Barley stuffed peppers

Gary decided he would like to make some stuffed peppers. We found a recipe that looked pretty good in our 365 Vegetarian Recipes cookbook so we gave it a shot!

It was a bit of a messy procedure and I kept telling Gary that I think he bought the wrong kind of peppers, but he insisted everything would be fine.

Here is the final result of the peppers proudly portrayed:

 Barley-Stuffed Peppers

Prep time: 25 mins / Bake time: 22 mins

Serves 4

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 cup water
• 2/3 cup quick cooking barley
• 1/2 of a vegetable bouillon cube
• 2 large red, yellow, and/or green sweet peppers
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup chopped, seeded, and peeled tomato (1 large)
• 3/4 cup shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese
• 1/@ cup shredded zucchini
• 1/3 cup soft bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon snipped fresh basil, or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
• 1 teaspoon snipped fresh rosemary or 1/8 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon onion salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. In a medium saucepan combine mushrooms, the water, barley, and bouillon cube. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 12 to 15 minutes or until barley is tender; drain.
2. Meanwhile, halve sweet peppers lengthwise*; remove seeds and membranes. If desired, precook sweet peppers in boiling water for 3 minutes. Place peppers, cut sides down, on paper towels to drain. 
3. In a medium bowl, combine egg, tomato, 1/2 cup of the cheese, the zucchini, and bread crumbs. Stir in cooked barley mixture. Place peppers, cut sides up, in an ungreased 2-quart rectangular baking dish. Spoon barley mixture into peppers.
4. Bake, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until barley mixture is heated through. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake uncovered for 2 minutes more or until cheese melts. 

Note: *Gary decided he preferred the mini sweet peppers so he simply cut off the top part of each pepper and emptied its contents. Delish!