Stuffed Green Peppers

I'm sorry Miss Avery...these are too good not to share! I was hungry for something easy, hearty and healthy to prepare for dinner after the gym and remembered my mom made a mean stuffed pepper. Debs shared the recipe below and they turned out QUITE incredible if I do say so myself!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey (you can also use regular ground meat)
• 4-6 Bell Peppers halved and seeded
• 1/2 cup Ketchup
• 1 tablespoon of Worchester Sauce
• 2 cloves of Garlic (more if you love garlic!) - minced
• 1/2 basket of mushrooms - diced
• 2 tablespoons of Milk
• 1/2 cup of Breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of finely diced Onion
• 2 teaspoons of each: Kosher or Sea Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper
• 1/4 cup of French Fried Onions (my special additive)

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees.

First, cut your bell peppers in half and scoop out all the seeds, then set aside. Next in a large bowl, mix together the ground turkey, eggs, garlic, mushrooms, Worchester sauce, ketchup, milk, breadcrumbs, onion, french fried onions, salt & pepper using your hands. Once it is mixed all together well, start stuffing the halved bell peppers with the meat.

Place the peppers back in the Pyrex dish and sprinkle the top with some freshly grated parmesan cheese for some extra flavor and presentation. Cover the Pyrex dish with foil and place in the oven. Bake the peppers for at least an hour (different timing based on how full you fill the peppers and your oven). The last 5 minutes, remove the foil and let the tops of the peppers get a nice golden toast to them.

Viola! Delicious and healthy too!

Beef Burgers with Mushrooms and Aioli

Ok, here's my first post. Let me begin by informing you all that I'm not what you would call a "natural" cook. Unlike my boyfriend who just "wings it" every time and comes up with delicious creations, I need a recipe. That's why this blog is the greatest idea we, as a group, have ever come up with. With that being said, I use my recipes as guidelines and alter them wherever I see fit. Altering them usually involves adding cheese of some kind. I've provided the exact recipe along with my "alterations."

1 1/4 pounds lean ground chuck
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4/3 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 portobello mushrooms, stems trimmed
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
4 (4-inch) square or round ciabatta or foccacia squares, halved horizontally (My grocery store is under construction and I couldn't find fancy bread anywhere so I went with onion buns....classy)
2 cups fresh arugula
gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (because everything tastes better with cheese)
chipotle mustard (I mixed this into the aioli sauce for a little kick)

Combine the ground chuck, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Shape the mixture into 4 (1/2 inc thick) patties.

Mix the mayonnaise, lemon juice, and garlic in a small bowl to blend. (The patties, mushrooms, and garlic can be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead. Cover them separately and refrigerate.)

Prepare the barbecue (or if you've run out of propane like we did- use a grill pan.)


Grill the burgers until cooked to desire doneness, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Grill the mushrooms until just tender, about 5 minutes per side. Grill the focaccia squares cut side down, until lightly toasted, about 2 minutes.

This next part cracks me up, for those of you who have never had a burger in your life; please follow the next steps very carefully.
Spread the garlic mayonnaise over the roll bottoms. Cut the mushrooms into strips and arrange the mushroom strips over the mayonnaise. Place the burgers atop the mushrooms. Spread garlic mayonnaise on the cut side of the tops and arrange a handful of arugula on each. Cover the burger with the roll tops. (I added a side of fries and voila! Dinner in about 20 minutes)

I served the burgers with Casillero del Diablo, a 2006 Carmenere from Chile.



Winemaker's Note: Chocolate, coffee and spice combine with raspberries and blackberries in this Carmenere, Chile's very own grape.

Food Match: Perfect for tasty winter stews or grilled summer barbeques.