Stuffed Peppers With Tortellini Food

TORTELLINI WITH SAUSAGE AND PEPPERS

Steps:

• Combine sausage links and water in a large skillet and bring to a boil, about 5 minutes. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until juices run clear, about 15 minutes. Drain off water and cook links in the skillet, stirring frequently, until browned, 2 to 4 minutes more. Remove from skillet, allow to cool, and cut into 1/2-inch diagonal slices. Wipe skillet clean using a paper towel.
• Place skillet over medium heat and add olive oil. Add onion to hot oil and cook until tender but not brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, oregano, and red pepper. Add cooked sausage and bell pepper to the skillet. Bring to a boil, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer to desired thickness, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a saucepan, about 5 minutes. Add tortellini, reduce heat slightly and boil until pasta is tender but still firm to the bite, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain and return pasta to the warm saucepan. Stir parsley into the sausage mixture, pour over pasta, and serve immediately.

STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Arrange the pepper halves cut-side up on a nonstick baking sheet or regular baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle the interiors with salt and pepper and drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil. Place the baking sheet in the center of the oven and roast until the peppers are juicy and somewhat softened and tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining tablespoon oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. When the oil begins to smoke lightly, add the meat in a thin layer and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the meat browns and is cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl. Stir the onions, garlic, chili powder and cumin into the pot with a sprinkle of salt. Stir to blend, then cook until the flavors meld together, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer gently over medium heat until the tomatoes fall apart and the chili starts to thicken, 12 to 15 minutes. Add the meat back to the pot along with the beans and apple cider vinegar. Remove from the heat.
• Fill each pepper about halfway with the couscous. Divide the chili among all the peppers, layering it on top of the couscous. Top with the cheese and return the baking sheet to the oven. Bake until piping hot and the cheese is melted, 20 to 25 minutes.

STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place the rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and cook 20 minutes. In a skillet over medium heat, cook the beef until evenly browned.
• Remove and discard the tops, seeds, and membranes of the bell peppers. Arrange peppers in a baking dish with the hollowed sides facing upward. (Slice the bottoms of the peppers if necessary so that they will stand upright.)
• In a bowl, mix the browned beef, cooked rice, 1 can tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Spoon an equal amount of the mixture into each hollowed pepper. Mix the remaining tomato sauce and Italian seasoning in a bowl, and pour over the stuffed peppers.
• Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, basting with sauce every 15 minutes, until the peppers are tender.

STUFFED PEPPERS ITALIAN STYLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place peppers in a greased baking dish; set aside. Place crumbled bread in a large bowl, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup water; set aside.
• Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over low heat. Saute onion until translucent, then stir in garlic. Let garlic cook for 2 minutes, then stir into bread. Add anchovies, olives, olive oil, black pepper and red pepper. Mix until well blended. Mound pepper halves with stuffing. Surround peppers with tomato sauce and a small amount of water. Cover with foil.
• Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes, or until peppers are tender. Uncover for the last 15 minutes of baking, and baste occasionally with sauce.

TRADITIONAL STUFFED BELL PEPPERS

Steps:

• Cut tops off peppers. With sharp knife, remove white membrane inside peppers. Wash and pat dry.
• Arrange peppers in baking pan. If one is uneven, slice a bit off the bottom to allow it to stand freely.
• Brown ground beef with onions and garlic.
• Add seasonings, tomatoes, and rice. Blend well. If too soupy, cook until some juice is cooked off.
• Stuff peppers.
• Bake 350 for 45 minutes.

STUFFED PEPPERS 101

Steps:

• 1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the tops off the peppers, and remove the seeds. Cook peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes; drain. Sprinkle salt inside each pepper, and set aside.
• 2. In a large skillet, saute beef and onions for 5 minutes, or until beef is browned. Drain off excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, 1/2 cup water and Worcestershire sauce. Cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese.
• 3. Preheat the oven to 350*F. Stuff each pepper with the beef and rice mixture, and place peppers open side up in a baking dish. In a medium bowl, combine tomato soup with just enough water to make the soup a gravy consistency. Pour over the peppers.
• 4. Bake covered for 25 to 35 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly.
• My Note: I play with the recipe some. I halved the peppers (lengthwise), sauted onions separately along with 2 minced garlic pieces, cooked the rice separately, used 1 can of DICED tomatoes* (why would you ever buy a can of tomatoes and THEN dice them?), and mixed the ingredients together after browning the beef**, allowing them to warm slightly in the skillet before stuffing into the peppers. You can use the extra juice from the can of tomatoes to keep the rice from burning. I also added quite a bit of basil, oregano, and Italian seasoning, as well as extra Worcestershire sauce. Putting just a little cheese in the bottom of each pepper helped as well. Lastly, I only used one can of tomato soup. Even cut in half, 25 min was needed to get them nice & hot. Next time, I'll try adding some pepper as well. * Using a can of diced tomatoes with jalepeno peppers adds just the right amount of kick to these! **You can also use 1/2 beef & 1/2 3-7% lean ground turkey to reduce fat content -- tastes the same!
• I'll definitely make this again. I used ground turkey instead of beef, and a can of petite diced tomatoes w/ liquid instead of whole toms. Used Arborio rice as that's what I had in the pantry. Added minced garlic to the meat mixture. I substituted 1/2°C of beef broth instead of plain water. Used 1 can of tomato soup & 1 sm. can of tomato sauce w/ a TBS or two of Spaghetti Sauce Seasoning. Excellent, healthy, and much better than the stuffed peppers. I think that par-boiling the peppers before stuffing them was key to the texture and flavor.

TORTELLINI SALAD WITH SHRIMP, ARTICHOKES, AND ROASTED PEPPERS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.
• In a large bowl, combine all other ingredients. Add dressing and toss.
• Serve chilled or at room temperature.

STUFFED PEPPERS WITH TORTELLINI

Steps:

• Cook the 1/2 cup tortellini according to the package directions, leaving them slightly under done.
• In a large bowl mix together all the ingredients for the peppers, except the peppers. Adjust seaoning to your taste.
• Cut the very tops off the peppers and remove the seeds and pith from the insides. You may need to trim a very small amout of the bottom to help them stand up on their own.
• Stuff the peppers with the filling, packing it in and mounding it on top.
• Bake in a 350 degree oven, I used a loaf pan for mine.
• For crisp peppers bake uncovered for 45 minutes.
• For a more tender pepper bake covered for 45 minutes, uncover and bake for 20 more minutes.
• When the peppers for almost done prepare the 1 1/2 cups tortellini according to package directions. Drain and stir in the remaining ingredients.
• Serve the pepper in the center of plate surrounded by the tortellini.