What do you do when you see such amazing fresh looking produces in your grocery store? Me, I buy them with the intention of cooking them. And today, bell peppers were looking so yummy that i could not leave them there. At this time of the year, there are lots of things you can do with bell peppers…. roasted bell peppers salad, roasted bell pepper soup, spaghetti sauce, ratatouille, salsa…. so many things… But today, when I picked those peppers all I was thinking was to make one of my husband’s favorite: Ground Beef Stuffed Bell Peppers. It is not really a summer fare, but since I am trying to vary the meals of my difficult family, stuffed peppers with rice pilaf  was going to be their dinner tonite.

Ingredients for 4: 4 or 5 of bell peppers ( of any colors but green), 1 lb of very lean ground beef or even ground sirloin, 1 egg, 5 pieces of whole wheat toast, 1 cup of milk, 4 1/2 cups of chicken broth, 4 tbsp  of fresh parsley chopped, 3/4 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of ground black pepper, 1 cup of brown rice, 2 tbsp of butter.

Trim the sides of the toast, and place the bread in a bowl. Warm up the milk for 2 minutes in the microwave and pour the milk over the bread. Let the bread soak the milk. With a fork or your bare hands, mix the bread with your hands to crumble it and make into a paste. Drain the extra milk, if there is. Add the beef, 1 egg, 3/4 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of salt, and mix it well. It should become uniform. Set aside. Take the bell pepper and cut the top of the peppers. Remove the seeds from the inside of the peppers. Rinse them off, and fill them up with the meat mixture. Place the bell peppers in the large round mold. And fill the mold with the 2 cups of chicken broth. Bake in oven at 375 for 30 minutes.

While the bell peppers are baking, prepare the rice pilaf. In a small saucepan, melt 2 tbsp of butter. When the butter is sizzling, add the rice and saute it. You should hear it pop. When you start seeing the rice browning and making popping sound, add 2 1/4 of chicken broth. Bring to boil. Lower the temperature. Place the lid on the sauce pan and cook for about 15 minutes. Check periodically to check if the rice is not burning, and if there is enough water. When the rice is cooked, add 1 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of chopped parsley.

I don’t always fix a sauce to accompany this dish, but my husband was begging so there is one you can fix with it.

Ingredients: 2 tbsp of butter, the 2 cups of chicken broth used to cook the bell peppers, 1 cup of white wine. 1/2 of a purple onion. salt and pepper to taste.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter. When the butter is melted, add the diced onion and saute it. When the onion is becoming golden, add 2 tbsp of flour and stir. Add the broth and 1 cup of white wine. Stir and cook low until the sauce thickens.

To serve, place a cup of rice on each plate, a bell pepper and pour the sauce over the rice and on the side. Yum! Now it is your turn!

Bon Appetit and Happy Cooking!!!