21 Day Fix Stuffed Peppers - Revisited

This is probably the fourth or fifth time I've redone my Stuffed Pepper recipe. My version 11 months ago included ground beef and I had estimated the Portion Control. This time I measured every ingredient in order to have the proper container count. I actually double this recipe so I can have 5 sets of 4 peppers - I freeze them in groups of four to defrost and bake later. They are delicious, but a little time consuming to make. If I can make a big batch over a weekend than I have meals ready to go. 

Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

Note - when making stuffed peppers - you *must* boil the peppers to soften them up. Otherwise the peppers don't cook thoroughly and still have a little crunch to them.

• 10 bell peppers of your color choice
• 20 ounces pound lean ground turkey or beef 
• 1 onion (about a 1 cup diced)
• 1/2 diced pepper
• 1.5 cups of brown rice, cooked just shy of done
• 1 (15 ounce) can of Black Beans, drained/rinsed
• 1-2 cups of Corn, drained/rinsed if canned, I prefer frozen
• 1 (15 ounce) can of petite diced tomatoes 
• 1 (15 ounce) can of tomato sauce 
• 1.5 cups of your favorite shredded cheese
• Spices - Chili Powder, Paprika, Cumin, Garlic, Salt, Pepper, ect.  

Directions

1. Cut the caps of the peppers and clean out. Pre-cook the peppers by placing in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. 
2. Cook brown rice, or quinoa according to directions, just shy of done because the rice will continue cooking when the stuffed pepper is cooked. 
3. Brown ground meat and season with chili powder (1 tbsp), and 1 tsp each: paprika, cumin, and garlic. Set aside to cool.
4. Drain and rinse black beans. If using canned corn, drain and rinse also. Drain the tomatoes. 
5. Combine in large bowl: meat, tomatoes, corn, rice/quinoa, beans, sauce, and cheese. Season as needed. 
6. Stuff peppers with filling. (About 1-cup per pepper). 
7. Bake at 375 Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes. 
8. If frozen - defrost 24 hours. 

Each Pepper counts as 1.5 Greens, 1/2 Red, 1 Yellow, and 1/2 Blue.

For lunch, this is perfect. For dinner it's a little light. However, we've been eating egg sandwiches before bed in order to get in extra Red & Yellows and fuel our body before sleep.