Stuffed bell peppers with nuts & sultanas

There's something about nuts that makes me crave them every second day. To stop the (bad!) habit of continuously snacking on the couch I try to incorporate them into real meals. One succesful attempt is this dish with a tempting oriental flavour.


Nutty stuffed bell peppers for four
8 medium sized green bell peppers
1 cup of rice
1 cup of toasted chopped mixed nuts (walnuts, pistachios, almonds)
2/3 cup black sultanas
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tomatoes
2 cups of vegetable stock
lots of fresh parsley
lots of fresh mint
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of chili flakes
salt & pepper

Cut away the tops of the peppers and take out the seeds. Keep the tops, they will serve as lids.

Fry the diced onion in olive oil until it turns golden. Finely cut the garlic and add in the pan. Toss in the rice and cook for a few minutes until it turns translucent. Time to throw in half the chopped tomatoes and 1/2 cup of stock. Stir and turn off heat.

Add the nuts, sultanas and fresh herbs. Season and don't forget the cinnamon.

Stuff the peppers with the mixture, leaving a small gap on top. The rice will increase its volume while it cooks and you don't want losing in the pot all the good stuffing. Snuggly fit the peppers into a casserole and pour over the rest of stock. Fit the remaining tomatoes in between the gaps.

Cover and simmer on a medium-low heat for about 30 minutes, until rice is tender. Check from time to time the level of liquid, the rice will absorb it quite fast. Add more stock if you have to. Serve the cute peppers with mint & yoghurt.

This recipe makes 0.3kilos/person of pure goodness.