This has been a good year for peppers of all kinds. We did have long periods of no rain but due to Noel's
diligent watering and the warm weather, the peppers exploded. Following is a recipe for stuffed peppers using my Mexican rice recipe and topped with cheese:

Mexican Rice
2-3 T. olive oil
1 cup rice (I used red rice)
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced green or red pepper
1/2 cup chopped or stewed tomatoes
2 cups veggie broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. oregano

Sauté onions and peppers in the olive oil for a few minutes. Stir in the rice to coat it in the oil. Add the
rest of the ingredients and simmer for 30-45 minutes until done. Timing depends upon which type of
rice is used. (I also had a couple of shiitake mushrooms from the garden that I added into the mix.)

Stuffed Peppers
6-8 red and/or green stuffing peppers
Mexican rice mixture**
6-8 oz Pepper jack cheese or cheese of your choice
cut cheese into 1/2" cubes – enough for one for each pepper
shred rest – about 2 cups

While rice is cooking clean the peppers. If the peppers are small just cut the tops off and clean out the
seeds and membranes. If the peppers are large cut them in half lengthwise and clean.
Stuff each pepper putting in half the rice filling, placing 1 cube of cheese in the middle, then add rest of
the filling making a flat top. Place in greased casserole dish, cover with foil and bake at 400 degrees for
35 minutes. Remove foil, top each pepper with shredded cheese and bake uncovered for 15 minutes
more or until peppers are cooked as soft as you like. Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy! We had
some leftover pinto beans and no-knead Rosemary garlic bread with ours.

**If you make the rice ahead, either the day before or earlier in the morning it won't take long to stuff the
peppers and get them in the oven.

Stuffed Peppers