Stuffed peppers and stuffed tomatoes solve portion guesswork on a holiday or party buffet menu. Using different colored peppers will make the stuffed peppers dish difficult to miss. The cheese, bacon or parsley garnish atop the stuffed tomatoes will be impossible to overlook.
These buffet food recipes give lots of leeway when cooking for particular guest or family tastes. Various ethnic flavors and seasonings, kernel corn and/or black beans, hot sauce or different cheeses can be used as variants. See the list of suggestions below each recipe.
Easy Stuffed Peppers Recipe
- 6 large green, yellow or red peppers (or a combination of the three colors)
- 1 lb. very lean ground beef
- 2 tbsp. chopped yellow onion
- 1 tbsp. margarine
- 1 cup cooked white or brown rice
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
- 1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
How to Put Easy Stuffed Peppers Together
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut a slice of the top of each pepper. Remove pepper seeds and membranes; rinse to ensure all pepper seeds are gone. Boil peppers in water for about five minutes; drain well.
- In a saucepan or skillet, saute onions in margarine until soft.
- Add ground beef to skillet and scramble fry until no pink remains.
- Add the cooked rice, salts, pepper and one cup of the tomato sauce; heat through.
- Fill the peppers with the ground beef mixture; stand upright in a greased casserole dish. Top peppers with remaining sauce. Cover.
- Cook in oven for 45 minutes. Uncover; cook an additional 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven; top with shredded cheese.
Makes 6 to 12 servings of Easy Stuffed Peppers
Recipe note: To stretch the servings to 12 for a buffet table, allow peppers to cool slightly after removing from oven. DO NOT add the cheese yet. Vertically slice each stuffed pepper through from top to bottom, creating two boat-like halves.
Lay the halves slightly over-lapping in two rows of six on a large serving platter. Sprinkle each half with cheese immediately after being sliced.
Easy Stuffed Peppers Recipe Variations
- Add 1/2 cup canned, drained kernel corn**
- Add 1/2 cup canned, drained black beans**
- Add 1/2 tsp. crushed red chiles (dried red peppers)
- Use pepper jack, Monterey jack or Tex Mex Blend cheese instead of the mozzarella
- Add 1/2 to 1 tsp. hot sauce *
- Add 1/4 cup chili verde *
* For lovers of spicy food only
** If a stuffed peppers "without rice" recipe is preferred, adding one or both of the first two variations will still keep the volume of stuffing high enough without skimping.
Simple Stuffed Tomatoes Recipe
- 6 fresh, firm ripe red tomatoes (vine-ripened tomatoes are best)
- 1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 - 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup plain croutons
- 3 strips crisply fried bacon, crumbled (optional)
- fresh parsley sprigs
How to Put Simple Stuffed Tomatoes Together
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove stem ends from the tomatoes. Slice a thin piece from the bottom of each tomato to ensure stability in the baking dish.
- Carefully remove pulp from each tomato, leaving a 1/2 inch thick wall. Reserve and chop enough seed-free pulp to measure about 1/3 cup.
- Mix tomato pulp, green pepper, 1/4 cup cheese, croutons, salt and pepper. Fill tomatoes with the tomato-cheese mixture.
- Place tomatoes in an ungreased baking dish and bake, uncovered, for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the tomatoes are heated through.
- Garnish with additional parmesan cheese, crumbled bacon and/or a fresh parsley sprig if desired.
Makes 6 servings of Simple Stuffed Tomatoes
Recipe note: Unlike the Easy Stuffed Peppers Recipe, Stuffed Tomatoes can't be cut in half for the buffet menu as they will be too soft to slice and lay on a serving platter.
Simple Stuffed Tomatoes Recipe Variations
- Use seasoned croutons (i.e. Italian seasoning, Caesar style, sun-dried tomato flavor) instead of plain croutons
- Mix the bacon crumbles into the filling instead of using for garnish
- Use mozzarella cheese for garnish instead of parmesan (recommended if using Italian seasoning style croutons)
If making both the stuffed peppers and the stuffed tomatoes, be thrifty and use the excess cut from the tops of the peppers to chop for the ingredient in the tomatoes recipe. These recipes work well made together as the same oven temperature applies to both. Use a combination of green or yellow peppers if making both to keep the dish colors as varied as possible on the buffet table.
Buffet tables, particularly during cold weather, will be a welcome sight with stuffed peppers or stuffed tomatoes on the menu. These easy recipes for buffet food menus or company dinners will create a fancy atmosphere with simple preparation in a very reasonable amount of time.
Deborah Read - A writer on movies, music and their history for 35 years, Deborah IS trivia. Her 27+ years of decorating work has put her consulting ...
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