Spicy Stuffed Peppers

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Spicy Stuffed Peppers

Recipe adapted from Simply Love Food 

With sincerest apologies for my lengthy hiatus, I return to you all with my latest obsession, perfectly balanced, nutritious and calorie conscious menu items. Its a new year, with new flavors and I am very excited to share them with you all!

These peppers are wonderfully spicy and super filling. To make a vegan version, just substitute the ground beef with some precooked quinoa.

• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 lb lean ground beef
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 1 heaping tablespoon taco seasoning
• 2 cups cooked brown rice
• 3-4 bell peppers, halved with seeds removed
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 1 jar salsa (we use super hot Habanero salsa)
• sharp cheddar cheese
• fresh cilantro

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Lightly coat peppers with olive oil and place in roasting pan for about 20 minutes until just cooked through.
3. Remove peppers from oven and allow to cool.
4. In the meantime, saute ground beef and onions in a saucepan over medium high heat. Drain any fat and place in large bowl.
5. Add taco seasoning, black beans, corn and rice to bowl and stir until combined.
6. Spoon mixture into each pepper, packing in as much as you can.
7. Place peppers back in over for an additional 15-20 minutes. Before removing from the oven sprinkle the tops with cheddar cheese and allow to melt before taking them out.
8. Garnish with fresh cilantro and enjoy!

Cajun Chicken Dip

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Cajun Chicken Dip

The legendary fight night appetizer. This is the easiest dip to make, and I have literally never had someone try it who didn't scream with happiness.  I have made it here in individual ramekins, but if you're into sharing, it cooks great in an 8x8 pyrex as well. 

You can really use any cheese for this recipe, but
we've found that a better quality cheese yields a better
(read: less heavy) result.

• 1 package Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup Helman's mayonnaise 
• 1 cup aged white cheddar, grated
• 1/2 cup marble or cheddar, grated
• 3 chicken breasts
• 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely diced
• Cajun seasoning
• Tortilla chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Boil chicken breasts in large saucepan filled with water (my dad likes to add a bit of lemon to the water-- CK does NOT)
3. Meanwhile, in a large bowl beat cream cheese and mayo until well combined. Add cheese and jalapenos. 
4. When chicken is completely cooked (no longer pink inside) shred with two forks and add to bowl. Mix well.
5. Spread into Pyrex baking dish (or individual ramekins) and liberally sprinkle with cajun spice.
6. Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until dip is bubbling on all sides.