4 large green peppers
1 cup bread crumbs
1 large egg
3 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 anchovy filets, chopped
2 tbsp. golden raisins (optional)
2 tbsp pine nuts (optional)
pinch each salt and pepper
pinch red pepper flakes
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large ripe tomato, peeled and chopped or 1 small can diced, drained
1/4 tsp. dried basil or 1/2 tsp. fresh, minced
pinch of oregano
2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
4 tsp. olive oil
1/2 cup tomato sauce or puree

This is a tasty way to serve peppers and reminds me of Spring/Summer. My mother's ways of preparing stuffed peppers of all kinds were numerous and I've evolved several recipes of my own. This is one that I enjoy making.

It seems like I can never manage to stop myself from varying the filling and I'm always improvising to make a different version! The key is to be sure that the bread crumbs are well seasoned but never over-seasoned.

These are good using regular green (or red) bell peppers, but I particularly enjoy them using sweet Italian peppers, a thin-walled pointed, long, light green frying pepper (my mom called them Summer peppers).

If using Italian frying peppers, we have most often pan fried them in olive oil with whole garlic cloves to flavor the oil over high heat, allowing the peppers to singe or brown well on the shoulders. When using these frying peppers, the tomato sauce should be omitted; we most often serve these without any sauce so the flavor stands out. Sometimes, slices of Italian cheese, capicola (hot ham) or prosciutto can be added to the filling.

The bell peppers are better baked in a casserole while the Italian peppers are best prepared in a skillet on the stovetop.

Cut a small circle at the top of the pepper to remove the stem and core and using a sharp spoon, scrape the ribs out. Rinse with cold water and drain upside down.

Beat the egg with the cheese, parsley, herbs and 1/2 cup olive oil.

In a bowl, combine all ingredients except for the 4 tsp. olive oil and tomato sauce. Stir thoroughly.

Stuff the peppers with the mixture and stand them upright in a casserole (or saute in olive oil as mentioned above, depending on the pepper type you've used). If you are oven baking, rub the outside of the peppers with olive oil before baking. Drizzle peppers with olive oil and top each with tomato sauce (if baking). Pour remaining tomato sauce around peppers.

Cover with foil and bake in a preheated 375°Foven for 45 minutes or until peppers are tender. Or saute on the stovetop until browned, then cover for 10 minutes or so, until peppers are tender and cooked through.

These can be prepared several hours in advance ad refrigerated or frozen for longer storage.

Makes 4 servings.