Easy, Primal Unstuffed Peppers Casserole

I love stuffed peppers but I'll be honest, when I'm ready to eat (and feeling very hungry), I don't like sitting there and cutting up my food for the entire meal.  I'm lazy.  There I said it. 

So a few years ago I looked up ways to create that stuffed peppers flavor but do the "prep" work ahead of time so it can be eaten by the spoonful when my elbows hit the dinner table. 

Here is my modified, Paleo/Primal version of that recipe for your taste buds to enjoy! 




Easy, Primal Unstuffed Peppers Casserole
(Serves 4 to 6)

1 bag of frozen cauliflower florets, made into "rice" (Or use about 3 cups of finely chopped fresh cauliflower)
4 to 5 bell peppers, diced, use any color you like (I love to use a combination of red, yellow, orange and green)
1 pound of grass-fed ground meat (Or you can use ground up sausage, chicken, turkey or whatever you have on hand)
1 can (14 oz) of diced tomatoes, mostly drained - read label carefully for no added sugar or preservatives
1 can (14 oz) of tomato sauce - read label carefully for no added sugar or preservatives
3 cloves of garlic, minced (Or use 1.5 tsp of garlic powder)
2 tsp of onion powder (or 3/4 cup of fresh, diced onions)
1 tsp of Italian seasoning
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste
optional - 1/2 cup of all natural, shredded cheese for topping (I buy the Amish brand with no preservatives and use sparingly)
olive oil for greasing

Let your bag of frozen cauliflower sit at room temperature for awhile or run some warm water over the bag.  Then follow these recipe directions to turn the cauliflower into rice.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 2 QT baking pan with olive oil and set to the side. 

Dice your bell peppers.  I used five since some were small and some were large in size. 

Grease a skillet with olive oil.  Brown your meat (I used grass-fed hamburger meat I purchase from a local farm and butcher) with your bell peppers, garlic and onion powder (or fresh onion).  Cook until you desired brown color.

Drain any grease if you wish from the cooked meat and peppers. Then pour into a large mixing bowl. 

In the large bowl, add in the cauliflower rice you already prepared.  Also toss in your diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, oregano, salt and pepper.  Stir well until all combined. 

Scoop out the mixture into your greased 2 QT baking pan.  Press down and make sure mixture is spread out evenly.  Bake for 30 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees. 

If you wish and can tolerate dairy, top the casserole with shredded cheese.  Or just leave out.  It's great as it is even without the cheese! 

Serve and enjoy. 

This is good stuff and my lazy woman's way of enjoying stuffed peppers!  :-)