Italian-Style Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers Recipe

Looking for a delicious and healthy way to enjoy bell peppers? Look no further than this mouthwatering Italian-style vegetarian stuffed pepper recipe. These colorful peppers are filled with a savory mixture of farro, garbanzo beans, and vegetables and are topped with fresh pesto. Bursting with flavor and packed with nutrients, this recipe is the perfect way to enjoy all the goodness of peppers in a satisfying and filling meal. 

Wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe and says, "I grew up eating stuffed peppers frequently. My mom made different variations, but this Italian-style version was always my favorite. I am using farro here, but you can use rice, quinoa, or any grain. It's actually a great recipe to make when you have leftover rice or farro that you want to use up. The fresh pesto takes less than 5 minutes to make and is a flavorful topper!"

To make this recipe, we'll of course need some bell peppers. "You can use any color of pepper that you prefer. I always look for the biggest ones I can find so you can fit lots of filling inside," Hahn shares. The other produce items we need are a shallot, mushrooms, garlic, fresh basil, and one lemon. If you'll be using farro as your grain of choice, pick up some of that and Hahn assures us either the quick cooking or standard type is fine. For spices, grab some fennel seeds, Italian seasonings, salt, and pepper. Then to round out our list, pick up some olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes, vegetable broth, garbanzo beans, and sunflower seeds.

Start by preheating the oven to 400 F. Then go ahead and slice off the top ¼ inch of each pepper. "If I am serving the peppers as a main dish, I like to cut them this way because they are more substantial. If you are serving them as a side dish, you can cut the peppers in half lengthwise and fill each half, which will require less filling," Hahn explains. Place the peppers on a baking dish and put them into the oven for 25 minutes until they soften and start to brown. Then, since we don't want to waste the top piece, work around the stem, and dice the top of the pepper. This will be going into the filling.

Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to a large frying pan. We're going to toast the fennel seeds so drop those in and stir them for about one minute. They will become very fragrant. Then add the diced red pepper, shallots, mushrooms, 3 cloves of garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, ½ teaspoon of salt, and pepper. Sauté for 10 minutes on medium heat. Add the broth, garbanzo beans, and cooked farro. Warm through for about 5 minutes, then fill each of the peppers with the mixture.

To give our peppers a fresh basil flavor we'll whip up a very quick pesto. Pull out a blender or food processor and add the remaining clove of garlic, basil, sunflower seeds, lemon zest, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and ½ teaspoon salt. Blend until smooth. Add some dollops of pesto to the stuffed red peppers and garnish with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese if desired. The peppers pair well with a simple soup like a blended sautéed spinach soup or fresh green salad. Leftovers will last for several days if kept in a sealed container in the fridge and are best warmed up in the oven. This just may be your new favorite way to use peppers!