Love Baked Inn

Roasted Pepper Casserole

Roasted Pepper Casserole is one of my favorite summertime dishes. I love the fusion of flavors with the capers, olives and peppers with each and every bite. Roasting peppers can seem quite intimidating, but trust me it’s not. Roasting them in the oven is the EASIEST and fastest way to roast your peppers. You will be quite amazed at how simple roasting them can be if you give this recipe a try.

Remember you can always remove the olives and capers if you are NOT fans of those particular flavors. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4-6 Sweet bell peppers, a mix of red, orange and yellow
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup coarsely chopped Flat Italian Parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes, peeled *I left the peels on and used cherry tomatoes.
• 2 Tablespoons capers, rinsed & chopped
• 1 cup black olives or green olives with pimentos or a mix of both
• 1 cup breadcrumbs or not….*I didn’t add breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup shredded/grated parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Preparations:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Roast peel and seed the peppers. See Roasting Peppers below.
2. Cut the peppers into strips and put in a bowl.
3. In a medium frying pan, saute the onions in oil until transparent. Add the garlic, be sure not to brown or burn it. Add the parsley tomatoes and capers.
4. Add the contents of the frying pan to the peppers and mix gently. Add the olives.
5. Pour the pepper mixture into an oven-proof pan. Cover with the breadcrumb mixed with parmesan or just the parmesan. Drizzle with olive oil.
6. Bake for about 15 minutes. Set under a broiler to brown the topping, if desired. *I didn’t set mine under the broiler.

ROASTING PEPPERS

1. Cut the peppers in half, flatten the halves with the palm of the your hand, and roast them under the broiler on the top rack until they char, checking them often. I put mine on a silpat and they charred nicely.
2. Once the peppers are blistered, put them in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Cover with a kitchen towel.
3. After 30 minutes, the skin will have loosened so you can peel it off.
4. I rinsed off my peppers under some water to get some of the extra bits off.

Recipe adapted from Female Nomad and Friends Rita Golden Gelman

*If you want some good reads, please check out Rita’s books.