Classic Stuffed Bell Peppers

October. The month that Savannah remembers it's beautiful. The heat is gone, the light is golden, the tourists are back photographing the squares, and the live oaks look like they're posing. I love October here. I love the way the air feels on my skin — not hot, not cold, just present. I love the way the marsh looks at dusk, silver and purple and quiet. I love that I can open the windows and cook without sweating through my apron.

The garden is in its fall chapter. The collards are magnificent — big, dark, waxy leaves that look like they were designed by an artist with a sense of drama. The turnip greens are thick. The rosemary is doing its immortal thing. I've started planning the winter garden — kale, lettuce, some carrots — because a gardener is always one season ahead, living in the future while her hands are in the present.

I made stuffed peppers this week. Not from the garden — my summer peppers are done — but from beautiful bell peppers at the market, red and green and orange. I stuffed them with rice and ground beef and tomatoes and cheese, the way I learned from a church cookbook thirty years ago and have been making my own way ever since. The trick is to par-cook the peppers before you stuff them, so they're tender but still hold their shape. Then bake them until the cheese is bubbly and the filling is hot through and the whole kitchen smells like autumn in a casserole dish.

Earl ate two. He picked out the green pepper bits, which he has been doing for forty-one years because he insists that green peppers "repeat on him," which I believe is a delusion he has committed to so thoroughly that it has become truth. I have stopped fighting it. Marriage is choosing your battles, and the green pepper battle was lost in 1982.

Kayla came home for the weekend and brought a nursing textbook the size of a cinder block. She studied at the kitchen table while I cooked, same as always, the routine that has become our ritual. She's deep in her clinical rotations — cardiac floor, which she chose because of Earl and which she will not admit is because of Earl. She told me about a patient who coded on her shift and how the team brought him back. She said, "Grandma, I didn't freeze. I did what I was trained to do." I said, "That is because you are ready." She said, "I don't feel ready." I said, "Nobody who is ready feels ready. You just do the work."

Now go on and feed somebody.

This is the recipe I made that week — the one Kayla studied beside, the one Earl ate two of while carefully setting aside every last scrap of green pepper. I’ve made it so many times it lives in my hands more than my head now, but I wrote it down here so you have it clean and clear, the way a recipe ought to be given. Par-cook the peppers. Don’t skip that step. The rest takes care of itself.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

6 large bell peppers (red, orange, or green — your preference)
1 lb ground beef (80/20)
1 cup long-grain white rice, cooked
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce, divided
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar or mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup water or beef broth (for the baking dish)

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Slice the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes. Reserve the tops if you like — you can chop the usable pepper flesh and add it to the filling.
Par-cook the peppers. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the peppers and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until just starting to soften but still holding their shape firmly. Remove and turn them upside-down on a towel to drain and cool slightly. Do not skip this step — it is the difference between tender and half-raw.
Brown the beef. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the ground beef with the onion until the meat is browned through, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Drain off excess fat.
Build the filling. Stir in the cooked rice, diced tomatoes, half the tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Let it cook together for 2 to 3 minutes so the flavors settle. Remove from heat and fold in 3/4 cup of the cheese.
Fill and arrange. Pour the water or broth into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Stand the peppers upright in the dish. Spoon the filling generously into each pepper, pressing lightly to pack it in. Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the tops of each filled pepper.
Bake covered. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes, until the peppers are fully tender and the filling is heated through.
Add cheese and finish. Remove the foil, sprinkle the remaining 3/4 cup cheese over the tops, and return to the oven uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and just starting to brown at the edges.
Rest and serve. Let the peppers rest for 5 minutes before serving. The filling will hold together better and nobody will burn their mouth. Spoon any pan juices over the top when you plate them.

Nutrition (per serving)

Classic Stuffed Bell Peppers — The Dish That’s Been Getting Supper on the Table for Forty Years