Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers

There were some cubanelles in my farmers market basket this week and I wasn’t sure what to do with them or even what they tasted like. On Monday, I was watching the Food Network and saw Sunny Anderson preparing stuffed cubanelles. She compared them to bell peppers. So tonight I decided to try her recipe (with a few tweaks). The peppers smell sharper than bells as they bake, but once done, the flavor was very mellow. Both Andy and I really liked this dish—and hope there are more cubanelles to come in the basket. Enjoy!

Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers
This makes enough stuffing for eight peppers. I only had two peppers, so I froze the remaining stuffing.
Olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup long-grain rice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. cumin
Salt and pepper
1 (15-oz.) can diced tomatoes (The original recipe calls for tomato sauce, but I didn't have any on hand.)
1 lb. ground beef
8 cubanelle peppers, tops and seeds removed

1. Sauté onions and next 2 ingredients in hot oil until softened. Stir in rice and garlic, and cook 1 minute. Stir in cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 3 more minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in 1/2 cup diced tomatoes. Allow mixture to cool for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, and add ground beef, stirring until combined.
2. Stuff peppers with beef mixture, using a wooden spoon handle to tightly pack mixture. Drizzle peppers with olive oil, and sprinkle with additional salt and pepper. Pour remaining diced tomatoes into a baking dish; place peppers in dish.
3. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until stuffing is done.