Unstuffed Pepper Skillet

• servings: 4 servings
• total time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

8 ounces mini sweet peppers, sliced crosswise (about 10 peppers, mixed colors)

1 cup chopped yellow onion

1 pound lean ground sirloin (90/10)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce

¼ cup water

3 tablespoons hot cherry pepper hoagie spread (such as Cento)

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

1 (8.8 ounce) package microwavable white rice (such as Uncle Ben’s), crumbled

1 cup shredded Italian cheese blend

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add beef and cook, stirring to crumble, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Season with garlic and Italian seasoning and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato sauce, water, hoagie spread, and salt.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in rice until coated evenly with sauce. Cover, reduce heat to medium to maintain a simmer, and cook until rice and vegetables are tender, about 8 minutes, stirring once halfway through to prevent sticking.

Uncover, remove from heat, and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Re-cover and let sit until cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve hot sprinkled with basil or parsley. Recipe developed by Julia Levy

Nutrition

• Calories: 513 kcal
• Total Fat: 13 g
• Saturated Fat: 4 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 70 mg
• Sodium: 1046 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 64 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5 g
• Protein: 32 g