Stuffed Banana Peppers Recipe

These are very good. If you want to tone down the spice, you can use mild sausage only for the filling.

Ingredients

  • 8 banana peppers
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped celery
  • 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons salt divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper divided
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 pound hot Italian sausage
  • 1 pound mild Italian sausage
  • 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

Directions

Cut off tops of peppers, and remove ribs and seeds. Chop edible portions of tops; set aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add peppers, reduce heat, and simmer until tender but still firm, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Heat butter in a medium skillet. Saute reserved chopped pepper, onion and celery until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce and garlic. Season with basil, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine egg, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, Worcestershire sauce and Parmesan. Mix in hot sausage, mild sausage, bread crumbs and 1 cup of the tomato sauce mixture.

Using a piping bag or sausage stuffer, fill each pepper with the meat mixture. Place in a 3 quart casserole dish, and pour remaining tomato sauce mixture over peppers.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly.