So on Sunday we had our friends Kenny and Laura over for dinner. My goal was to make a dinner that was slightly healthy and slightly sinful at the same time. The result? A marinated pork loin (pre-marinated) and stuffed hungarian hot peppers. Normally when I cook anything that my Mother has made for me before I call her "Hi mom, whats in the filling again? How long do I bake it? If I stand on my head and twirl in a circle will it cook faster?" But alas my mom was out of town so I had to prep my peppers myself and believe me it was a painful experience! I had pepper burns all over my hands and mouth. Silly me, I DID NOT WEAR GLOVES! They were marked hot and I got them from a store in the hispanic part of town so you would think I would remember that this is yes, surely a hot pepper...
Anyhow I wanted to share my "recipe". One of the problems is I tend to do dashes of random things. So, I will tell you about what I did, and season it a little more to your taste.
Approximate ingredients:
- Hungarian peppers
- 1 container of ricotta cheese (I use part skim) I believe if it about 12 ounces
- 1 container of soft spread cream cheese (I used the little plastic container so that I could use what I had in the fridge, you could surely use a brick too)
- Fresh garlic cloves
- 1 small white sweet onion
- Italian bread crumbs
- Oregano
- Basil
- Any other spice you prefer
- 1 can of pasta sauce (flavor of your choice)
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
The key to the mix is the consistency. You want to make a nice paste with everything. Add the ricotta to softened cream cheese and mix. You want to still be able to see the grains of ricotta but if you taste it, it should not be super predominant. Add Italian bread crumbs (pre seasoned!) I use between 1/2 and 1 cup depending on how wet the cheeses are. Mix it to be a nice paste that does not fall apart. Take the 3-4 cloves of fresh garlic and prepare as desired. I like to smash a large knife to break it and chop it. Alternatively mincing works very well. Mince the onion and add as well. Be careful not to add too much, or you will get mouthfuls. Sprinkle spices, I used cinnamon basil, oregano, a touch of thyme and tarragon. Just enough for light flavors. I prepare this before the peppers are cut so that the spices have a chance to start to give off their flavor.
BE CAREFUL! Wash your peppers. Cut the top off, slice in half, de-vein, and remove ALL of the seeds or you may have more heat. If you like the heat, feel free to leave some of the vein tissue in the peppers.
Stuff the peppers carefully, so that they do not break in the process. Lay them with the stuffed half facing up in a glass or ceramic baking dish. Peppers can be packed next to each other as they are still friends.
Pour the jar of sauce over the top of the peppers. Make sure you fill all of the holes between the peppers.
Sprinkle the cheese over the top.
At this point you can either bake right away or refrigerate so that you can bake it later. I prefer to let it sit so the dairy can break down some of the heat.
There are two settings you can cook at:
350 for 45 min
425 for 30-35 min
Make sure that you let it rest just a little bit so the cheese is not boiling hot.
As long as you have not blinded yourself with pepper you should be able to enjoy this with your guests. The perfect superbowl/tailgate kind of side dish.
Part two to follow in a few!
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