I adore this recipe because it’s one of the few ways I can get my husband to eat veggies. For a meatless version, replace the beef with eggplant and add more vegetables, such as mushrooms or squash. You can also replace the rice with barley, couscous or orzo.
—JENNIFER ZIMMERMAN AVONDALE, AZ
PREP: 35 MIN. • BAKE: 40 MIN. • MAKES: 6 SERVINGS
6 medium sweet red peppers
1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1 medium yellow summer squash, chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 /3 cup finely chopped green pepper
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh spinach
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup ready-to-serve long grain and wild rice
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1 /2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 /4 teaspoon salt
3 slices reduced-fat provolone cheese, halved
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Cut and discard tops from red peppers; remove seeds. In a 6-qt. stockpot, cook peppers in boiling water 3-5 minutes or until crisp-tender; drain and rinse in cold water.
2. In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat 6-8 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking into crumbles. Drain and remove from pan. In same pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add zucchini, squash, onion and green pepper; cook and stir 4-5 minutes or until tender. Add spinach and garlic; cook and stir 1 minute longer or until wilted. Stir in cooked beef, rice, tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella and salt.
3. Place red peppers in a greased 8-in. square baking dish. Fill with meat mixture. Bake, covered, 35-40 minutes or until peppers are tender. Top each pepper with a halved cheese slice; bake, uncovered, 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
PER SERVING 1 stuffed pepper: 287 cal., 13g fat ( 5g sat. fat ) , 57mg chol., 555mg sod., 21g carb. ( 8g sugars, 5g fiber ) , 23g pro. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 2 vegetable, 1 fat, 1 /2 starch.
TOP TIP
SIMPLE SWAP
I substituted chopped fresh mushrooms for the spinach in this recipe without a problem. You may want to add additional sauce.
—MARILYNRAZA
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