There is something soothing about sitting down to comfort food during these tough times, plus they are also inexpensive and easy to make. Turkey is a healthy alternative to beef, but tends to be drier so the pasta sauce gives needed moisture without being greasy.
I used to stuff my peppers by cutting off the top with the stem but have found that by slicing them lengthwise the meat mixture heats quicker which allows the peppers to remain firm instead of getting mushy. (Plus they don’t tip over in the pan and are also easier to cut and eat.)
These make a nice, low-carb meal with added hidden veggies and a side salad rounds it out nicely. Bell peppers are high in vitamin C, with a single one providing over 150% of the recommended daily intake. They also provide vitamin K1, E and A, and folate and potassium.
Variations: You can use whatever color bell peppers you like or be really creative and mix it up with red, orange, yellow and green for a pretty presentation! You can also use red tomatoes instead of the yellow that I used (it’s what I had on hand), kale instead of spinach (which I absolutely detest!), different types of shredded cheese and different flavors of pasta sauce. You could also use straight up tomato sauce but would need to add some herbs to make it more flavorful.
Ingredients:
- 3 bell peppers (color of your choosing)
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 diced shallot (or onion)
- 3 minced cloves of garlic
- 1 tsp tumeric
- 1/2 cup matzah meal (or bread crumbs)
- 1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (set aside 1/4 cup)
- 12 cherry tomatoes, quartered
- Big handful of raw spinach, chopped (about 2 cups loose)
- 1 1/2 cups red pasta sauce (set aside 1/2 cup)
- Salt & pepper to taste.
Directions:
- Wash bell peppers and cut in halves, lengthwise. Remove stem and seeds.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat 2 TB olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic and sautee until just fragrant.
- Add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink.
- Put meat mixture in a large mixing bowl and fold in matzah meal/bread crumbs and 1 cup of the cheese.
- Fold in cherry tomatoes and spinach.
- Mix in 1 cup of pasta sauce (add another 1/2 cup if you like them saucier).
- Spoon mixture into the bell pepper halves and place on a baking sheet lined with tin foil and brushed with olive oil.
- Spoon the 1/2 cup of sauce equally over the meat stuffed peppers.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
- Sprinkle the 1/4 cup of cheese equally over the stuffed peppers.
- Bake for another 10 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Makes 6 halves which for us was 2 halves each for dinner and then one half for lunches.
Vivo O Sonho 