Light Italian Rice Ball Inspired Stuffed Peppers

If you're looking for a family friendly dinner or a delicious meal prep for the week, these Light Italian Rice Ball Inspired Stuffed Peppers are perfect. Bell peppers are stuffed with beef, peas, rice, spices, topped with cheese and baked until golden. You can enjoy all the same flavors from a traditional Italian rice ball without the added fat from frying.

Course appetizer, main course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword rice ball, stuffed peppers

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Servings

Calories 386kcal

Author Steph

Equipment

frying pan
baking dish

Ingredients

4 bell peppers
½ large onion or 1 small onion
1 lb 96/4 extra lean ground beef
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp dried oregano
1 c marinara sauce
¼ c pecorino romano cheese grated
1½ c rice cooked, white or brown
1 c peas
½ c light mozzarella
½ c broth or water

Instructions

Cut the upper most part of the peppers off (including the stem) to create an opening in the pepper for stuffing. Clean out the seeds and ribs.
Microwave the peppers for about 10 minutes or until slightly softened.
In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Dice the onion. In the frying pan, add olive oil spray and saute the onion over medium high for 5 minutes or until slightly tender and translucent.
Add ground beef and break apart with a wooden spoon, cooking until no longer pink.
Next, season with the Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, onion powder, and oregano. Stir in the marina sauce, pecorino romano, cooked rice, and peas until thoroughly combined.
Stuff the inside of each pepper with equal amounts of the filling and place in a baking dish. Top with the mozzarella cheese.
Pour broth or water around the peppers, about 1 inch high to surround the peppers.
Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and broil for 1-2 minutes for a golden brown top.

Nutrition