In my quest to find meals that are dairy and gluten free, I decided to try these stuffed peppers from Practical Paleo. I was surprised by how much my family enjoyed them. I really didn’t expect them to love them so much. The kids did say that they would have liked them better with red peppers (the recipe in the book actually pictures red peppers but I opted for green since they are much cheaper) but they still ate a good portion of the peppers anyway. Next time I make them, I might splurge, but these were pretty good in their own right.
The other nice thing about this recipe is, it comes together quickly. You just slice the peppers in half and bake them for 10-15 minutes in a 375-degree oven. Meanwhile you brown the ground beef along with diced tomatoes, onion and garlic. Mix in chopped basil if you have it, season with salt and pepper, and then you can fill the peppers. I did serve mine on a bed of rice with some cheese sprinkled on top because we’re not trying to eat 100% paleo. Of course those additions are purely optinal.
- 4 bell peppers, cleaned and halved
- 1 tablespoon bacon grease
- 1 large onion, diced
- 6 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 beefsteak tomato, diced
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 10 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
- shredded Parmesan Cheese (optional)
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Cook peppers in a baking pan (face down) for 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large frying pan, saute onions in bacon grease until they’re translucent.
- Add tomatoes, garlic and a teaspoon of salt to the onions and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add the ground beef and cook until there is no pink left.
- Mix in the basil and salt and pepper to taste.
- Spoon meat mixture evenly into each of the cooked peppers.
- Return to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.
- Top each with 1 tsp Parmesan cheese.
- Serve the stuffed peppers on a bed of rice or quinoa or by themselves.
We love stuffed peppers! Here’s a tip that makes them extra delicious…brush each half inside and out with olive oil and roast cut side down until they start to turn brown. Then fill them with the hot cooked meat mixture (I add cooked rice to mine), top with cheese (I love a little feta) and bake for about 5-7 minutes. Yummy!
Stuffed Peppers are one of my favorites. They aren’t gluten free, though 😉 I may need to try this sometime!
Thx! Keep checking at the grocery. Every once in a while, red peppers are the same price as green, or less. If they are a little “ripe” so what…. Great for this dish!