Pinterest Inspired

Vacation 2k16 is fast approaching and in preparation for the Whitakers to take on Glacier, my butter, carb, and frying privileges have been revoked. This is far from easy for the great grandchild of Pearl Colvin; the urge to fry is almost instinct. Yesterday I replaced starchy mashed potatoes with healthy cauliflower (ignore the fatty cream cheese for the time being), and tonight I replaced tortillas with peppers. Although I would’ve thoroughly enjoyed making Spanish rice from scratch, I opted to buy rice packets for the sake of time preservation. And why not go one step further and buy the steak flavored Spanish rice??

Ingredients:

Marinade:

• 1/3 c. olive oil
• juice of 1 lime
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. chili pepper seasoning
• salt and pepper
• 4 grated garlic cloves
• 4 chicken thighs

Stuffed Peppers

• 3 bell peppers, halved
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 10 oz. mushrooms, sliced
• 1 packet of Steak Flavored Spanish Rice, made according to directions
• *1 medium Roma tomato, chopped
• 1 c. shredded Mexican cheese

*The rice packets I used already had tomatoes

Directions:

1. In a large gallon size Ziploc bag, combine the ingredients for the marinade and chicken thighs. Let sit in the fridge for approximately 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350* and cook the chicken 20 minutes. Flip and bake an additional 15 minutes. (Perfectly fine if still pink because it will bake longer)
3. While chicken is cooking prepare the rice packet according to the directions.
4. Saute the onion and mushrooms in the leftover marinade from the chicken.
5. In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken, cooked Spanish rice, and optional tomatoes.
6. Preheat the oven to 375* and prepare the bell peppers by cutting them in half lengthwise. Remove all the seeds, membranes, and stem to create a cavity for the filling.
7. Spinkle just a small amount of cheese into the bottom of the peppers and then fill each peppers with the chicken and rice mixture; adding another spinkle of cheese on the very top.
8. Cover with foil and place in the oven for 30-35 minutes until the peppers are cooked and soft.

Servings: 6 peppers halves