(Un)Stuffed Peppers Casserole

I'd like to start by saying that (sadly) the cube steak sandwiches were not a big hit. I thought they were pretty good, but not great. The flavor was good and it was worth the effort to butter and toast the rolls, but the meat was too chewy for my liking. My husband didn't even finish his sandwich. As one reader commented, it seemed like an alarming amount of Worcestershire sauce, but I think the butter mellowed it out. Like I said, I liked the flavor, but maybe I will try a more tender cut of meat for this recipe. Another reader commented that they liked cube steak for breakfast; is this a chewy meat or did I do something wrong? I've never used cube steak in a recipe before this.

Tonight's dinner recipe came from Tasty Kitchen by SmilingCountryRanch. We love stuffed peppers, especially the frozen ones from Stouffer's. I have never actually made homemade stuffed peppers, but it's on my list of things to try. In the meantime though this will have to do. :)

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UNSTUFFED GREEN PEPPERS

1 lb. ground beef
1/3 cup diced onion
1 cup crushed tomatoes (undrained)
1/3 cup white rice, uncooked
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 cup water
1 cup diced green bell pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On the stovetop in an oven safe skillet, brown meat with onion; drain grease. Stir in tomatoes, rice, Worcestershire, basil, water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 18-20 minutes until rice is tender. Stir in peppers and half the cheese, then top with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
NOTE: If not using an oven-safe skillet, prepare rice mixture in a saucepan and then pour into a casserole dish before baking in the oven.
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I forgot to buy crushed tomatoes, but I had diced, so I used those instead and 'crushed' them with my immersion blender. I also do not have a cast iron skillet, so I used my oval cast iron dutch oven. This was really good! But I missed the tomato sauce that comes on the side of stuffed peppers, so maybe I will make some on the side the next time I make this dish.

The meal plan for next week has nothing new except for my recipe for making Corned Beef & Cabbage for St. Patrick's Day, which is really easy and is done in the slow cooker. I still have to make the fish sticks, chicken picatta and breakfast from last weeks meal plan, and the other ideas for next week are frozen pizza, spaghetti, tacos, and veggie pitas. We are on a tight budget and these are cheap meals! I love that line from the car insurance commercial "there is no budge in my budget". :)

Happy eating!