Stuffed STONE Smoked Porter Bell Peppers

Maybe it is just me, but I never feel like bell pepper stuffing stands up the the bell pepper exterior. My challenge to myself was to create a stuffing worthy of the bell pepper - bold in flavor, but also complementary to the pepper. Beer was my answer. Although I used the Stone Smoked Porter, any smoked porter or dark, malty beer would taste delish. Any stuffed pepper skeptic must try these before making any final decisions on the dish because they are that good. So let the stuffing begin!

Ingredients:

• 7 bell peppers (6 for stuffing, 1 chopped)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 poblano pepper, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• one package of soyrizo, or 12 oz.
• 2/3 cup wild rice (any rice will do, really)
• 1 bottle Stone Smoked Porter (or 1 pint 6 fl oz of another delicious beer)
• 12 oz tomato puree (two 6 oz cans)
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• salt - to taste
• pepper - to taste
• cilantro (optional - garnish)
• UPDATE: garnish with vegan cheese, preferably cheddar or pepperjack dayia 

Note: the image shown here has real cheese because I first made these when I was still a vegetarian. I have since made them as a vegan with cheddar dayia and they are SSSOOOOO goooooood.

Directions:

Add rice and bottle of beer to a medium sized pot and cook according to rice directions. (note: not all of the beer is going to cook out or absorb, but that is ok because you will need the extra liquid to add to the thick stuffing later).

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Chop up the veggies. In a large skillet heat the oil. Add the garlic. Saute for a few minutes. Then add the onion, bell pepper, poblano pepper, and jalapeno pepper and saute for another few minutes. Add the soyrizo and heat it up. Turn off the heat and add the tomato puree, chili powder, salt, pepper and rice (with excess beer).

Slice the tops off of the peppers and gut them. If they do not stand up on their own, gently cut the bottoms without making a hole for the stuffing to fall through. Stuff the peppers over the rim and replace pepper tops. Stand them up in a baking dish (greased or ungreased, it doesn't really matter) and bake for 45 minutes. For those adding cheese, take the peppers out after 35 minutes and add the cheese, then bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and garnish with cilantro. Enjoy!