These stuffed bell peppers are nutritious and super easy to make. Since summer (and swimsuit season) is in full swing, I’m definitely looking for healthier and lighter recipes to make for dinner and this is one of my favorites. The recipe is pretty versatile and you can use whatever veggies you have on hand. But I really like this particular combination with the ground turkey, sweet onion, zucchini, and brussels sprouts. These stuffed bell peppers are packed with flavor and make a filling dinner. If you’d like to add some grains, either a cup of brown rice or quinoa works great. (like I said, pretty easy to adjust to your preferences.) I love the bright color and unique look of the stuffed peppers– it’s a welcome change from the boring pile of food on your dinner plate. Double this recipe for a larger group or if you want leftovers.

Ingredients For Stuffed Bell Peppers

1 pound lean ground turkey
4 large bell peppers
1/2 large sweet onion
1 small zucchini
1 1/2 cups brussel sprouts
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: Sriracha or sweet chili sauce for topping

Directions For Stuffed Bell Peppers

Preheat your oven to 375°.

Begin by browning the turkey in a nonstick pan with a little bit of oil. I used a pan with some bacon fat I had leftover from breakfast and it added a really great flavor to the lean turkey meat. Season the turkey with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

While the turkey is cooking, work on prepping the vegetables. Dice the sweet onion, rinse and quarter the brussels sprouts, and dice the zucchini.

When the ground turkey is fully cooked, remove it from the pan and place in a large bowl.

Then, using the same pan, add in the diced sweet onion.
Cook the onion for a few minutes until it is softened and add quartered brussels sprouts. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.

Once both brussels sprouts and onions are soft and starting to turn golden, add in the diced zucchini.

Cook all vegetables together for another two or three minutes.
Then add sautéed vegetables to the bowl with ground turkey.
Remove the tops of the bell peppers and scoop out the ribs and seeds inside. Use a small knife to cut at an angle so that the top can easily be set back on top of the peppers once they are stuffed. You can rinse out any remaining seeds easily with some water.

Stuff each bell pepper with the turkey and vegetable mixture using a tablespoon. Pack down the filling firmly so that you use up all that you made.

Before baking the peppers, place the tops back on.

Set into a deep baking dish or cake pan lined with aluminum foil, so that the peppers are close together and stand up easily.

Bake in a 375° oven for 35-45 minutes until the peppers are soft.

Cut the stuffed bell peppers in half to serve and top with sweet chili sauce or Sriracha to add an additional layer of spice and flavor.

xoxo,

Yuli

P.S. Try reheating these in the oven with a strip of bacon on top for 10 minutes so all the bacon drippings saturate the filling even more. Yum!