Halloween Inspired Stuffed Peppers

Red peppers on the small side for stuffing but they were available and nearing the end of their lifecycle.
Boiled them in unsalted water for about 15 minutes left in water until ready to assemble.
Rather than the tomato sauce version of ground beef with cooked white rice, I sautéed onions and browned a little over a pound of ground beef.  Drained and set aside.
Made beef broth risotto the easy way with long grain rice and boiling water with some beef and tomato bouillon.
Folded in beef and onions, placed them in casserole and surrounded with the risotto mixture.  Covered tightly with foil and baked for 40 minutes at 350°.

Deeper Flavors in Less Time

Since I dislike fast food and am hungry and tired shortly after I hit the door at home, I have taken to planning ahead.

I start things in the crock pot on low and then finish them when I get home.  Building deeper flavors can take some time, and I DO love flavorful food - I've fallen in love with crock pot liners and shortcuts.

If I had time to make home made stocks and spend time curing my own meats, etc.  I would. But I don't . . . 

So, I set the crockpot use the concentrated stock 1 chicken,  1 vegetable and half the water in instructions.

The rest I leave out to add an hour before eating.  Rice and water and turn up to high.

Blue Cauliflower Makes Vegetable Hating Husband Happy

The purple cauliflower was 50 cents less precious than the white.  Husband had said he likes cauliflower.  Thus, experiment began.  Blanched for 5 minutes in salted water.  Shocked in ice water.  Dumped in casserole pan, sprinkled with chicken bullion and covered in grated guere.  Baked at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.  Gone in minutes!