RECIPES

Baked red peppers with wild mushroom and sun-dried tomato filling

Stuffed peppers are one of my personal favourites. Red lentils with tomato also make a tasty filling.

You can leave out the dried mushrooms, just use more stock or wine and reduce it into the fresh mushrooms, as it is this process of "reducing" that gives a full flavour to a sauce.

Ingredients

• 4 medium red peppers
• 100 grams of fresh mushrooms - washed and sliced
• 15 grams porcini or other dried mushrooms
• 1 glass wine or stock
• 300 ml boiling water
• 1 medium onion - chopped
• 150-200 grams of sun-dried tomatoes (one small jar)
• 120 grams rice flakes
• 250 ml tomato sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Oil for frying
• 1 medium saucepan and 1 oven dish with lid or foil covering
• Oven preheated to 200c

Method

• Soak the dried mushrooms in the boiling water for about an hour.
• Wash the peppers cutting off their tops with a sharp knife; leave a circle of flesh with stem on to form the lid.
• Squeeze the dried mushrooms, shredding them finely, strain the juice, taking care not to get any sediment in, keep to one side.
• Fry the onion in the oil over a low heat until golden. Put in the fresh mushrooms and turn up the heat slightly, add the wine/ stock, stir and put on a lid allowing them to mingle together for 2-3 minutes. Add of the mushroom juice reducing it to nothing.
• Pour in the remaining mushroom juice, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, bringing it to the boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and mix in the rice flakes.
• Leave with the lid on to puff up and absorb the liquid for approximately 10 minutes.
• In the dish you are going to bake the peppers, thin the tomato sauce with the remaining water
• Have a taste to check seasoning in the filling, mix through again and share the equally between the peppers, pack it in tightly, and then put in their tops.
• Arrange the peppers on top of the sauce; cover the dish with a lid or foil. Place in a pre-heated oven 200oc for about 40-50 minutes.
• Serve the peppers with a good spoonful of the sauce on the plate/serving dish with the peppers on top, a serving of courgettes and 1- 2 pieces of polenta arranged in the dish.

Leftovers:

Any filling that can not be forced into the peppers, can be made into small patties, dipped in polenta meal and lightly fried. Will improve with keeping 2-3 days in the fridge.