go make this right now

These may be the most amazing stuffed peppers I have ever made.

The gist of this dish is whole roasted bell peppers stuffed with potatoes that are mashed with sautéed jalapeño, onion and pancetta (I actually used Trader Joe’s peppered turkey bacon) with some added chopped cilantro. Finally, baked and then broiled with shredded colby-jack cheese. Yum.

You will need:

•  4 bell peppers
• 4 strips of turkey bacon
• 1 medium to large red onion
• 3 medium jalapeños
• 3 cups of cubed baby dutch gold potatoes
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 1/2 cup shredded colby-jack
• 3 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 tablespoon chili powder

First thing, roast the bell peppers on your gas range. If you don’t have a gas range I have no idea how to alternately roast peppers… build a camp fire? You can see my YouTube tutorial on roasting peppers here.

In a large sauté pan over low, low heat add one tablespoon of butter and finely diced red onion and jalapeño. After these start cooking down add the pancetta. I really like to keep the heat low and saute over a long period of time (45-50 minutes) so that the flavors get nice and caramelized.

The potato component is basically just standard mashed potatoes–you can make them however you want. The potatoes that I used, baby Yukon golds in this case, happened to be very creamy. I tend to mash my potatoes with a bit of butter and a splash of milk. For this recipe I added three tablespoons of sour cream and about one tablespoon of chili powder for a little extra kick.

Once both of these components are finished you can mix together along with some fresh chopped cilantro. (Salt and pepper to taste.)

Stuff the peppers with the mixture and top with shredded cheese and a bit of chopped cilantro.

Bake at 400ºF for 13 minutes and then broil for 1-2 minutes for a nice bubbly cheese melty top.

Yields 4 stuffed peppers and many happy tummies.

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Cheers,

David