Quick and Easy Gluten-Free Stuffed Pepper Recipe
By: Leah Rodrigues
Published: October 16, 2014

Quick and easy gluten-free stuffed bell peppers is a versatile dish that can be made any night of the week.  Stuffed bell peppers are ideal for leftovers so whether you have extra rice, quinoa, rotisserie, chicken, or taco meat from the night before - they all can be used and turned into a whole other meal.  Similarly, if you want to make this meal but don't have the exact ingredients on hand, you can easily substitute with other foods you have available.  Some examples include kidney beans for black beans, ground turkey or ground beef for the Italian sausage or quinoa for the brown rice.
Quick and Easy Gluten-Free Stuffed Bell Peppers
4 large assorted bell peppers (green, red, yellow or orange), halved and seeded
	1 tablespoon olive oil
	1 small yellow onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
	2 cloves garlic, finely minced
	1/2 pound Italian sausage
	1 15 ounce can no-salt added black beans, drained and rinsed
	1 15 ounce can no-salt added corn, drainer and rinsed 
	3/4 cup cooked brown rice
	1 14.5 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes 
	1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
	1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
	salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
	Preheat the oven 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the onions and garlic and cook for 3 to 5 minutes until softened and appearing translucent.  Next, add the Italian sausage and cook until browned, about 7 to 10 minutes.  A flat wooden spoon or turner helps to break up the sausage so every piece can be evenly browned.  Combine the black beans, corn, brown rice, and fire roasted tomatoes with the sausage mixture in the skillet and stir until well combined.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove from heat and add chopped cilantro.
	Place peppers, cut side up, into a baking dish.  Fill each pepper with the sausage and rice mixture.  Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the peppers are tender.  5 minutes before removing from the oven, uncover the peppers and sprinkle the Mexican cheese over the top.
Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes and then serve immediately.