Stuffed Colored Peppers with Curried Brown Rice, Sausage and Currants

Stuffing
1 cup brown rice
2 cups water plus 2 teaspoons chicken soup base or chicken bouillon
1 teaspoon curry
1 lb 94 to 98% fat free Spicy Italian or Country Style Sausage (2.5 to 3 grams fat per 1 oz. serving)
1 large onion, chopped
4 cups (1 lb.) fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 large cloves garlic, pressed
¼ cup dry sherry
1/3 cup currants
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon marjoram


1. Bring water, rice, bouillon and curry to boil in a 4 quart saucepan. Stir; cover pan and reduce heat to low and simmer 50 minutes. Remove pan from heat and allow rice to sit 10 to 15 minutes. Remove lid from pan, gently fluff rice with a fork, cover pan and set aside. Cook’s Note: You can also use a rice cooker, but be sure and spray the inside lightly with cooking spray before filling.

2. Remove sausage from casings and cook over medium heat crumbling meat into smaller pieces while cooking. Wipe drippings from pan and drain sausage on paper towels if necessary. Re-heat on medium and sauté onion, mushrooms and garlic until tender. Reduce heat to medium-low; add sherry, sausage, currants, remaining spices and cook until liquid is reduced. Add rice to pan and mix all ingredients together. Remove pan from heat and cool slightly before stuffing peppers.

Peppers
6 medium red, yellow or orange bell peppers
¼ teaspoon salt


1. Fill a large 4 to 6 quart stock pot or Dutch oven with water and ¼ teaspoon salt and bring to boil over high heat. Cut tops off bell peppers wide enough to allow you to stuff with a tablespoon. Remove seeds and membranes and set tops of peppers aside. Rinse peppers inside and out.

2. Blanch peppers for 5 minutes in boiling water, remove and set aside on paper towels upside down to drain completely before filling.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stuff each pepper to the top with filling and stand upright in a 9 x 9 baking dish or large Dutch oven or in large muffin tins or custard cups. Return tops of peppers to cover inside mixture and bake for 35 minutes, remove tops and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until stuffing is lightly browned. Remove from oven and serve.

Yield: 6 servings at approximately 260 calories; 5.5 grams total fat; 1.3 grams saturated fat; 26 milligrams cholesterol; 35 grams carbohydrate; 3.7 grams dietary fiber; 16.2 grams protein; 661 milligrams sodium.

Compare traditional recipe at 520 calories and 34 grams total fat.

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