Who isn’t fond of pizza? It’s a universally favored food, but it oftentimes doesn’t contain much by the way of fruits or vegetables. So I’m excited to share today’s recipe with you, which is a spin of the tried and true: healthy stuffed pizza peppers.
Healthy Stuffed Pizza Peppers: An Easy Dinner Idea that Encourages Kids to Eat Vegetables
Stuffed peppers are certainly not a new idea; in fact I’m a big fan of these quinoa stuffed peppers, and also the Mexican version. What I love about them is that they are versatile and baked in one dish (read: not a lot of clean up – win!). But my favorite thing is that they are served up inside of a vegetable, a huge score for us moms who aim to get our kids to eat veggies! I decided that this was an opportune jumping point to make a version that kids would be fond of: stuffed pizza peppers.
I initially set out to make these quick and vegetarian, and was not planning to include any meat. But at the last minute, I ended up browning some ground beef and made half with the beef and half without. My family favored both versions, but I will say that the meat versions are definitely more filling and suited my husband much better who doesn’t know a meal that doesn’t contain meat;). If you are short on time, the veg version will suffice – but let’s be honest: it doesn’t take too long to brown some ground beef! Or even some sausage, if you can find some locally raised. Here are some other options for toppings that you may want to consider:
Toppings for stuffed pizza peppers:
- Chopped tomatoes
- Black olives
- Crumbled bacon
- Diced onion
- Small broccoli pieces
- Chopped pepper
- Mushrooms
- Jalepenos
- Pineapple
- Artichoke hearts
Grain-free and gluten-free stuffed peppers with a pizza twist.
- 3 large peppers green, red, yellow or orange, halved and cored
- 1 1/2 cups pizza or marinara sauce
- 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese grated
- 3/4 lb. ground beef optional
- toppings to suit: onions olives, tomatoes, broccoli, pepperoni, cooked and crumbled bacon, etc.
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Cook beef (if using) and lightly spray a 9 x 11 baking dish.
- Fill each pepper with beef (if adding), sauce, cheese, and then toppings.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until cheese is melted and peppers are cooked and somewhat crispy.
Feel free to get creative, and even set out toppings so that your kids and other family members can make their own. Mom tip: I always find that when I get my littles involved in choosing what they want to eat, they are more apt to actually do so and also enjoy it.
Let me know if you try these out and love them!
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Your style is really unique in comparison to other folks I’ve read stuff
from. Thank you for posting when you’ve got the
opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this page.
Wow! I made this last night for my grandkids and I can’t tell you how much they enjoyed them! I doubled the recipe so it made 12, and they ate them all. Of course we had a few bathroom problems… it was worth it! Thanks so much for sharing:)
😂😂😂 This made me chuckle! In the end – all sounds good?!