Mexican Style Stuffed Peppers...

Last night I tried my hand at a different stuffed pepper recipe. Lately when I have made "traditional" stuffed peppers they have been kind of "blegh"...so I thought lets kick it up a little. 


Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 6 medium green or sweet red pepper
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup chopped celery
• 3 cups cooked rice
• 1-1/4 cups salsa, divided
• 1 tablespoon chopped green chilies
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend
• 
  
• Directions
• Cut tops off peppers and discard; remove seeds. In a Dutch oven or large kettle, cook
• peppers in boiling water for 3-5 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water; set aside.  In a nonstick skillet, cook the beef, onion and celery over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the rice, 1 cup salsa, chilies, chili powder and salt. Spoon into peppers.
• Place in a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Add 1/4 cup water to dish. Cover and bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until heated through. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese and top with remaining salsa. Bake 2-3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Yield: 6 servings.

Ok...for my "alterations" to this one. 

• I only did 4 peppers because they were gigantic peppers (thank you Brigottas)
• I did not have any green chilies on hand so they were not a part of this
• I only used maybe 1 tsp of chili powder...last time I followed a recipe when it came to chili powder I couldn't see straight because my eyes were watering
• I also added a small can of V8 juice because the rice/meat mixture just seemed too dry...
• no mexican cheese blend...just good old fashioned shredded cheddar tonight
• I also only cooked them for maybe 30 minutes in an 8x8 pan since I was doing four instead of six...AND I "pre-cooked" the peppers in the microwave, we don't have a dutch oven (I keep meaning to get one of those :op)

They were definitely very good...so good that Aaron said they were by far, and this recipe is by far, his favorite when it comes to Stuffed Peppers for dinner.

I made cheesy garlic bread to go with it...

Overall, another successful recipe! Woo hoo :O)


Recipe from Taste of Home