I am finally getting back in my groove after my two trips home to Utah. I feel so blessed that I was able to go home to see Nick and go again for his funeral. If you would like to read about his funeral go to nick-raitt.blogspot.com. Nicholas was just the coolest guy ever...plain and simple. We love Nick!
It has been nice to come back to Bear and get life back in order. Before the summer, I think Austin had this vision of me making gourmet meals every night, him coming home to a clean apartment and fresh cookies waiting on the counter. That has not happened yet, but I still have a few months to redeem myself before we move back to Utah!
A co-worker of mine brought stuffed peppers to work for her lunch one time and they looked sooo good! Ever since then I've wanted to make them so this week I finally did!
Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- · 6 green bell peppers
- · salt to taste
- · 1 pound ground beef
- · 1/3 cup chopped onion
- · salt and pepper to taste
- · 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
- · 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- · 1/2 cup uncooked rice
- · 1/2 cup water
- · 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
- · 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed tomato soup
- · water as needed
Directions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the peppers in half (remove stems), and remove the seeds. Cook peppers in boiling water for 5 minutes (completely submerged); drain. Sprinkle salt inside each pepper, and set aside.
- In a large skillet, saute beef and onions (add garlic salt) 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.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C). 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.
- Bake covered for 25 to 35 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly.
While I was making these I was a little worried that they wouldn't be good, but I really liked them! They weren't too hard and it was fun to make something different. I even had some of the guys come over for dinner and they approved.
Tips:
- Make sure you boil your peppers for AT LEAST 5 minutes
- Season your meat with taco seasoning, otherwise it will be a little bland
- Serve with sour cream and tortilla chips
Next we have Pudding Pops...
Isn't Austin cute in all his Vivint glory??
These are so easy and fun to make! I love vanilla pudding so making it into a popsicle sounded like a fabulous idea. I bought the popsicle molds at Target. All you have to do is:
- Prepare a small package of pudding as it directs you on the box (I used vanilla)
- Add fruit, candy, cookies, etc. (I used Heath Bars)
- Mix it all together, freeze for a few hours (I did it overnight), and voila! you have a popsicle!
Some ideas that I have found and want to try are:
- White chocolate pudding with rasberries
- Vanilla pudding with peanut butter and bananas
- Vanilla pudding, vanilla yogurt and strawberries
- Chocolate pudding with crushed Oreos (I think mint Oreos would be awesome!)
Pretty much do whatever combination that sounds good to you!
You also could make these a healthier treat by just using yogurt.
