Stuffed Peppers

Can you believe how quickly October has flown by?  Halloween is just a few days away and I'm ready!  I must have succumbed to Mike's Halloween spirit this year.  It's hard not to when he started quizzing me about my costume choice back in July.

I'm all about a theme, and after I decided to make stuffed peppers for dinner this week, I knew I just had to carve them up like the little pumpkins they were meant to be.

Stuffed peppers are super simple to make, and you can really use whatever filling your heart desires.  Since I'm still on the Weight Watchers wagon, I opted to use fat free ground turkey, fresh veggies, tomato paste for rich flavor, and a cheddar cheese topping for good measure. 

Ingredients:

* 6 peppers

* 1 lb. ground turkey or beef

* 1/2 onion, chopped

*1 plum tomato, chopped

* 1/4 tsp. garlic powder

*2 tbsp. tomato paste

* 1/4 c. water

* 1 c. spinach, roughly chopped

*salt, pepper

* 10 oz. brown rice, cooked (I used a frozen pouch of Trader Joe's brown rice)

*4 oz. cheddar cheese, grated (I used white cheddar)

To carve the peppers, use a small pairing knife or pumpkin cutter to cut faces in the whole peppers.  After you make the faces, cut off the lid as you would a pumpkin and remove the seeds and as much of the ribs as possible.  Boil the peppers in water for 5 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool. 

Preheat the oven to 375.  To prepare the filling, spray a large skillet with cooking spray, heat to medium high and add the onions.  Saute until the onions are translucent, then add the turkey.  Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and use a wooden spoon to break up the turkey as it cooks.  Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and spinach, and saute until the spinach has wilted and tomato paste is totally mixed in.  Stir in the brown rice. 

Fill each pepper with the turkey mixture, and top with grated cheese.  Place the stuffed peppers in a casserole dish and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is totally  melted and bubbly.  Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!