Stuffed-pepper medley - country cooking

4 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
4 mediums Sweet red, green, orange, yellow, purple, or white peppers (about 1 1/4 lb)
Filling (recipes follow)

Directions

1. In 6-quart Dutch oven or saucepot, heat 4 inches water to boiling over high heat. Trim off 1 inch from tops of peppers and remove seeds. Coarsely chop tops; set aside. Add peppers to boiling water; cook 5 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

2. Select and prepare a filling from recipes below. If directed in filling recipe, heat oven to 400'F.

3. To bake peppers, arrange well drained peppers upright in 9-inch cast iron skillet or shallow baking dish. If filling recipe does not require baking peppers, arrange on serving platter. Fill and top according to selected recipe. Serve immediately or, where filling recipe indicates, bake 20 minutes or until filling is bubbly and top has browned.

Macaroni-and-Cheese Filling: Heat oven to 400F. In heavy 1-quart saucepan, stir together ½ C milk, 1½ t cornstarch, ½ t salt, ¼ t dried dillweed, and reserved chopped pepper tops. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Fold in one 3-oz package cream cheese.

Remove from heat and pour mixture into 3 C cooked elbow macaronl Divide mixture into prepared peppers. Sprinkle ½ C shredded Monterey Jack or white Cheddar cheese flavored with jalapenos over stuffed peppers. Bake as directed above.

Traditional Rice Filling: Heat oven to 400'F. In medium-size skillet, saute ½ lb ground beef, ½ C coarsely chopped onion, and reserved chopped pepper tops until meat is well browned. Stir 1 T flour into one 8-oz can stewed tomatoes until smooth. Stir tomatoes into beef mixture; heat until thickened. Stir in 2 C cooked rice and ½ teaspoon dried basil. Divide into prepared peppers. Sprinkle ½ C sbredded sharp Cheddar cheese over tops of peppers. Bake as directed above.

Chicken and Broccoli Filling: Thinly slice 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts and cut up 2 C broccoli flowerets. In large skillet, melt 2 T butter or margarine. Add chicken strips; cook until well browned on one side-about 5 minutes. Turn chicken strips; add broc- coli flowerets and reserved chopped pepper tops. Stir-fry until broccoli is just tender-about 6 to 8 minutes. In a small bowl, beat together ½ C orange juice, ½ C dry white wine, 2 t soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons cornstarch. Add mixture to skillet and cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened. Divide filling into prepared peppers and sprinkle 2 T sliced natural almonds over tops. Serve immediately.

Primavera Filling: In large skillet, melt 2 T butter or margarine.

Add ¼ C chopped green onions, ¾ C each thinly sliced carrots, yellow squash, and zucchini, ½ C fresh or frozen green peas, 1 C coarsely chopped plum tomatoes, 2 cloves sliced garlic, and reserved chopped pepper tops. Saute until vegetables are just tender. Divide into prepared peppers. Sprinkle ¼ C toasted pine nuts over peppers and serve.

Vegetable-Chili Filling: In large skillet, heat 1 T olive or vegetable oil. Saute ¾ C sliced onion, ¾ C sliced sweet pepper, 3 cloves garlic, sliced, and reserved chopped pepper tops until golden.

Stir in one 8-oz can red kidney beans, drained, and 1 C fresh or frozen whole-kernel corn. Stir 1 T yellow cornmeal and 1 to 2 t chili powder into one 8-oz can stewed tomatoes. Stir tomatoes into vegetable mixture. Heat to boiling, stirring occa- sionally. Simmer 10 minutes. Divide into prepared peppers. Sprinkle ½ C corn chips over peppers and serve.

Scallop-Pesto Filling: in large skillet, melt 2 T butter or margarine. Add 1 large carrot, thinly sliced, ¼ lb green beans, sliced diagonally into 1-inch pieces, ¼ lb mushrooms, thinly sliced, and reserved chopped pepper tops. Saute until just tender.

Add ½ lb bay scallops. saute until scallops are opaque and liquid has evaporated. Make pesto sauce: In blender or food processor fitted with chopping blade, blend or process ½ C packed fresh basil leaves, ¼ C fresh parsley leaves, ¼ C grated Parmesan cheese, 3 T olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, sliced, and ¼ C chopped walnuts until smooth. Toss scallops mixture with some pesto sauce. Divide into prepared peppers. Spoon remaining pesto sauce over peppers. Serve immediately.

Country Cooking/Summer/94 Scanned & fixed by Di and Gary

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