An imaginary trip to Spain

Some of my best culinary creations have come on nights where I look in the fridge and one ingredient sparks the meal.  A few months ago, that ingredient was Manchego cheese.

Manchego comes from Manchega sheep raised in the La Mancha region of Spain, (south of Madrid).  It is the most important and well know cheese that comes from Spain, and can be made with pasteurized or un-pasteurized milk.  Well versatile, it can be enjoyed on its own and pairs well with wine.  As a matter of fact, I think that I had purchased it for just that reason. 

I need to interject a side note here.  I have been to 40 countries. I have been to almost all of Western Europe – except Spain.  I have been to Luxemburg and Monaco, but managed to miss Spain.  Even been to Portugal twice.  In an effort to ignore this fact, or to continue to tease my pallet, I seem to be in love with all things Spanish.  I have yet to meet a Spanish wine that has disappointed me, I love chorizo and serrano ham, and all other Spanish culinary concoctions.  So having an excuse to enjoy homemade Spanish influenced cooking didn’t take much arm-twisting.

After reading about 5 different recipes (because after all, they are just guidelines right?!?!?) I decided on Spanish stuffed peppers with Manchego cheese. 

For those of you that will read the recipe closely, yes, I am aware that cubanelle peppers are not Spanish.  But I had them, the color is amazing and it tasted good.  Just go with it. 

I fell in love with this recipe, and have made it many times since.  Play around with it though – the main thing is to get the basic flavors. 

Enjoy!

Spanish Stuffed Peppers

Rice Mixture

1 ½ C. of water

½ C. long grain brown rice

1/8 Tsp saffron threads

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Remainder of recipe

1 LB ground turkey or beef

1 large onion, chopped

¼ C. pepper (from the tops), chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced and divided

12 cubanelle peppers, tops and seeds removed

1 C. plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped or equivalent of canned, diced tomatoes

1 26oz can of diced or strained tomatoes

¾ Tsp cumin

1 Tsp dried oregano

1 Tbsp chopped parsley

¼ to ½ C. dry white Spanish wine

½ C. manchego cheese, grated

salt and pepper to taste

Rice Mixture

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes or until done.

Remainder of recipe

In a large, heavy skillet, brown and crumble meat over medium heat until no pink remains. If you are using turkey, add some olive oil to the pan before browning. Remove the meat from the pan.

Lightly coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil and sweat the onions and chopped pepper until tender.  Add 2 cloves of garlic together and cook 2-3 minutes longer.  Be careful not to burn the vegetables.

When the sautéed vegetables are ready, add the meat and plum tomatoes to the pan. Stir to combine. Add just enough wine to add moisture to the mixture along with cumin & oregano. Heat for 5 minutes to allow flavors to blend together. Add remaining clove of garlic, rice mixture and parsley.

Preheat the oven to 400. Cover the bottom of a 13”x9” glass baking dish with diced or strained tomatoes, about ½” high. Season with salt & pepper. Stuff peppers with meat mixture and nestle into tomatoes. Cover with tin foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, until peppers appear slightly tender (if using bell peppers, increase cooking time to 30-40 minutes). Uncover the pan and cover the peppers with the manchego cheese. Bake for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted (can be done under the broiler).