This stuffed bell pepper recipe, whereas impressed by a basic Neapolitan dish, is one in every of Eva’s wonderful innovations that has develop into a go-to staple in our kitchen. The filling combines the flavors of an eggplant parmigiana with toasted bread for a rare steadiness of taste and texture. It’s straightforward to scale up the recipe to make as many peppers as you want and—consider us—every pepper is virtually a whole meal.
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PEPERONI RIPIENI ALLA EVA RECIPE
For this recipe, you’ll need:
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2 massive bell peppers
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½ massive eggplant, cubed
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Oil for frying (ideally extra-virgin olive oil)
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Salt
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~25 cherry tomatoes, minimize in half
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3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for drizzling
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1 clove garlic, peeled
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2 anchovies underneath oil
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2 tablespoons (10 g) capers
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~10 Kalamata olive, pitted and chopped
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2 to three contemporary basil leaves, torn
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1 massive slice homemade-style bread, cubed
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3.5 ounces (100 g) mozzarella cheese, chopped
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Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, to style
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Tomato puree (sufficient to fill your baking dish with about ½ inch or 1.25 cm)
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Contemporary black pepper
Preheat the oven to 380° F (200° C). Slice the tops off the peppers, scoop out and discard the seeds and piths, exchange the tops and prepare the peppers upright on a baking sheet. Bake the peppers for 20 minutes, or till they develop into barely tender and start to wrinkle.
Whereas the peppers bake, you’ll be able to start making ready the stuffing. Fill a deep pan with about 2 inches (5 cm) of frying oil and warmth to medium/excessive temperature. Working in batches, if obligatory, fastidiously drop within the cubed eggplant and fry, stirring ceaselessly, till golden. Take away with a slotted spoon and switch to a paper towel to empty. Evenly salt the fried eggplant.
In a big clear pan, warmth 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil and the peeled garlic clove over medium warmth. When the garlic begins to sizzle, add the cherry tomatoes and sprinkle them with salt. Sauté the tomatoes till they’re barely tender and have launched loads of juice.
Add the fried eggplant, anchovies, capers, olives and basil into the tomatoes. Stir all collectively over medium warmth for two to three minutes and salt to style (remember that the anchovies and capers are naturally salty). Take away and discard the garlic clove, flip off the warmth and let the stuffing cool whilst you toast the bread.
Warmth 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil in one other pan. Add the cubed bread and toast, stirring typically, till the bread is barely browned and crispy on all sides.
Add the bread into the tomato and eggplant pan, together with the mozzarella, a beneficiant grating of Parmigiano cheese, and an additional drizzle of olive oil. Stir all collectively.
Fill a small, deep baking dish (ideally simply sufficiently big to carry the peppers upright, however not a lot bigger) with ½ inch (1.25 cm) of tomato puree. Stir in 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil and a pinch of salt and black pepper.
Evenly salt the within of every pepper and rub a bit little bit of olive oil in and out (don’t overlook the pepper tops). Fill the peppers utterly with the stuffing and place them, upright, within the baking dish. Prime the stuffing with an additional grating of Parmigiano and a drizzle of olive oil. Substitute the pepper tops, cowl with dish with aluminum foil, and bake at 380° F (200° C) for 20 minutes.
Take away the aluminum foil, baste the peppers with the tomato sauce from the underside of the dish, and bake for an extra 5 minutes. Serve heat.
