Stuffed Poblano Peppers

This recipe is something I came up with after I saw how yummy and fresh the poblano peppers at the grocery store looked. I grabbed a bunch and decided to stuff them with something delicious.

Ingredients [for 4 peppers]:
4 poblano peppers
1 lb ground chicken
½ cup + ½ cup diced onion
1 teaspoon + 1 teaspoon minced garlic
½ cup + ½ cup tomato sauce
1 cup medium grain rice
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 jalapeno, minced
1 egg
½ cup cubed cheese + extra grated cheese (something that melts well like Havarti or Monterey Jack)
+ olive oil

Start by chopping up the onion and garlic and cilantro.

Also chop up the jalapeno and the cheese. Be careful with the jalapeno. Wear gloves if you want to be extra cautious so that your hands won't be super spicy. I like to cube up the cheese because I like getting little salty bites as I eat, rather than using grated which just kind of melts into the filling and almost disappears.

Next, make the rice. Saute 1/2 cup of onions and 1 teaspoon garlic in a bit of olive oil. Add in the rice and stir to coat the grains in the fat. Then, add in 1/2 cup of tomato sauce and 1 cup of chicken stock and let the rice cook for about 10 minutes until cooked through and fluffy.

In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken with the rest of the onions and garlic, the cilantro, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper and cheese.

Add about 3/4 cup of the prepared rice to the meat mixture along with 1 egg and stir it all together.

Next, prep the peppers for stuffing. Cut them in half and remove the seeds.

Stuff each pepper half with some stuffing. Don't over-stuff them but don't be stingy!

Mound the stuffing in the center.

Place the peppers on a lined baking sheet for easy clean up.

Spoon 1/2 cup of tomato sauce over the tops of the peppers.

Bake in a 350 oven for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through - a meat thermometer inserted in the meat should read 165 degrees.

Sprinkle the tops of the peppers with grated cheese and let the heat of the peppers melt it.

And now it's time to eat.

Serve with the rest of the rice and maybe some avocado cubes and salsa. By the way, any leftovers can be refrigerated and then eaten for lunch the next day. They're great even when reheated in the microwave.

Here's the recipe page: