Mushroom Cheddar Burger Stuffed Peppers

I haven't made stuffed peppers in a while. Then the other day it occurred to me that I had a few things in my fridge that would make some pretty awesome ones. This recipe is a just a little  something I threw together- I hope you dig it as much as we did!

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 green bell peppers, halved and scooped out
• 1 medium red onion, diced
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1 cup of leftover white rice
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup of shredded cheese ( I used cheddar) to top peppers with
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup red cooking wine
• salt and pepper to taste

Take halved peppers and place in a pot with just enough water to cover them. Place a cover on the pot and cook on medium high heat for about 10 minutes until the peppers are softened. 

In a skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter and add the olive oil. Add in onions and cook for about  5 minutes until starting to brown. Add in crushed garlic and mushrooms. Sauté together for another few minutes until the mushrooms have soaked in some of the juices from the pan. Throw in the red wine to deglaze and simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Remove the veggies from pan and set aside.

Throw the ground beef into the hot pan and sauté until no longer pink. Add the veggies back in along with the rice and cook everything together for another minute or two and add salt and pepper to taste.

Cover the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish in a little bit of olive oil and crushed garlic. Arrange the halved peppers in the baking dish. Distribute evenly all of the filling into the peppers and top them with the shredded cheese.

Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes, or until all the cheese is melted.

These came out great! I actually took one of the leftover halves, cut it up and put it on toasted bread for lunch today. It was pretty much an awesome fake out steak and cheese. Enjoy!