Baked Stuffed Bell Peppers

Stuffed bell peppers are a longtime favorite of mine. I used to make them stuffed full of Spanish rice, hamburger and cheese, but now I have a much healthier version that I wanted to share with everyone looking for a quick, easy and healthy dinner for the family.

I first start off by washing the bell peppers (I use green, but you can use whatever suits your fancy). Once washed, you will cut the tops off and clean out the seeds. Place the peppers top down in a pot with at least an inch of water and cook on high until the peppers are soft (but not mushy). I usually take them out when the face down part of the pepper begins to turn a lighter green.


While the peppers are cooking, you can work on your DELICIOUS stuffing! Basically anything healthy and nutritious can be put into the stuffing mix, but I will show you my latest pepper creation mix.

 First you want to brown the ground turkey. I used Jeannie-O Taco Seasoned flavor (and it was sooooo yummy). After browning the ground turkey, you can add your other fixin's. I added a can of low sodium corn and a can of pinto beans along with some homemade salsa. Once the mixture is warm, you can start stuffing your NUTRITIOUS peppers! This batch made enough to stuff 6 medium size bell peppers, but depending on what you add, it can be made to make more.

Other fixin's to try:
Grilled onions
Grilled zucchini
Broccoli
Tomatoes
Asparagus
Light Mozzarella on the top
Hummus
Brown rice
Quinoa
Edamame
More bell peppers!

Once everything is prepped and stuffed, place the peppers in a glass Pyrex dish and cook on 350 for 30 minutes.

I usually make these ahead of time and then bake fresh before dinner, but you can always bake as soon as you are done prepping and save the rest for later. They make a wonderful leftover meal as well.

Each serving has approximately 20 grams of protein :)

Recipe for homemade salsa:
10 Campari tomatoes
5 stalks of green onions
1 jalapeño pepper (or the pepper of your choice according to your personal "spicy meter."
1 bunch of cilantro

Mix everything in a food processor or finely chop ingredients and BAM! Homemade salsa :) Pretty easy peasy, right? Thank Mom for an AMAZING and DELICIOUS salsa recipe!

Hope you enjoyed this recipe! The Darling heartbeat continues....

Tiffany

Shopping: Friend or Foe?

Today was confirmation that what I have been doing by investing in my health and making smarter choices is not only working in improving my health, but my shopping experiences as well! Beyond the pounds on the scale, the inches in my waist, the before and "in progress" pictures I have taken, I finally reached a new level... Buying something in a smaller size! My nutrition plan brought me back to the "regular size" section while I was shopping today with my mom. I had some Kohls cash and was looking for some cute tops for my future trip to Vegas for Herbalife's Extravaganza event, and low and behold... A super cute top. I had been shopping in the plus section since Mackenzie's birth, and my options were pretty limited, especially living in a smaller town now with only a few stores to pick from. I grabbed a few tops from the plus side, but they just weren't right and seemed baggy. Then right when I was about to give up, I found two cute tops and gave them a whirl. To my surprise, they both fit, and I actually had to pick between the two. For once I wasn't just having to "settle" on something because I needed it. I would have taken them both but two polka dot tops two days in a row at an event would just be too much :) Thank you Lauren Conrad for being such a cute designer and making flattering clothing :) I left the store excited (the free $10 with an additional 30% off might have helped too) and quite happy with my purchase.




This may seem like a small success, but I look at it as a new freedom. I have the freedom to shop wherever I want again and not have my fashion options limited (as if they aren't limited enough being the long amazon woman that I am).

With this new freedom comes a sense of excitement to shop again too! (Sorry Benny, I will go easy on the credit cards). But I truly am excited to start getting back to where I was and actually ENJOY shopping again.

If you like the look you can find it here or in stores:
http://m.kohls.com/kohlsopenapi/productmobile.html?productID=1275464

I know others might have a similar situation, and I promise you this, if you work hard, focus on your goals and treat your body right, you too can enjoy the thrill of finding something that fits you just right and makes you feel confident and beautiful.

Until next time my friends, the Darling Heartbeat continues...

-Tiffany