Jack-O'-Lantern Stuffed Peppers: Halloween Dinner With 30 Grams of Protein

Every October there's a dinner that gets the kids to the table without a single negotiation: stuffed peppers carved like jack-o'-lanterns. This year I gave the California Olive Ranch version a dad upgrade — a pound of ground beef browned right in with the shallot, exactly the swap their caption suggests — and it lands around 30 grams of protein a pepper (my estimate, not theirs).

Why it works

The faces do the heavy lifting. Triangle eyes and a jagged grin turn an ordinary stuffed pepper into the main event of Halloween week, and carving them while the rice simmers means no extra time on the clock. The filling is the real deal, though: smoky chili-and-cumin rice cooked in broth, black beans, corn, and spinach folded in at the end, all of it under a broiled cheese cap. One pepper is a full meal — protein, grains, and vegetables in a package that grins at you.

The recipe

Ingredients

• 4 large orange bell peppers
• 1 lb ground beef
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 shallot, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup long-grain rice
• 1¾ cups vegetable broth
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• Salt, to taste
• 1 cup corn kernels
• 1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 cup baby spinach, chopped
• 2 green onions, sliced
• ½ cup shredded Mexican cheese

Steps

1. Brown the beef in the olive oil with the shallot, breaking it into small crumbles. Stir in the garlic and diced red pepper and cook 1 minute more.
2. Add the rice, broth, chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, and salt. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes, until the rice is tender.
3. While the rice cooks, cut the tops off the orange peppers and set them aside. Scoop out the seeds, then carve jack-o'-lantern faces with a paring knife — triangle eyes and a jagged grin.
4. Fold the corn, black beans, spinach, and green onions into the rice until the spinach wilts.
5. Fill the peppers, set their tops back on, and bake at 400°F for 30 minutes.
6. Take the tops off, sprinkle each pepper with cheese, and broil until melted and bubbly.

Here's the card — save it for next time:

[CARD IMAGE]

Want the printable version? Get it here: https://easydadrecipes.com/recipes/jack-o-lantern-stuffed-peppers.html

Recipe inspiration: California Olive Ranch (@californiaoliveranch): https://www.instagram.com/p/Deht1ApgP_c/

— Dad

Here's the card — save it for next time:

Want the printable version? Get it here: Jack-O'-Lantern Stuffed Peppers

Credit: California Olive Ranch (@californiaoliveranch)

Also on Substack — subscribe for email updates.

— Dad