Papa Fiasco's Stuffed Peppers. =============================== The ingredients: (measurements are approximate!) 1-2 pounds ground meat* 1 cup rolled oats 1 egg 1 large onion 1 tablespoon oregano 1 tablespoon basil 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1 tablespoon chili powder 4 fresh large bell peppers Barbecue sauce, pasta sauce or even ketchup. The instructions: Dice the onion. In a large mixing bowl: Mix the ground meat, egg, onion, spices and maybe 2 tablespoons sauce. When well mixed, add the rolled oats and mix again... Now cut out the tops of the peppers and remove the seeds. Fill the peppers with the meat mixture. In a large, deep pan (we use a Dutch oven), place the filled peppers standing up and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees for a good 45 minutes. Check the peppers after a half hour or so to make sure they're not burning or over cooking. After 45 minutes, place about 2 tablespoons sauce on top of the filling in each pepper. Bake for another 15 minutes or until well done. Remove from oven a serve with brown rice, pasta or whatever... Comments: *The ground meat: It should be lean and fresh! We use a combination of beef, pork and lamb... The peppers should be fresh and crispy. Green or red will do... The rolled oats are just plain oatmeal, but the real 'old fashioned' kind, not an instant type... Most people use bread crumbs and that's fine. But the oats give a better texture and more flavor, not to mention healthier! The spices are to taste. We like things spicy and on the hot side. You can simply use a bit of salt & black pepper or go completely wild... The sauce can be almost anything. Left-over pasta sauce, barbecue sauce, ketchup or even salsa. Traditionally it's a tomato based sauce but as we well know, "Tradition is flexible"... I've heard of baking the pepper upside down for the first 30 to 45 minutes. This allows the juices to drain out of the pepper instead of being trapped inside. This sounds good to me, but we haven't tried it yet... As a side note: This is my basic recipe for meat balls and even meat loaf. It's a combination we like with a lot of flavor. If I left anything out or maybe got something not quite right, I apologize. I don't make this from a recipe... It's more a handful of this, a spoon of that and a sprinkle of this here... That's what keeps it interesting... I'm writing the recipe for two reasons. I haven't sent anything out the mailing list in a while and we just made it this past week. You see, Mama doesn't like stuffed peppers. Now there's a challenge if ever I had one! I'm sure you can guess that she liked this (or I wouldn't be writing the recipe)... Try it, cook, eat, enjoy! Papa... © 2001 Fiasco Farms http://www.fiascofarms.com Any reproduction or distribution prohibited without prior authorization in writing.