(Ed. Note: In the temporary absence of Kristen Trevino’s cooking column, Ann Cueva has graciously offered to share some of her culinary favorites with us. So here we go. . . )
Submitted by Ann Cueva
For The Voice
When I told my kids I was writing this column there were some variable reactions. They had all been what I would call subjects of some of my comments; they say they were victims. I believe there was some discussion of a class action suit for slander at one time, but none of them had any money and I was paying their tuition at the time.
Here is how it went:
Marcy: Why would I care. I have to call her every holiday to see what to do with that netting around the
ham.
Carol: Mom, all of Colin’s recipes are secrets. (Then why do I have them and know they will soon be in
print?)
Shawna: Oh, no. Please, no.
Jim: I am an attorney now, Mom.
With that in mind, although I promise there will be family stories and recipes despite their objections or
threats, I am providing one of my favorites from a friend. Rebecca Torrey, my coworker, used to work in an Italian restaurant as a chef. She will often surprise us at work with a great dinner which she has put together. The presentation on these are stunning, easy to make ahead, and yummy.
Rebecca’s Stuffed Peppers (Better known as Becky’s Bells)
*One pound of bacon in small pieces fried crisp, fat drained
*Two packages of Uncle Ben’s rice with herb seasoning prepared as directed
*One pound of lean beef or mild Italian sausage, browned and drained well
*One 16 ounce can of diced fire roasted tomatoes (or fresh if in season)
*Six large peppers, seeded, leveled and beheaded–multiple colors make it gorgeous–or green and red for Christmas
*One small onion chopped
*4 or 5 cloves of garlic chopped
*Black olives (small can of sliced )
*One jar of Classico Basil and garlic Marinara sauce
*Monterey Steak seasoning to taste
*Large tube of fresh Mozzarella cheese
*Fontina Cheese shredded to taste (¼ cup)
*Parmesan cheese shredded to taste (2-3 Tablespoons)
Sauté chopped onion and remnants of pepper in olive oil until soft; add to rice, cooked ,drained meats and
season to taste. Add Parmesan and Fontina cheeses; add enough roasted tomatoes to moisten. Mixture should be a little sticky.
Fill peppers and combine the rest of the tomatoes with juice to Marinara Sauce. Place stuffed peppers in
casserole and pour over the Marinara sauce.
Cover each pepper top with a thick slice of Mozzarella cheese and bake covered for twenty minutes .
Uncover and bake until cheese just begins to turn golden brown at 350 degrees.
May garnish with former pepper heads (Bake this separately in a little olive oil.)
P.S. I always hate it when someone gives me a recipe for something and leaves out one little tip so that mine never
tastes as good as theirs. I did that to you–a whole ingredient! For those of you who clipped Cora’s Gingersnaps add
1 teaspoon of salt with the dry ingredients with my apologies!
