Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers

My garden this year is exceptional. I don’t know why, but I will not complain. In order to use its bounty I have had to become creative at mealtimes, so, I put together this recipe for my beautiful Cubanelle Peppers. This would also work with Anaheim or Pablano peppers as well. I collect 6-8 good size peppers. Mine are about 7 inches long, give or take. Lay them on their sides and cut out about an inch wide opening along the whole length of the pepper. Remove the ribs and seeds. Save the part of the pepper you cut out. I salt and pepper the inside of the peppers and put them in a baking dish. Next I make my Spanish Rice. Here is my Recipe. But if you have a favorite, use that one. I Chop 1 small onion, 1 rib of celery, 1 large clove of garlic and the pepper pieces I saved when preparing the peppers. In a medium skillet, sauté in olive oil, chopped veggies along with ½ cup of fresh or frozen corn and about 1 cup of canned black beans. When veggies have softened and corn and beans have heated through, add 1- 14.5 oz. can of chopped tomatoes. I happened to have fire roasted tomatoes so that is what I used but regular of stewed tomatoes would work as well. To this I added about a half a cup of water, 2 good pinches each of salt and pepper, ½ tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. dried oregano, 1 Tbls. chili powder, 1 tsp. celery salt and bring to a simmer. Then I add 2 cups of prepared or leftover white rice. Let simmer for 1o minutes and you are ready to stuff the peppers. After the peppers are stuffed I opened 1-8 oz. can of tomato sauce and poured about 2/3 of the sauce over the peppers. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and put in a 375 degree oven for about 40 minutes. Uncover the peppers and put about 2 cups of pepper jack cheese over the top (or whatever cheese you have or prefer) and the rest of the tomato sauce. Continue to cook for another 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and starting to brown and bubble, YUM. Let rest for about 10 minutes as they are very hot and enjoy. These are great as a side dish, or, allow 2 per person as a whole meal.