Pizza Stuffed Peppers

Pizza should be high on everyone's list of favorite foods. You can turn to these pizza-stuffed peppers to incorporate those flavors into an easy weeknight dinner. These tender boats of bell pepper piled high with ground beef, rice, and onion are dressed up even further with pepperoni and cheese. They’re bursting with flavor and can be customized in various ways to match your go-to pizza order.

To make them even more weeknight-friendly, you don’t need to cook the peppers before stuffing. Plus, you can assemble the peppers up to 24 hours ahead of time and stash them in the fridge before baking.

Swaps and Flavor Possibilities   

Pizza equals creativity, and these stuffed peppers are no different. Try adding or swapping out ingredients for other pizza toppings you love.

• Make it supreme: Swap the ground beef for cooked ground sausage, mushrooms, and black olives.

• Your favorite sauce: Just like making a pizza, you get to choose your go-to red sauce. You can go with a store-bought pizza sauce or your favorite marinara (I love Trader Joe’s Tomato Basil) or use a homemade sauce.

• Play with cheese: Mozzarella is a pizza classic for its taste and meltability. You can certainly make a cheddar-mozzarella blend for a bit more of a kick. Want even more cheese? Mix an additional 1/2 cup of cheese into the filling before stuffing the peppers.

• Swap the rice:  Jasmine rice is great, and you can use it for these pizza-stuffed peppers. It can easily be swapped with any other type of rice. Want more protein? Use cooked quinoa. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup cooked (1/2 cup dry) white rice

• 3 red or green bell peppers

• 1 tablespoon olive oil or unsalted butter

• 1/2 yellow onion, diced

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1/2 pound lean ground beef (90/10)

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 1/4 cups pizza or marinara sauce, divided

• 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

• 9 slices of pepperoni, cut into quarters, or about 36 mini pepperoni

• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

• Chopped fresh basil, optional, for serving

Method

1. Cook the rice:  

   If you don’t have cooked rice on hand, cook the rice.

2. Preheat the oven to 425°F.  

3. Prep the peppers:  

   Wash the peppers and slice them in half from the stem to the base. Clean out the inside of each pepper, removing the membrane and seeds. Set aside.

4. Make the filling:  

   Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil or butter. Cook the onion and garlic until the onions are tender and translucent, about 5 minutes.

   Add the ground beef. Break it up with a wooden spoon and cook until evenly browned. While cooking, season with salt and pepper. Drain off excess grease, if desired.

   Remove from the heat. Stir in half of the sauce, the cooked rice, and Italian seasoning.

5. Stuff the peppers:  

   Spread the remaining sauce in a 9x13-inch baking dish. Place the prepared peppers open-side up in the dish. Use a measuring cup or spoon to divide the ground beef mixture evenly between the peppers.

6. Bake the peppers:  

   Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake the peppers for 25 minutes. Remove the foil. Top each stuffed pepper with pepperoni and mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered for an additional 8 to 10 minutes until the cheese has melted. Serve warm, garnished with basil if desired.

   Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

[Source: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/pizza-stuffed-peppers-recipe-8612254]