Stuffed Bell Peppers

This morning threatened to be a very challenging one,  food wise. My wake-up call was the sound of an egg exploding in our microwave that rattled my very soul. Have you ever heard a hard-boiled egg explode? It sounds like a car backfire! It wasn't intentional, mind you. Burt was just trying to heat up an egg for breakfast. The house smelled lovely afterwards... three hours later, I masked the spell of the burnt eggs by spilling ground coffee all over the kitchen floor. I don't even know HOW I managed that.

I was in a pretty awful mood until I went outside. The morning went from cloudy and crappy to a sunny and beautiful  afternoon. Suddenly, I was no  longer defeated by my morning, but inspired by the beautiful afternoon weather. Which is how I came to make these cheerful looking stuffed bell peppers. A happy little reminder that no matter how your day starts, it can always end with a beautiful home cooked meal :)

Stuffed Bell Peppers

• 4-6 large bell peppers, assorted colors
• 2 cups white rice
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1-2 Tbs. salt or to taste
• olive oil
• 2 Tbs. minced garlic
• 1Tbs garlic powder
• 1 Tbs onion powder
• 1 Tbs pepper
• 1 Tbs Italian seasoning
• 1/2 cup marinara sauce

For the rice

Using a rice cooker, add two cups of rice, salt, and about a Tbs of olive oil. Mix in well and cook according to directions. Set aside.

For the ground turkey

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat a large skillet with about 2 Tbs of olive oil on medium. Add the minced garlic and saute until golden brown. Add the turkey and season well. Cook thoroughly, until brown, about 8-10 minutes. Let cool for about five minutes.

Mix the rice and ground turkey together in a large mixing bowl until evenly distributed throughout. Set aside. Wash the peppers and dry thoroughly. Cut the tops off the peppers and take the core out.

Line a baking pan with foil and place peppers on baking pan standing up. Using a spoon, stuff the peppers with the ground turkey mixture and top with the marinara sauce. Add 1/2 cup water on the bottom of the pan to prevent the peppers from burning. Cook 30-40 minutes, or until the peppers are soft. Eat happy :)