Winter is made for soup. Even winter in Texas is made for soup. Yes. I know what you’re thinking. There was no ice storm. No snow-pacolypse. No frigid temps. I didn’t have to dig out my car and “dibs” a parking space with a folding chair. But in the last three weeks I have been forced to bundle up in my winter hunter hat— and gloves mind you, demand my husband make a fire in the fireplace, and exclaim “Damn. It’s cold!” at least 25 times. That’s 20 more times than anyone in Texas should have to say it.
Let’s just say I’ve acclimated.
40 degrees is the new 20, and I need something warm in my belly.
If you’ve been following along with this little blog of mine you know that the only participation I have in making my husband’s amazing stuffed peppers is having a husband who makes amazing stuffed peppers. But I am in charge of most most other meals in the house. And that includes the soup.
And so if we have a bunch of green peppers, rice, at least one pound of ground turkey in the fridge, and a husband who beats you to calling “not it” on making dinner, it’s on me.
So here you go. This is what I’m eating.
Stuffed Pepper Soup
Ingredients:
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 diced green pepper
- 1 diced red pepper
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 cloves crushed/minced garlic
- 1 large can diced tomatoes
- 1 large can crushed tomatoes
- 1 small can beef broth
- parsley, salt, pepper, basil to taste
- I cup rice (brown, jasmine, white, whatever)
- Grated Parmesan
Instructions:
- Brown the turkey and onion together in a large stew pot.
- Add the rest of the ingredients (minus the rice and cheese) into the pot. Season to taste.
- Simmer for 1 hour.
- Plate (bowl?) it over rice.
- Shred some Parmesan cheese over the top.
Pro tips
- Make the rice separate and don’t add it to the large pot of soup. It allows some additional carb/calorie control over the meal. When you eat it the next day the rice won’t have soaked up all the juice/broth. And your “I don’t like when my food touches” kids won’t have as much to complain about.
- Use fire-roasted tomatoes. It adds an additional layer of flavor that you won’t get with regular diced and crushed tomatoes.
- Also make noodles. Nor for you. For the kid who specifically asks for noodles instead of rice for his soup, tells you for an hour how hungry the smell of soup is making him, then declines said soup WITH NOODLES when it is presented to him and instead eats noodles with the Parmesan cheese you grated and a regular uncooked green pepper for dinner.
And also for the other kid who looks at her brother’s bowl of soup and says “I don’t like that.” without even tasting it and who also wants noodles with Parmesan cheese.
- This wine pairs nicely with wine. Chianti always goes well with stuffed peppers and the question “I made this whole dinner and all you want to eat is noodles?”
As is also the trend if you’ve been following along with this blog…
The kids ate noodles and mom had some wine.