Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup

The cold weather may not have arrived yet in Oregon... and I am worried it never will! But the wet weather has started. It is the constant downpour that has sparked the jokes and sayings about Oregonians and webbed feet. For me it means I want to curl up with a warm blanket and knit as the constant raindrops on the roof provide white noise above me.

Who needs white noise here. We come by it naturally in this wet state.

It would be an understatement to say that my motivation is lacking. That and the constant coughs and sniffly noses of my family, and I have new reasons to fire up the slow cooker for a simple and hearty meal.

This Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup has actually made a few appearances on our menu plan in the past 2 months. I like to make a large pot of it and freeze half right away. This gives us a day or two of meals now and later. I don't mix the rice into our soup, I let everyone scoop their desired amount in a bowl and then pour the soup over the top. If you add the rice to the whole pot, as it sits in the refrigerator or freezer, the soup broth gets soaked up by the rice. Then all you have is a big bowl of rice mush...

I like broth to sip in my soup.

If you want to put some away in the freezer, you can either make the rice fresh when you serve the soup, or make it ahead and freeze it in a separate bag. Let both the soup and rice thaw in the fridge, heat and serve.

Start by getting out the slow cooker and browning up some lean ground beef.

Everything else in the recipe is a simple chop and place in the slow cooker. I like to use a variety of colored bell peppers to make the soup more colorful. You can go with whatever is available or on sale. I added the ground beef, onions, peppers, seasoning, garlic, tomatoes and Worcestershire sauce to the pot.

It takes about 6 hours on low to cook. Towards the end of the cooking time, cook the brown rice in a rice cooker or pot as you like. To serve we place a scoop of rice in our bowl and ladle the pepper soup over the top.

The soup is delicious on it's own, but if you are going for the full stuffed pepper experience, go ahead and shred some sharp cheddar cheese over the top and dig in!

Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup

You Will Need:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large green bell peppers, large dices
• 2 large colored bell peppers, large dices
• 2, 14.5oz. cans of diced tomatoes, juice and all
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 c. chicken stock
• 2 tsp. Italian seasoning blend
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 c. cooked brown rice (divide in 6 servings)
• 1 c. sharp cheddar cheese shredded

Place all the ingredients, except the rice and cheese in a slow cooker for 4-6 hours on low. Towards the end of the cooking time, cook the brown rice as desired. Serve with a scoop of cooked brown rice and top with sharp cheddar cheese. 

Enjoy!

If you are looking to freeze this soup, let it cool and divide into freezer safe containers or zip topped bags. Do not add the rice or cheese to the soup you are freezing.  Lay bags out on a single layer on a cookie sheet to freeze and then stack or stand up in a deep freeze once solid.

Make a fresh batch of rice for serving, or cook and freeze appropriate servings of rice. Reheat both rice and soup and top with cheese for serving.

What is your favorite slow cooker soup for a rainy day?