Stuffed Romano Peppers with Turkey, Israeli Couscous & Pine Nuts

Pre-heat oven to 375°F. Place the peppers on a baking sheet, spray with oil and bake until peppers are softened, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium pot of boiling, salted water, cook the Israeli couscous until al dente, about 5 minutes. Drain and let cool.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the cumin, paprika, cinnamon and onions to the pan and cook, stirring, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Next, add the ground turkey, pine nuts, tomato paste, chile (if using), salt and pepper. Continue to cook, breaking up the turkey with a wooden spoon, until the meat is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cooked couscous, parsley and mint and mix to combine evenly.

Spoon the turkey and couscous mixture into each pepper half. Transfer to a baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes.

Notes:

I used Ottolenghi’s recipe for stuffed eggplant with lamb and pine nuts, from the Jerusalem cookbook, as a loose guide only. The original recipe used lamb, though I opted for turkey; however any type of ground meat would work. The stuffed eggplant recipe also called for tamarind, lemon juice and sugar, which I omitted.