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Skinny Italian-Style Stuffed Peppers

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Skinny Italian-Style Stuffed Peppers
A simple and hearty meat sauce, stuffed into colorful bell peppers, and baked until dreamy delicious! Each serving has 226 calories and 6g fat. I love using bell peppers because they make a wonderful low-calorie vessel to stuff with so many options. This is actually my 3rd stuffed peppers recipe shared this year. Be sure to check out my other 2 recipes, Skinny Cheeseburger Stuffed Peppers and Skinny Mexican Stuffed Peppers.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Bake Time: 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 6
Calories 226kcal
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Ingredients

  • 6 large red bell peppers, yellow or orange or a combination of colors (each about 3½ inches high and 3½ inches wide) For Keto use all green peppers
  • 1 pound extra-lean ground beef (96%) or ground turkey, see shopping tips
  • 1 cup onions, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
  • 1 (14-16 oz) jar pasta or pizza sauce, I used Classico pizza sauce or Rao’s marinara sauce for Keto
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can chopped tomatoes, drained
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
  • Black pepper, to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
  • 12 teaspoons Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  • Cut off the top of 6 bell peppers about 1-inch down from top. Clean out seeds and membranes. Throw away the tops. Set aside.
  • In a large nonstick pan, brown ground beef, onions, and garlic. Be sure to break up ground beef into small pieces as it cooks. Stir often, until beef is browned. Pour beef into a colander and drain excess fat in the sink. Add back to pan. Stir in pasta sauce, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Mix well. Bring to boil, turn heat down to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Stuff each bell pepper with about ¾ cup beef mixture. Stand peppers upright in ungreased baking dish. Pour 1 cup water in the bottom of the pan to steam the peppers, while baking.
  • Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil. Sprinkle each with 2 teaspoons Parmesan cheese. Cook uncovered about 5 minutes more until cheese melts and peppers are soft.
  • These freeze great! Once cooled, wrap any leftovers well in plastic wrap and freeze.

Notes

Makes 6 servings. Each serving, 1 stuffed bell pepper

Shopping Tips
Most supermarkets sell extra lean ground beef. I used the 96% lean ground beef from Trader Joe’s. You could use ground turkey if desired.

WW Freestyle SmartPoints 4-Blue
WW SmartPoints 4-Green
WW POINTS PLUS 6
 
SKINNY FACTS: for 1 stuffed bell pepper
226 calories, 6g fat, 2g sat. fat, 43mg chol, 19g prot, 26g carbs, 4g fiber, 605mg sod, 8g sugar
FACTS: for SmartPoints
153 calories, 2g sat. fat, 6g sugar, 17g protein

Skinny Facts

Serving: 1stuffed pepperCalories: 226kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 19gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 605mgFiber: 4gSugar: 8gBlue Smart Points: 4Green Smart Points: 4Plus Points: 6

Comments

  3. I’m a little confused. In the ingredient list you say to use 6 peppers, however in direction #2 it says to cut the top off of 4 peppers. Does this make 4 or 6 servings? Also, if using 99% FF turkey, do you know how many points 1 serving would be? Thank you!

  5. I make this much healthier. Instead of Rice, i use 1/2 riced Cauliflower and 1/2 c. riced Broccoli. I also use green peppers. I bind my ( 1- #ground Chicken Breast) meat and veggies with two eggs, onions, Salt. pepper, fresh garlic. I use Aldi marinara sauce and top my peppers with laughing Cow Cheese. ( pepper Jack)
    each 1/2 pepper is filled with 2 oz of mixture. they are one points per 1/2. 8 servings

  7. We are doing low carb and these were AMAZING!!!! We followed the recipe exactly and we LOVED these. Thank you SO MUCH!!!

  9. I haven’t made this recipe yet although I’m looking forward to it. I might combine the idea of putting riced cauliflower in there. But also, I’ve always diced up the tops and sautéed them with the meat and onions.

If you make this recipe, let me know how you liked it. Leave me a comment below or give it a rating. Thanks so much. Happy Skinny Cooking!

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