Stuffed Peppers 3 Ways, Bison, Chicken, or Veggie!

Who doesn’t love stuffed peppers! They can be stuffed with starches, meats, cheese, beans or all veggies showcasing different ethnic cuisines, such as my fave, Italian?.

Needless to say, the combinations are endless and for that reason I decided to try making them three different ways in one sitting. Trust me, my kitchen was a disaster!

First off, I love using an assortment of rainbow colored bell peppers since they still maintain their color and sweetness after baking. “And the different colors make for a pretty presentation, don’t you think?” 

Cutting the peppers lengthwise allows for more of the filling to be packed into them. I used the same base for all three which was cauliflower rice, kale, onions, & garlic. Throw in some Italian seasonings and BANG!

I divided this mixture into there different bowls and than added either sautéed Italian breakfast bison sausage, or sweet Italian chicken sausage, or left over Spicy Chickpeas. Cool idea huh! THANKS! I thought so too!

The best part this dish is perfect for entertaining, espeically if you have guests who are vegetarian & plant based.

Next I added some cheese and my homemade marinara which gives these stuffed rainbow colored peppers a delicious depth of flavor with a nice Italian twist! If you want to keep these dairy free, skip the cheese or use nutritional yeast!

Be sure to make extras because these are to die for the next day. I have to admit, leftovers are usually not my thing, but trust me on this one, you’ll be happy after heating one up for lunch the next day!

STUFFED RAINBOW PEPPERS 3 WAYS

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 rainbow colored bell peppers, cut lengthwise in half, then scoop out seeds and membrane
• 1/2 lb. ground Italian Buffalo breakfast sausage
• 2 cups frozen or fresh chopped riced cauliflower
• 1 onion diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 handfuls kale or spinach, chopped
• 1 cup of cheese, combination of parmesan and fontina are a good choice.
• 3/4 cup marinara sauce for the filling and enough extra sauce to cover the bottom of a 9×12 baking dish
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon each, chopped basil and parsley, or herbs of choice

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Oil the bottom and sides of a 9×12 baking dish.
3. Pour enough marinara sauce on the bottom of the baking dish to cover it all over.
4. Place the 8 raw halves of the peppers into the baking dish.
5. Brown the crumbled sausage in a pan until you see no pink at all, then remove and drain on paper towels.
6. Wipe out pan of excess grease then add the onion, garlic, and riced cauliflower and cook til slightly soft then toss around and add the chopped kale to let it wilt.
7. Divide this out in three different bowls. Add the drained bison to one, chicken sausage to one, and the spicy chickpeas to the other. Stir in some cheese and marinara tossing well to incorporate everything.
8. Fill each raw pepper with the filling, packing it in.
9. Cover pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes then remove pan and change oven temp to 400 degrees F.
10. Take the foil off, sprinkle the tops a little more cheese.
11. There will be a lot of moisture at the bottom of the pan from the foil being on but the higher temp will reduce it all.
12. It’s finished when you can say the peppers are nice and tender , test with the tip of a sharp knife and cheese is a little golden.
13. Spoon some sauce on top of each and serve

Have you made stuffed peppers and if so, what’s your favorite filling?
Do you have members of your family who are vegetarian or vegan and others who eat meat? Is it hard to cook multiple meals?
How did you celebrate Valentines Day? Out or in?