More To Life Than Bacon – Stuffed Peppers

Mediterranean Stuffed Peppers

1 large red pepper, 1 large yellow pepper
(Serves 2 – adjust as needed)
  Green peppers less sweet, then yellow, red sweetest. You choose.
3 oz Couscous
1 oz toasted pine nuts
Handful of black olives, roughly chopped.
 Green olives or capers if you prefer
   I detest olives. And capers. I use cocktail onions or diced chorizo.
      If I want to spice it up a bit, I use diced jalepeno 😀
1³/₄ oz feta cheese
1³/₄ oz semi-dried tomatoes, snipped
 or handful of cherry tomatoes quartered.
2 tbsp shredded basil.

Preheat oven to 400°
Put peppers on plate & microwave 5 mins (?) on Medium until almost soft.
Put couscous in bowl, cover with 1/2 cup boiling water.
  Stir, let stand 10 minutes.
Stir again to break up couscous, add pine nuts, feta, tomatoes, basil & olive (or whatever)
Stuff the pepper halves
Bake for 10 minutes (400°)

h/t BBCgoodfood

For your Superbowl Party or the next political debate….

Booze in Bacon & Chocolate Glasses

Thick-cut bacon
Chocolate of choice
  Amount depends on how many you’re making:

Make molds to wrap the bacon around:
  sections of paper towel roll or wrapping paper roll?
  half a toilet paper roll?

Wrap in aluminum foil
Note: Recipe shows foil inside as well as outside the tube and tube wrapped to the top. I run the foil up to the top of the tube and across the bottom but not inside. I wrap the bacon up from the bottom about 2 inches on a 3-inch tube. I can then peel back the foil at the top and grab the tube to extract it. It’s then easy to pull the foil away from the bacon. Do what works for you.

Cut some bacon into 4-inch strips
  Lay 2 crosswise (X) across the bottoms of molds
Wrap a slice of bacon around the mold from bottom as high as you wish (see above).
  Close any large gaps.
  (Depending on size of mold, might need 2nd strip of bacon)
    You could be making highball glasses. 😀
Tie bacon with pieces of twine to hold it to mold.

Place upside down on a wire rack, over a lipped pan to catch drippings.

Bake at 375° for 20-30 minutes until bacon slightly crispy.
   Do not overcook

Let cool 10 minutes or so, remove bacon from mold.
  Carefully peel foil from tube at top.
  Gently squeeze to loosen bacon from mold.
    (that’s why you don’t overcook – too crisp bacon would break).
  Extract tube from within foil/bacon.
  Working toward the inside, pull the foil away from the bacon (with toothpick?) and extract
  Remove twine. Voila!

Melt chocolate in a double-boiler.
  I prefer Ghirardelli semi-sweet. Follow your taste.

Spoon chocolate into ‘glasses’, wipe around, sealing interior completely.

Refrigerate at least an hour or two – or make a day in advance.

Fill with your favorite libation. Cheers!

h/t ThroughTheEyesOfMyBelly