Soup Spice Everything Nice: Stuffed Green Peppers

This recipe has been in my family for years. It dates back to our very first Panasonic microwave. My parents bought a large counter top model with auto sensor features. My Mom, dear sister and I even went to an instructional course on microwaving at the store where they bought it. I have forgotten most everything we learned that day. What I remember is that Dad did not go to microwave school. Whenever he had a question about using the microwave he would say, "I didn't go to microwave school". We all got a good laugh about that. We even reminded him on many occasions saying. "Oh yeah, that's right you didn't go to microwave school." Those were silly times. Anyway this is a recipe from the Panasonic cookbook that came with the microwave. It is so easy and very tasty. I usually use the microwave, but this time I used the oven and foil pans so I could freeze a few pans for future meals. This recipe is easy to assemble. The only difficult thing is deciding how long to cook them. Sometimes those peppers take a little longer than others. You will have to experiment a little. I am sure it will be different for everyone. It just depends on the peppers, your oven or microwave. You can cook them to your families taste; tender crisp peppers or nice and soft peppers. The good news is the beef filling is always light and fluffy no matter how long you cook them. The rice keeps it from being too dense. This really is a delicious comforting family meal. Add a side of corn or a salad and dinner is done. I hope you enjoy it as much as we have all these years.

Stuffed Green Peppers
Serves 4

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cans (8 oz ea) tomato sauce, divided
1/4 cup water
3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, divided
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 cup instant white rice
4 medium green peppers (about 1 lb)

Directions

In medium glass bowl, combine ground beef, onion, 1 can tomato sauce, water, 1 tablespoon cheese, salt, pepper and rice. Cut peppers in half lengthwise; remove seeds and rinse. Spoon beef-rice filing into each half. Place in oblong dish. Top with remaining sauce and cheese.

Microwave: Cover completely with plastic wrap. Heat on High for at least 15 minutes or as long as 25 minutes until the peppers are cooked to your liking. After heating, release plastic wrap.

Oven: Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Cover completely with foil. Bake for 1 hour. Remove foil and bake for 15 minutes or until the peppers are cooked to your liking.