Stuffed Sweet Mini Peppers

Spring was crazy.  Spring break, end of the year projects, house projects, painting, company, fund raiser galores, and not to mention yard work projects piling up.

Neighbors Carolyn and Wayne loaned us these to trim the over grown trees in our front yard:

 Probably because they are the nicest neighbors ever or ...  maybe because they were hinting that we are slacking in the yard maintenance department... both of which are true.

One day as I was mowing the yards, our little red mower kept stalling out.  Neighbor Wayne was outside tinkering around.  He yelled over the fence that the grass was too high and I was pushing the mower too fast. 

I sighed and said "thanks for pointing that out"and started the mower again for the fifth time.  As I slowly nudged the mower forward being careful not to push too quickly,  I thought about what Wayne said.  And then I thought about how all those commitments and projects I had taken on were like our over grown grass and how sometimes I felt like our  lawn mower that keeps stalling out because I was trying to do too much too fast.

So this summer as we made our list of summer goals, the very first goal I wrote down was to RELAX and SLOW DOWN.  No house projects or weekly commitments looming over my head, no nagging the kids about chores or cleaning their rooms or wearing shoes...

"Except to the park, Jackson."

 Nope.  Just quality time hanging out with the kids  with as minimal housework and cooking as possible.  Think cold cereal, yogurt, and pasta.  Ahhh...The simple life.

But every once in a while, I get inspired and rummage through my kitchen cabinets and frig to make something yummy.  Last week,  I made these delicious stuffed sweet mini peppers. 

I'm not much for posting recipes.  But, I thought it would be fun to do this post Pioneer Woman Style.  Boy, was I wrong! 

Half way in I had to mediate a squabble about a piece of string that was near and dear to one kid that another kid had tangled in a knot.  And not to mention I kept forgetting to take pictures.  Normally, I would just direct you to the site where I found the  recipe but this is one I made up as I went along so you might want to adjust the amounts here and there.  And maybe politely excuse the poor lighting.  And I promise these look so much better in person and are worth muddling through the post for.

So, here we go.

These are the ingredients you will need.  Oh and some olive oil.  You can use the PAM spray kind or actual oil.  Either works fine.

Just chop about a 1/3 of cup of onion.  I really like red onions but you can use whatever you have on hand.  Sautee with about 2 tsp  of olive oil along with 2 cloves of chopped garlic.

Cook until the onions are soft.  Then toss in  half a bag of frozen spinach...Sorry, I forgot to measure the actual amount.  I may have been distracted by the screams of bloody   murder coming from the kids bedroom.  Turns out they couldn't find the remote control.

When last I  left, I had tossed about 1/2 the bag of frozen spinach in the pan.  Normally, I just
throw the spinach in the microwave and defrost.  Drain it and then add it to the pan.  Either way works.

Then once the spinach is thawed and heated through add a 1/4 cup of cream cheese.  Mix thoroughly, then add a 1/4 cup of feta cheese.  You can turn off the burner and remove  the pan  from the burner.  Stir in 1/4 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese.


You might want to taste the filling at this point to see if you want to add a little more of the feta or parmesan cheese...or just because it looks so good.

 Spray the bottom of the pan with PAM spray so the peppers do not stick.  I sprinkle a little kosher salt on the bottom of the pan.

 Wash and slice about 14 to 16 peppers length wise (depending on the size of the peppers).  Spoon the spinach mixture into the peppers and sprinkle a little more parmesan cheese on top. 

Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.

I don't know how Ree does it!  It is so much easier to cook without having to stop and take pictures and wrestle with kids.  But these are so easy and so delicious!  By the way, this spinach filling is great as a side dish or on pasta.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 small red onion chopped or about 1/3 of cup of chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic chopped
1/2 bag of frozen spinach
1/4 cup cream cheese (light works well)
1/4 cup of feta cheese
1/4 cup of parmesan cheese (freshly grated is best) plus extra to sprinkle on top
14 to 16 sweet mini peppers (I get mine from the Walmart produce section for $2.98 a bag)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Wash the peppers and slice length wise.  Spray the baking dish and sprinkle with kosher salt.  Set aside.

Chop the onion and garlic.  Sautee the onions and garlic with   the olive oil.  Then
add the spinach.  You can add the spinach frozen or cook the desired amount of spinach in the microwave (following the directions on the package.  Then drain the spinach and add to the onions and garlic.)

Mix the spinach in with the onions and garlic.  Then add the cream cheese.  Once the cream cheese is thoroughly mixed with the spinach, add the feta cheese.  Turn off the burner and set the pan aside.  Add the parmesan cheese. 

Then stuff the peppers.  Sprinkle with a little more cheese on top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.  These can be served hot or cold.