I’m hardly the target demo for Real Simple magazine (ads for anti-aging creams, anyone?), but I love it dearly.  In the January issue, there is a quick and dirty recipe for couscous-stuffed peppers.  It’s a refreshing spin on the traditional (but always yummy) stuffed pepper.

Couscous-Stuffed Peppers

Total Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes|Serves 4

Brown 1/2 pound ground beef.  Cook 1/2 cup couscous according to the package directions.  Mix the beef, couscous, 4 sliced scallions, 1 cup crumbled Feta, and 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots; season with salt and pepper.  Stuff into 4 hollowed-out bell peppers and bake at 400°F, covered, until tender, 45-50 minutes.

I was walking up and down the aisles of the grocery store wondering what to cook for dinner, and I remembered reading this short recipe.  Unfortunately, I didn’t have the recipe with me, so I pulled ingredients from the shelves based  entirely on my (fleeting) memory.  I got 5 of 6, and the mistake actually worked in my favor.  In place of scallions, I picked up a package of chives.  For those interested, chow.com has an article explaining the differences between green onions, scallions and chives.  Less green in the mix, but just as tasty.  I subbed in ground turkey for ground beef too.

Ready to start:

The feta, couscous, apricots and chives.  Looks like a colorful summer salad:

Green bell peppers stuffed with tasty goodness:

I adore the apricots thrown into this mix.  They add a tiny hint of sweet and chewiness to an otherwise “meaty” stuffed pepper.  The couscous was a bit on the dry side after sitting in the oven for 45 minutes (it was moist when I originally cooked it), so I may try adding more water to it next time.  I would consider this an easy weeknight dinner, except for the fact that it takes nearly an hour in the oven.  I’m all for 30 minute (or less) meals, especially mid-week!

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