Stuffed Bell Peppers

   I know what you're thinking, What is she doing typing up a blog on a beautiful day like this? Well my answer to that is, I don't know!  It's a beautiful day, but I have no where to go and nothing to do, and it's all J's fault!  He called me this morning to say that he'd be headed home sometime today and that he'd call me back at noon to tell me when.  I haven't heard from him since. :-/  So, being the good wife that I am, I'm sitting around here, waiting, in case he calls to say he needs me to come get him.  That and I spent all morning baking; so now I'm tired and don't feel like doing anything.  So I'll hop on here and ramble a bit.

   Today I'm going to share one of my step-daddy's recipes: Stuffed Bell Peppers.  As I'm typing, I'm finding it a bit odd that this is the first recipe of his I've shared, especially considering that most of my love of cooking comes from years of helping him chop onions, garlic and bell pepper in the kitchen.  I guess the reason is that he's not really one to write down recipes.  He usually just throws a whole bunch of stuff into a pot and it comes out gold.  Anyone who has known me for more than a day has heard me talk about his cooking.  When asked if I like catfish, my response is always, "No; only my step-daddy's."  If I'm out enjoying a steak at a restaurant I may comment that "My step-daddy makes an awesome shrimp topping for his steaks."  And if asked about bar-b-que, the answer has never been anything short of, "Nobody does it like my step-daddy."

    What can I say?  Growing up when it came to food, we were spoiled rotten.  Jude (my step-daddy) never bought groceries in advance, he'd just grab whatever he was in the mood for from the local store and come home and invent something wonderful.  The only problem with this method is that I can't recreate any of his concoctions.  There's no method to his madness that I can see; so I'll just delight myself in these yummy bell peppers and leave it at that.

Here's what you'll need:

6-8 medium bell peppers
1 lb ground beef
1 large onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 box Stove Top Cornbread Dressing
1 cup cooked rice
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Clean peppers and place them in a large pot filled with about 1-2 inches of water.  (The water should come about halfway up the sides of the peppers.) Bring the water to a boil, and cover with a lid.  Allow to steam until the peppers are tender.  Set in a 9x13" casserole dish.  Prepare the dressing according to directions on package; set aside.  Brown meat and onions, season to taste (I use Tony's).  Drain off excess fat.  Add soup, dressing and rice.  Mix well on low heat.  Stuff peppers with mixture and top with grated cheese. (I usually add a squirt of Ketchup on top, but that's optional.)  Bake at 325 for 15 minutes.  Enjoy!

Stuffed Bell Pepper sans ketchup.

   Well my baby girl is tired of entertaining herself inside and wants to go swing, so I'm going to oblige her.  Y'all enjoy your Saturday!