Summertime Stuffed Peppers

 

 

 

Summertime Stuffed Peppers

 

 

 

We garden every summer.  Our gardens range from a small raised bed in my back yard to a large garden next door at my parents house.  No matter what...you will find banana pepper growing in our garden.  If you don't have the space don't fret.  You can grow a pepper plant in a pot on a patio.  It's just not summer without fresh banana pepper.

 

This is one of my hubby's favorite dishes so we tend to have them often in the summer.  We cook them in the oven or on the grill.  We always make way more than we need in hopes to have some the next day too.  Sometimes we have extra...sometimes we don't..LOL.  Anyway, they are great reheated.  Just refrigerate and pop them in the microwave or back in the oven for a minute or so. 

 

They are also great appetizers.  Cook them first (they only take 5-10 minutes) and let everyone snack while the main course is cooking. 

 

As you can see, I have them in a Lodge skillet. I also bake them on my Pampered Chef stoneware or just right on the grill.  A cookie sheet would be just fine too.

 

 

Here is what you need:

 

 

You don't need the tomato unless you want to cut it up and eat it while you are whipping the peppers up!  This was my haul from the garden so I just included the tomato too.  It sure was tasty :)

 

So back to the list...

 

• Peppers.  I used banana peppers, jalapeno peppers and bell peppers.  You can use any assortment that you want.  If you only have one variety or don't like some of them just work with what you have.
• Cream Cheese.  I used regular 8 ounce block of cream cheese this time but I have used low fat before just to skinny it up a bit.  Both work out just great.
• Seasoning.  This is probably the easiest ingredient because I have used several different seasoning mixtures in the past and they are good every time.  This time I used my current favorite.  Slap Ya Mama!  Seriously, I'm putting it on everything!!  The ingredients are salt, black pepper, red pepper and garlic.  It has no MSG and is all natural.  No surprise ingredients is always a plus.  So if you don't have this particular seasoning or don't want to mix it up on your own any seasoning salt will do or feel free to use your favorite!
• Shredded Cheese.  I used mild cheddar this time but a Mexican blend is good too.  You can also do the same trick with this as suggested with the cream cheese.  Use low fat if you are counting calories.
• Bacon Bits.  I prefer using crumbled up bacon that I have cooked but sometimes time just doesn't permit.

 

The first thing that you want to do is wash the peppers.  In my case they are usually covered in dirt.  Cut the stems off and slice in half, lengthwise.  Remove all seeds and rinse.

 

 

Here is what you should have at this point.

 

Next thing you want to do is mix up your softened cream cheese and your seasoning. 

 

 

I generally use about 1-2 tablespoons of seasoning per block of cream cheese.  This can vary quite a bit depending on your personal taste.  Just be careful...most of these seasonings can be a little salty if you use to much.  Just a quick hint, I have found that mixing it with a fork is the most effective way to get it spread all the way through. 

 

After you get the seasoning mixed in and to your liking take a knife or your fork and spread the cream cheese in the peppers even with the top.

 

Here is the basic idea.

I like to get mine as close together as possible because it is easier to sprinkle the cheese over all of them at once as opposed to sprinkling them individually. 

 

Now on to the cheese and bacon...

Sprinkle generously with shredded cheese and crumbled bacon.

 

And here it is!!  A few minutes in a 350 degree preheated oven or a grill and you've got it.  Cooking time may vary from oven to oven and grill to grill but just leave them in long enough to melt the shredded cheese.

 

You won't be disappointed!!

 

 

I hope you will enjoy this recipe.  Have a great Friday :)