Easy (Un)Stuffed Pepper Bake

Stuffed peppers but make it easier! There’s delicious end of summer veg, tender rice, seasoned ground beef, and cheese of course! It’s warm, it’s comforting, and it’s yummy!

I’ve had the idea all year to do a stuffed pepper recipe but wanted to make it as simple as possible… the same delicious flavor of stuffed peppers but made easier and in only one pan!

Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef (feel free to sub other ground meat of choice)

4 sweet peppers, diced

1 large yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 roma tomatoes, seeded, cored and chopped

1 can garbanzo beans, drained (or other white bean)

1 bunch kale, stems removed and chopped

3 Tbsp. tomato paste

1 1/2 Tbsp. Italian seasoning

2 tsp. paprika

1 c. white rice

2 c. beef broth (or chicken/veggie if that’s what you have on hand!)

¼ c. parsley, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. salt

½ tsp. ground black pepper

3/4 - 1 c. shredded mozzarella

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large, heavy-bottomed (oven-safe) stockpot or dutch oven ***see note***, cook the ground beef over medium heat, breaking it apart into small pieces as it cooks. Once the meat is mostly cooked through, add the onions and peppers. Cook for 5 minutes or until peppers and onions are softened, stirring occasionally.

Next, stir in the garlic, roma tomatoes, garbanzo beans, kale, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and paprika. Cook for another 2 minutes.

Add in the rice, broth, parsley, salt and pepper and stir well. Remove from heat. Top with shredded mozzarella. Cover and put in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until the rice is tender (not crunchy) and the majority of the liquid is absorbed. If the dish seems dry, add a generous splash of broth and put in the oven for another 5 minutes. Enjoy!

***note: if you don’t have an oven-safe pot or dutch oven that this would work in, cook on the stovepot in whatever you have and then pour the bake into an 8 × 8 pan to put in the oven.