Aunt Rocky’s Mushroom & Bacon Stuffed Mini Peppers (Gluten-Free)

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a small cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Cut peppers in half lengthwise, and remove any seeds and membrane. Cut them in a way that if there is a flatter side to the pepper, that will be the “back” that lays down nicely on the baking pan. Line the peppers up on the baking pan and set aside.

Prepare the filling ingredients: rice the cauliflower, chop the yellow and green onions, dice the mushrooms and bacon (or warm bacon crumbles in the microwave for about 15 seconds), grate the cheese.

Use a small microwaveable mixing bowl to assemble the filling. Cut the cream cheese into cubes, and microwave for about 15 seconds—just enough to soften it, but not melt it. Add half of the grated cheese (reserve other half for topping), vegetables, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix everything well.

Put about 1 teaspoon full of filling into the cavity of each pepper. Pat down a bit. Sprinkle remaining cheese lightly over the filled peppers.

In a small bowl, mix crushed pork rinds and Parmesan cheese together. Sprinkle a pinch of mixture on top of each pepper.

Bake 25 minutes. Peppers will be soft. Tops should be dry, but may not brown. If you want them a little more brown, turn the broiler on for a couple of minutes.

Serve warm.

Leftovers may be frozen. Rewarm in oven or toaster oven to dry out the topping for best results. Or just eat them cold as a snack.

Nutritional information (estimates are per serving based on exact ingredients I used, calculated with a free online recipe analyzer): Calories 18 g, Total Fat 1 g, Sodium 50 mg, Potassium 61 mg, Total Carbohydrate 1 g, Dietary Fiber 0 g, Net Carbs 1 g, Sugars 1 g, Protein 1 g. Macros: 53% fat, 24% protein, 23% carbs.

© April 7, 2017 Roxana Lopez for Aunt Rocky’s

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