Preheat oven to 375ºF.

To prepare peppers, cut tops off and reserve. Clean inside peppers by removing seeds and ribs; place in an oven safe pan or casserole dish. Mince the pepper tops; discard the inedible stems.

In a large saute pan, saute minced pepper tops and onions in a little olive oil until translucent. Add ground beef, salt, and pepper; cook until beef is brown and cooked through, stirring occasionally to break up clumps. Drain beef if necessary and add the crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano, A-1, water, and rice; stir well to combine. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and cover until rice is soft and has absorbed most of the liquid, about 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in all but 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Spoon mixture into the prepared peppers (extra filling can be stuffed into the spaces between the peppers). Sprinkle remaining 1 cup of shredded cheese on top of peppers.

Place on middle rack in oven and bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and starts to turn bubbly and brown.

Notes:
If you want smaller portions, cut the peppers in half lengthwise and place them cut-side-up on a rimmed sheet pan before stuffing and baking. This filling can also be used to stuff cabbage leaves. Just fill and roll steamed cabbage leaves, then cover with tomato sauce and heat through.

For a fast “skillet dinner” version of this recipe, don’t plan to stuff the peppers. Instead, chop the whole peppers into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces and add them to the meat mixture at the same time you add the rice. When the rice is cooked, sprinkle the cheese on top, cover and heat just until the cheese melts. Serve straight from the skillet.