Lucky Charm

SHE2016©

I know what my own little pot of gold holds at the end of the rainbow, and it looks a little like a stuffed bell pepper!  The lucky part of this is how healthy, low-carb, and all-around delicious this meal was!   I actually took the ingredients over to family's house to cook, if that tells you just how easy the prep was.  First day of March needed homage, so I filled the pepper with all-goodness and then cut a little shamrock into the side for the perfect touch!  Slåinte!

LUCKY CHARM STUFFED BELL PEPPERS

4 bell peppers (green, of course!)

extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

1 pkg ground turkey

sea salt

pepper

1 can garbanzo beans, drained and slightly mashed

1 small onion, diced finely

1 small eggplant, diced finely

1 small yellow squash, diced finely

1 small zucchini, diced finely

2 tbs Italian seasoning

1 tbs garlic powder

1 tbs paprika

1 tbs sea salt

1 tsp pepper

1 8-oz container ricotta cheese

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Prepare bell peppers by slicing off the tops as close to the stem as possible and cleaning out the seeds and membrane.  Place on a prepared baking sheet and set aside, and preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Sprinkle a little evoo into a pan over medium heat.  Place ground turkey into pan and sprinkle with a little sea salt and pepper, and brown until just cooked through.  Set aside in a medium-sized bowl.  In the same pan over medium heat, sprinkle a little evoo and add mashed garbanzo beans (or just mash them in the pan!) all vegetables and seasonings and let cook for about two minutes.  While veggies are cooking, add ricotta cheese to ground turkey and stir until just blended.  Remove vegetables from heat and add to meat-and-cheese mixture.  Stuff the mixture into the bell peppers, sprinkle a little grated Parmesan cheese on top and let cook for about 20 minutes or until peppers are to desired consistency.  Once peppers come out of the oven, let rest for about 5 minutes and with a paring knife, carefully cut your shamrock out of the side.  Pop said shamrock into your mouth for luck!

FRANK-N-GHOST

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Mix of the Sunday supper and the month of HALLOWEEN!!  And so it begins......

FRANKENSTEIN STUFFED BELL PEPPERS

 4  bell peppers, tops cut off in a jagged (or Frankenstein fashion), and seeded

1 spaghetti squash, seeds removed and roasted

1/2 red onion, chopped finely

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped finely (or leave as many seeds as you like the heat!)

1 can black beans, drained

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped coarsely

sea salt

pepper

2 tbs chili powder

2 tbs cumin

2 tbs garlic powder

juice of 1/2 lime

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

With a paper towel, rub the peppers and tops gently with evoo and set on prepared baking sheet and set aside.  Into a bowl, scrape the contents of the roasted spaghetti squash with a fork, the onion, jalapeno,  black beans, cilantro, all the seasonings, the cheddar cheese and the lime juice.  Mix well and scoop into the prepared bell peppers.  Set the tops on top (ha!) and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until peppers are to your desired consistency.  Remove from the oven and let sit about five minutes.  Take a paring knife very gently and carefully cut eyes, nose, and mouth similar to the picture above.  Serve alongside ghostly autumn meat muffins below, or on its own for a great Meatless Monday!

NOTES:  Just in case you are unsure of the spaghetti squash, it is this easy to roast it: cut in half, seed and sprinkle with a little evoo, sea salt, and pepper.  Roast on prepared baking sheet at 350 degrees, flesh-side-down, for about 30 minutes and remove from oven.

GHOSTLY AUTUMN MEAT MUFFINS

2 pnds ground turkey

1 tbs sea salt

1 tbs pepper

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 red onion, chopped and sauteed

1 egg

2 tbs red wine

1/4 cup oats

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

sliced Swiss cheese

Combine all ingredients down to evoo in a bowl.  In prepared muffin tins, pile the meat mixture into each muffin tin cup, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and place one slice of Swiss cheese over each muffin and let sit for three minutes.  With a paring knife, slice around the ends of the Swiss cheese to fit each muffin, and carefully cut eyes and mouth into each slice similar to the picture above.  Serve your ghostly muffin alongside Frankenstein peppers for a ghoulish dinner party!