Jack-O-Lantern Stuffed Peppers

Halloween is just around the corner and when I saw this recipe for Jack-O-Lantern stuffed peppers I KNEW I had to give these guys a shot.....and add my own twist of course! I'm also adding throughout the recipe and at the bottom my suggestions for what I'd do differently next time for your reference! But I have to say, these were absolutely fabulous!!!

Ingredients

• 4 medium orange bell peppers
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 lb. raw 93% lean ground turkey
• ½ medium onion chopped
• 1 clove garlic finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• ½ tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• Ground black pepper to taste; optional
• 1 (8-oz.) can tomato sauce, no sugar added
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 cup black beans drained, rinsed
• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• ¼ cup water
• ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Slice stem end off peppers. (Reserve for later use.) Remove seeds and veins from peppers. Cut a jack-o-lantern face out of one side of each pepper. Stand peppers upright in baking dish. Set aside. If needed, cut bottom of peppers so they stand upright.
2. Preheat oven to 400º F.
3. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add onion; cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until onion is translucent.
5. Add turkey; cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until almost browned.
6. Add garlic; cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute.
7. Add chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, worchestershire sauce, tomato sauce, fire roasted tomatoes and black beans; cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
8. Add rice; mix well.
9. Fill peppers with turkey mixture. Top with reserved stem end of peppers Add water to the baking dish. Cover with foil.
10. Bake peppers for 20 minutes, or until tender-crisp. ***I baked for 20 minutes and peppers were still a little too firm. If you do not blanch or pre-cook your peppers, I recommend cooking for at least 30 minutes, especially if using green peppers.
11. Remove stem top of peppers, sprinkle evenly with cheese. Broil under high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
12. Replace tops and serve.

Portion Control Servings: 2 Green, 1 yellow, 1 red, 1/2 blue, 1/2 tsp

TIPS

I combined a couple of different recipes to come up with this, and threw in a few of my own ingredients. These tasted AMAZING but I do have a few things I'd like to try differently next time! If you like more heat, I would recommend adding red chili flakes and/or extra chili powder. I thought the fire roasted tomatoes would add more heat than they did. I also think italian seasoning would be great to add into this mixed with the other seasonings.  I made this with both orange and green peppers (not pictured). The orange peppers were cooked pretty well at 20-25 minutes but could have used a few minutes longer if you like your peppers a little less firm. The green peppers needed about another 10-15 minutes more.  I like my peppers to have a little crunch so they were fine for me.