Santa Fe Stuffed Peppers

Prep: 25 min Cook: 35 min Bake: 30 min
Cost per Serving: $1.65

Cut bell peppers in half lengthwise to make seeding them easier--and leave the stem on
for a prettier presentation.

 4 large bell peppers with stems, halved lengthwise
 1 cup finely chopped onions
 8 ounces lean ground beef
 4 ounces (about 2 links) sweet or hot Italian turkey sausage, removed from casing
 1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chili-style chunky tomatoes
 1 can (11 ounces) vacuum-packed whole-kernel corn, not drained
 1/2 cup uncooked parboiled white rice
 1/2 cup water
 1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
 4 ounces Cheddar cheese

1. Heat oven to 350 F. Have a 13x9-inch baking dish ready.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add peppers and boil 4 to 5 minutes until
crisp-tender. Drain on paper towels.
3. While water comes to a boil, cook onions, ground beef and sausage in a large,
preferably nonstick skillet 7 to 8 minutes, stirring often to break up clumps of meat,
until sausage is browned and onions are tender.
4. Mix tomato sauce and chunky tomatoes. Add half to the skillet. Add corn, rice and
water; cover and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir 2 tablespoons vinegar
into remaining tomato mixture.
5. Cut about 3/4 of the cheese into small cubes and stir into skillet. Cut remaining cheese
in thin sticks.
6. Spoon skillet mixture into peppers. Put peppers in baking dish. Pour about 1/3 cup
water into dish. Bake, uncovered, 25 to 30 minutes until peppers are tender. Top with
cheese sticks the last 5 minutes of baking. (If stems start to scorch, wrap with foil.)
7. Heat remaining tomato mixture and serve with the peppers.

Serves 4. Per serving: 564 cal, 29 g pro, 59 g car, 25 g fat, 92 mg chol, 1,852 mg sod.
Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch/bread, 3 vegetables, 3 medium-fat meat, 2 fat