Cross Country Cookin': Orzo Stuffed Peppers

So this week I'm giving a little shout out to my girl Bianca who made our family Orzo Stuffed Peppers! Amazingly good! I must admit, Bianca has never let me down when it comes to food. We share a food affair together, well basically I have a food affair with everyone, it's kind of a requirement of being my friend. Anyway, she said she got the recipe from Giada on the Food Network but we will just say it's her recipe since she added turkey meat to the batch she prepared for us.

ORZO STUFFED PEPPERS

• 1 (28-ounce) can Italian tomatoes
• 2 zucchini, grated
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
• 6 sweet bell peppers (red or yellow)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Pour the tomatoes into a large bowl and break apart using a pair of kitchen shears or your finger tips. Add the zucchini, mint, cheese, olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.

Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth to a boil in a medium saucepanover high heat. Add the orzo and cook for 4 minutes. The orzo should be only partially cooked. Use a fine mesh sieve to transfer the orzo to the large bowl with the other vegetables. Stir the orzo into the vegetable mix to combine. Transfer the warm chicken broth to a 3-quart baking dish.

Slice the tops off the peppers and remove all ribs and seeds. Cut a very thin slice from the base to help the peppers stand up.

Place the peppers in the baking dish with the warm chicken broth. Spoon the orzo mixture into the peppers. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil, sprinkle the top of each pepper with cheese and continue baking until the cheese is golden, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, carefully transfer the orzo stuffed pepper to a serving plate.

 Bianca and I at Vernon's shower doting on her little princess Olive.

Side Note: This was so tasty that I have made the decision to grow every color of pepper in my garden to  insure I can make this goodness at least once a week!

Oh and yes the planning and layouts for my garden have begun. I'm kind of freaking out with excitement over the whole thing. More post on that to come.

Until then, enjoy this recipe!