Stuffed peppers have been a popular choice for Americans for a long time. It's no wonder why; they're highly customizable, and there are few things as satisfying as the crunch of a good pepper. This stuffed peppers recipe is Latin-inspired, allowing you to bring a piece of global cuisine into your home.
The one ingredient that may have you raising your eyebrows is raisins. Including raisins in a recipe that uses ground beef and cheese may sound odd, but we think it adds just the right note of flavor to really complete this recipe. Of course, you can always leave the raisins out if it's too unusual for your preference.
If you serve these stuffed peppers for dinner, we recommend serving with a simple tossed salad. Salad isn't going to be popular with the younger members of your family, but it's important to make sure everyone gets the greens that they need. A good dressing should cut down on any complaints!
You can also serve these stuffed peppers as an appetizer. They're not so filling that your guests won't want anything else, but they're filling enough to hold everyone over until the main course. Make these for a game day, dinner party, or any other occasion that calls for an appetizer.
Latin Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients:
4 large green peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 pound ground beef
½ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (14 ½ ounce) can diced tomatoes, with juice
2 cups quick cooking rice
1 cup water
1 cup raisins
8 pimento stuffed green olives, chopped
3 tablespoons pine nuts
4 cups marinara sauce
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Cook the peppers in a large pot of boiling water until just tender, about 3 minutes. Rinse under cold running water and drain.
3. Spray a large nonstick skillet with nonstick spray; heat over medium heat.
4. Add the ground beef, onion, garlic, cumin, and cinnamon. Cook, breaking up the ground beef until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, water, raisins, olives, and nuts. Cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 5 minutes
6. Spoon the meat mixture into each pepper.
7. Arrange the peppers in a small baking dish, spoon marinara sauce over them, and top with the cheese.
8. Bake uncovered, until the filling is hot and cheese has melted, about 15 minutes. Serve with a side salad. Makes 4 servings.