Bell Pepper Casserole

2 large green bell peppers
1 lb ground beef or ground turkey breast
1-2 cloves minced garlic
2 c. cooked brown rice
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
mozzarella cheese
ketchup

Cook the rice according to the directions.

Remove the stems from the peppers and cut in half. Remove the seeds and cores. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add the peppers and boil for 5 minutes. Drain and place on a cutting board to cool. Once cooled, cut the peppers into bite sized pieces.

Meanwhile, cook the meat and garlic, breaking the meat into small chunks.

In a bowl, mix the egg whites and rice. Add the cooked meat and a couple tablespoons of mozzarella cheese and mix. Add ketchup to make it a little saucier, about 1/8-1/4 c. (I just squirt it in until I get the consistency I like.)

Transfer to a baking dish and add the peppers. Top with mozzarella cheese and bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until a light crust forms on the top and the cheese is melted.

Makes 4 servings.

I adapted this recipe from the Bench Press Bell Peppers recipe in the Biggest Loser Family Cookbook. We like it well enough that it is one of our new staples.

Grandma Cardon's V8 Juice

When Jordan and I were at Grandma's for lunch one day we had a little glass of V8 juice with our dinner. Neither of us are huge V8 fans but we drank it anyway... and LOVED it! It was great! So the next summer I called Grandma and got the recipe from her and this summer we finally made it... and LOVED it. I don't think she ever makes it exactly the same way but this is what she told me. Try it. You'll love it.

Make this in a soup kettle/pot.
Wash your tomatoes and take out the stem. Leave the rest of the tomato. It usually takes a couple dozen tomatoes.

In the bottom of the pot put:
1 stick of celery
a medium onion
garlic (sometimes)
a small carrot
parsley (small amount)
spinach (small amount)
1 jalapeno - no seeds & veins (Add this if you want a little kick. Leave the seeds & veins if you want smoke coming out your ears. :))

Fill the rest of the pot with tomatoes.

Cook until the tomatoes are soft. Blend well in a blender.

For each quart add:
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar.

Enjoy!

If bottling, process in a boiling water bath for 35 minutes.