Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Bell Peppers

April 14, 2017

So sorry for the lapse in posts but there hasn’t been a whole lot of good eating going on at our house lately! With too many unforeseen events thrown our way at once, my focus was directed elsewhere, but such is life.

We are once again back to Aaron working far far away, but we knew that was bound to happen. I always try to find the positive in any situation but the ONLY good thing about Aaron working away is that I eat healthier and exercise more when he’s not around. So we’ll take it as a win this time.

Although cheese is arguably a healthy choice, these broccoli and cheese stuffed bell peppers are most certainly made with whole foods and offer nutrients such as Vitamin C, protein, calcium, and a bit of fiber. Also bell peppers are low in calories. And did you know that the different colors of bell peppers from green, yellow, orange to red are actually the varying degree of ripeness, not different types of pepper; who knew!

These little suckers surprised me; I’ve never been a huge lover of bell peppers but after my first bite I enjoyed these far more than I expected to. I even looked forward to having them as leftovers the next day, which rarely happens. I took it easy on the spices because my daughter was feasting on them as well, but you go nuts if that’s your thing. Even with the little I used there was still lots of flavor.

Much like many of my recipes shared, you can get creative and add other ingredients and spices to the mix that you think you’d enjoy. Let me know how they turn out! Enjoy!

Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients

2 bell peppers, halved
1 cup cooked rice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper, diced
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup broccoli, chopped small
1/4 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tbsp dried parsley

Directions

Preheat oven 350 degrees.

Place halved bell peppers on a baking sheet, set aside.

Cook rice according to package directions.

While rice is cooking, in a skillet set to medium heat, heat olive oil and cook onions for about 1 minute. Add diced bell pepper and season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking until peppers are tender, about 2-3 minutes.

Add chopped broccoli and cook for another 2 minutes or until almost tender and remove from heat.

Add cooked rice to a large bowl. Add in broccoli mixture, milk , cheeses, chili pepper, cayenne pepper, and parsley. Mix until well combined.

Scoop mixture into halved bell peppers and divide evenly, packing tightly.

Bake for 20 minutes. Top with additional grated cheese for the last 3 minutes, if desired.

Enjoy!