Steak & Cheese Stuffed Pepper

March is the month in which the days get longer, the weather milder and March Madness bridges the gap between football and baseball.  I run a bracket pool every year to satisfy my gambling bug, and have an excuse to hit the local watering hole to cheer on my favorite team (as if anyone needed an excuse for that).  I’m all about stimulating the economy, but this year I think I’ll be staying in to watch the tourney.

I thought of this recipe a while back when trying to re-create an old favorite without wheat.  Originally I was going to stuff a potato with the steak, cheese and onions, but we’ve been there and done that.  So instead of adding the peppers, I thought it might be fun twist to stuff the peppers with the rest of the ingredients.  I also attempted to make a provolone sauce to drizzle over the peppers, but it sucked.  Lesson learned.

These little pepps would be a great snack for your next party!

Ingredients:

• 3 large bell peppers (I used red and green)
• olive oil
• 2 medium onions, sliced thin
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
• 1 lb shaved steak
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flake (or more, if you’re bad ass)
• Salt and pepper
• 8-9 slices provolone cheese, sliced thin

Preheat your oven to 375°

To roast the peppers….

Slice peppers in half lengthwise, and remove seeds, ribs and stem.  Drizzle with some olive oil and place cut side down onto a baking sheet lined with tinfoil.  Bake approx. 25 minutes until caramelized and soft.

To caramelize the onions….

Melt butter in a shallow pan over medium heat.  You want to melt the butter, not brown or scorch it!  Then add the onion and let them brown over medium heat, lowww and slowwww, stirring occasionally.  This will take some time so you can begin cooking your steak.  Keep an eye on the onion, making sure the onions brown nicely, but don’t burn.  Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Next, cook your steak….

Melt a little more butter and olive oil in the same pan you caramelized your onions in over medium high heat.  Add the steak and cook by pulling meat apart (think of how they do it at the local sub shop) and almost stir frying it.  Add the oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flake and combine.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until no longer pink and remove from heat.

Assembly….

Carefully flip your roasted peppers over onto the same baking sheet, and fill each with some steak and onions.  Then layer some slices of provolone over the top and return to the oven to broil.  Only broil long enough to heat the steak and melt the cheese.  I served mine with some roasted sweet potato fries.

Pair with an ice cold beer (wheat-free, of course) and enjoy!!!