Easy Stuffed Peppers

One moment I'm sipping champage with mega celebrities, and the next I'm being Chef Gordon Ramsey in the kitchen. You just never know what you'll find on this ridiculous blog of mine. One of the things I enjoy about taking a few vacation days off from work is having the time to cook, particularly things that take more time and planning. For example, I had a craving for stuffed peppers. There are lots and lots of ways to make them, depending on your preferences and cooking style. I usually make them without breadcrumbs, and often vary the recipe based on what is in the house at the moment. For this batch, I used ground beef, although I prefer lean ground turkey. I thought I'd show you how easy it is to make stuffed peppers, although this is not intended to be an exact recipe, just follow the photos and humor me.

Step one- thoroughly wash the bell peppers, and slice off the top, carve out any seeds.

Step Two: I sliced up some locally grown medjool dates, and also some mushrooms, set aside

Step Three: saute ground beef with sliced onions, olive oil and fresh minced garlic. I added some fresh spinach once the beef was cooked, just to add some vitamins and color. Mix in the mushrooms, dates and season to your preference. I added some sea salt, thyme, sage, and some steak sauce.

Step Four: Add two eggs, and mix thoroughly. The eggs serve as a binding agent to make the mixture stick together. I added some cheese and let it melt in the cooked mixture.

Step Five: stuff the peppers with the cooked mixture, top with some cheese. be sure to add some water to the pan before covering with foil. Then bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes. My secret is to add some vermouth or sherry to the water in the pan while it bakes.

Step Six: for the last 10 minutes, remove the foil to allow the tops to brown nicely. Mmmm they sure make a delicious meal, don't they? So easy, a monkey could make them!

-Rick Rockhill