Monday, December 27, 2010

A Most Beautiful Sight

Yeah, yeah, yeah, the scene outside my kitchen window is lovely after 16 inches of snow (I was pretty much awake from 2 to 4 a.m. due to the 50-mph winds---just like a noisy tropical storm in Houston, but with snow swirling like crazy for a total white-out, a little scary) but the beautiful sight I'm referring to is the remains of a bag of beautiful peppers I bought at Costco last week, spied when I opened the refrigerator to get my egg for breakfast. While I cooked and ate breakfast, I used my fridge, freezer, and pantry to make dinner----inspired by these beautiful peppers that need to be used before long.
I split the peppers in half lengthwise, clean out seeds and membrane, and throw into my microcoker with a bit of salt and a splash of water. The stem is left on just 'cuz it looks purty. If you don't cook the peppers a bit before you stuff them, they'll be too "toothy" and, to me, a quick steam in the microwave is by far the easiest way. Cover and microwave for around 2 minutes, just enough to soften them up a bit.
The perfect pepper stuffing is whatever you happen to have on hand. For me today, that meant leftover brown rice, a handful of frozen corn kernels right out of the freezer bag, a can of the ubiquitous Ro-tel that is ALWAYS in my pantry now that I can actually buy it in New Yawk, and a bit of shredded cheese.
Since we're a mostly meatless family (otherwise, I would have added ground beef or a bit of browned sausage to the filling) I toasted a few pine nuts in the skillet, to add more flavor and a bit of texture.
I used to stuff the whole pepper and stand them up, but I've found that a half-pepper makes the perfect balance of pepper and stuffing.
Dinner already made, waiting in the fridge or freezer for a warm-up...A Most Beautiful Sight.

1 comment:

  1. I love stuffed peppers. Lat time I made them (I think it was a PC recipe) they were sooooo good--but with gound beef, so I know Lucy wouldn't approve. :) I am so glad you guys had a great Christmas! It looked like so much fun. Stay warm and bundled up!! Love you both! xoxo

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