Stuffed Red Peppers

I had it in my head last week to attempt making stuffed peppers. It's a dish I had never been too fond of- my Mum has always made them in green peppers, and I only recently became a fan of green peppers. I love red peppers even more and thought that the red peppers would be great with this kind of dish. So after a week of thinking about it, and trying to find the time, here it is!

* 3 large red peppers

Stuffing:

* 1 1/2 cup cooked brown basmati rice (I made mine with 1 tablespoon of butter & 1 vegetable boullion cube)
* 1/2 pound ground turkey
* 2 cloves garlic, chopped
* 1 small onion
* 2 tablespoons EVOO
* 1 small zucchini, chopped
* 1 small red pepper, chopped
* 1 12oz. can riced tomatoes
* 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
* 1 teaspoon thyme
* 1 teaspoon oregano
* 1-2 teaspoons raw sugar
* salt & pepper to taste
* 1/4 cup grated parm


Directions

* Preheat your oven to 375.

* Arrange the red peppers, tops off & insides cleaned out, in a loaf pan or oven safe dish. Place in oven and pre-cook for 10-15 minutes or so, until the peppers begin getting tender. Put aside.

*Have cooked rice in a mixing bowl where it can later be mixed with all the other yumminess!

Stuffing:
1. In a large skillet or high-sided pan, bring 1/2 the EVOO to temp on medium-high heat.
2. Begin sauteing one clove of garlic, then add the chopped onion. Season with salt & pepper. Remove from heat & pan once the onion is beginning to caramelize.
3. In that same pan, add the rest of the EVOO & garlic. Once the garlic begins sauteing, add the ground turkey, 1 tsp fennel, thyme and salt & pepper to taste. Brown.
4. Once turkey is browned, remove from pan & add the zucchini, red pepper and the Onions from before. Saute for 4-5 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes, bring to a boil or high simmer. Add oregano, more salt & pepper to taste, as well as sugar. Let simmer for 4-5 minutes.
6. Empty pan into mixing bowl with rice, adding the turkey. Mix all ingredients together. Add parm to the mix.
7. Spoon mixture into peppers adding any excess stuffing around the sides of the peppers in the dish. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the tops brown.

*Serve hot out of the oven- works great with mashed potatoes as a side!

YUM!