I did change it up a bit though. I used ground turkey and I didn't make the bechamel sauce with feta. Instead I used this Gorgonzola cheese from Trader Joe's. I added a jalapeno pepper to the mixture. Lastly I used tricolor quinoa in place of the rice. I made the quinoa the night before.
I washed the peppers and then cut the tops off. I had picked ones that hall had nice flat bottoms and didn't need to be altered.
I used the tops of the lids to cut off diced pieces and would use this with the onion in the meat mixture later. For each pepper, I used a sharp knife to cut out the core and used a spoon to clean it out properly, removing the pith as much as possible.
Above, was before I used the spoon, the spoon cleaned it up nicely but I forgot to take a picture to show that.
My memory and problem with stuffed peppers is that the peppers don't cook enough and I want them soft. I read somewhere that after they're cleaned, put them on a plate and cover in plastic wrap and nuke them. I added water to the bottom of the plate first.
I put them in the microwave for five minutes (my nuker doesn't have that strong of power so your mileage may vary). I left the wrap on until I needed them and they were a perfect crisp tender at that time.
I diced some onion and garlic. I got a cinnamon stick out and a can of D.O.P. San Marzano tomatoes. I started the sauce by sauteing the onion until soft.
I added the garlic and the tomatoes and cinnamon stick. I squished the tomatoes with a potato masher. I seasoned with fresh cracked pepper and kosher salt and then simmered for 20 minutes.
I removed the cinnamon stick. This was "simply" delicious. I loved the sauce but I did add a half teaspoon of sugar to balance the acidity.
I started the filling next. I sauteed more onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper and red peppers until soft. I added the turkey and stirred until cooked. I mixed in the quinoa.
I toasted the pine nuts in a non-stick pan over medium heat and added them.
Finally I added all the herbs and seasoning. At this time, I decided to mix in some of the cheese to the filling mixture. I also had a bit of mozzarella left too, so I grated that and threw that in as well.
I knew I had made too much filling. Below is what was leftover!
I put all the peppers in the sauce pot. The sauce rose right up the sides.
I stuffed them and then topped with some more Gorgonzola cheese.
I covered it and put it in the oven with the timer set for 35 minutes which basically just warmed it through and melted the cheese.
This was certainly more work than I anticipated. It was 3 hours after I got home before it went in the oven.
It was quite impressive if I do say so myself. The filling was really flavorful especially with the pine nuts and the pepper was cooked enough - still crisp tender. I still would have liked it done a tad more.
I really liked the Gorgonzola cheese but if blue cheese isn't your thing, use something you like. The sauce pulled it all together and was really fresh tasting. Big thumbs up.
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