garlic, toasted walnuts, feta, and mozzarella (just half).  Mix all this together and season with your salt and pepper.  Add your sauce (only until moist).  (Whatever sauce remains, ladle into the pan in which the peppers are cooking, and even on top of the peppers after filling has been added).

Take your peppers out of the oven, flip them right side up, and add your filling.  Top generously with your shredded mozzarella and place back in the oven for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and has some golden brown spots on top.

ENJOY!