Stuffed Peppers and Strawberry Limeade

My kids were not very excited about this meal. In fact, we had this Saturday night and on Friday night we told the kids, you have two choices for dinner: Arby's or stuffed peppers. No brainer. We were actually going to Arby's anyway because it was an overdue reward from Spring Break. I told the kids to pick something they wanted to work for the entire week of spring break and they worked really hard. Kael picked to go to cousin's house in Lehi, Aidan picked a bowling trip (that was super fun) and Kalli picked Arby's. It turned out that spring break, she got some kind of flu at the end of the week so we didn't go. But I digress, even though my kids were not impressed with stuffed peppers, my husband and I enjoyed them. I got the original recipe from my Better Homes and Garden recipe book but I changed some ingredients so here is my version:

The recipe called for 2 large green bell peppers. Green Bell Peppers aren't my favorite so I used Yellow, Orange and Red which I love a lot better. I had 2 small red peppers, 2 medium orange and 1 medium yellow. Cut the tops of the peppers and scoop out the seeds. Put in boiling water for 3 minutes and then drain. For the filling you need the following ingredients:

• 1 lb hamburger
• chopped onion
• can of diced tomatoes (I used a 14.5 oz can....recipe called for 7.5 oz)
• 1 cup water (recipe called for 1/2 cup water)
• 2/3 cup rice (recipe called for 1/3 cup rice)
• seasonings basil or oregano (1/2 tsp? I just sprinkled dried basil in the pan)
  
• Worcestershire sauce
• Cheddar cheese, grated (recipe calls for American)

So I changed it to fit my family, you can too! In a large skillet, cook hamburger and onion till meat is brown and onion is tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, water, uncooked rice, Worcestershire sauce, basil or oregano, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 15-18 minutes or till rice is tender. Stir in 1/4 cup cheese.
Fill peppers with meat mixture. Place in a 2 qt baking dish along with any remaining meat mixture. Bake in a 375F oven about 15 minutes or till heated through. Sprinkle with more cheese and let stand about 2 minutes till cheese is melted. I served cheese covered baguette breads (instead of French bread...it's a little narrower...sunflower market makes the best baguette bread!) I think it tastes great! And we also had Strawberry Limeade for our drink which is so delicious. I got it from Our Best Bites. Basically made with strawberry sauce, fresh limes, ice cubes and Sprite. You cut up 2 cups of strawberries, put in saucepan for a few minutes then put in blender and you have your strawberry sauce. Ice cubes in a glass, squeeze the limes over the ice for juice, pour in Sprite halfway, then add a few tablespoons of strawberry sauce, stir well then add more Sprite and you have a delicious drink! We did it with lemons too and it was tasty for Strawberry Lemonade! We drank it so fast, no chance for pics!!!!