Stuffed Pepper Soup

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A healthy stuffed pepper soup that takes just 20 minutes.  Loaded with veggies, packed with flavor, this soup is a great way to get your family eating more veggies.

Thanks to Produce For Kids for sponsoring this post.  As always, all opinions are my own.  

This post contains affiliate links. If you were to purchase through a link it costs you no more, but I would get a small commission.

Raw sweet peppers are a food my kids don't willing eat.

I'm not sure why.  Peppers crunchy texture paired with their light flavor, making them the perfect dunking veggie.  I'm 11 years into trying with one child, and 9 the other, and they are still not on board. What is a mom to do?  I say ---> cook the peppers.

Years back, I started buying red and green peppers in bulk at farmers markets when I could find them at a great price, I'd chop them and freeze them.

How To Freeze Bell Peppers

Freezing bell peppers is a great way to have veggies available year round to toss into recipes such as soup or casseroles, adding extra nutrition to meals.

To freeze bell peppers:

1. Wash peppers, remove stem and seeds.
2. Chop peppers into small bite-sized chunks.
3. Arrange peppers on a baking sheet in a single layer. Freeze.
4. Once frozen, move peppers to ziplock freezer bags.  Label.
5. Unblanched peppers can be frozen for up to 8 months.

While my kids don't willingly eat raw peppers, they have been eating cooked peppers for many years, whether they realize it or not. 😉

A couple of months ago, I thought I'd try my hand at a stuffed pepper recipe.  I wanted to see if the fun presentation would work to get my kids eating peppers.

My daughter was excited to help.  You can watch the insta-story of my daughter making those stuffed peppers, including her thoughts here:

Baked stuffed peppers helped get one of my kiddo's on board, but they weren't the solution I was looking for.

Enter record-setting below zero temperatures -  15 days straight.  Soup is in full play and I wanted to try something new.    With a freezer full of chopped peppers, some seasoned pork sausage needing to be used,  I figured I'd try my hand at a stuffed pepper soup recipe.

How did this stuffed pepper soup recipe go over with my pepper fearing family?

Fantastic!  My daughter couldn't stop talking about how delicious dinner was  - and let me tell you, this rarely happens! My son scarfed down his bowl almost before I had time to start eating.

A meal success.  I hope your family enjoys as much as mine did!

How to Make Stuffed Pepper Soup

Here's a peek at what you'll need.  Don't et overwhelmed at the quantity of ingredients.  This recipe is really easy and the flavor from all these ingredients blended together is so good.  

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 cups chopped peppers (I used an assortment of colored peppers)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 lb. ground seasoned pork sausage
• 1 tbsp. sweet basil  (I used French Sweet Basil)
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 28 oz. can tomato sauce
• 29 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1 package precooked rice blend such as Seeds of Change
• 1 cup shredded cheese, optional
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions, optional

How To Cook Pepper Soup

If you're like me, you have a freezer filled with chopped onions and peppers.  Pull these out, saute with ground pork, add the rest of the ingredients, and dinner is ready.

1. In a large stockpot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions.  Cook 5 minutes, or until translucent.
2. Add garlic, cook 1 minute.
3. Add seasoned pork sausage, adjust heat if needed, cook until meat is browned.  Drain.
4. Add basil, salt, and pepper.  Cook 1 minute, or until fragrant.
5. Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and chicken stock.  Bring to simmer over medium-high heat.
6. Turn heat down and add the package of precooked rice, cook 1-2 minutes
7. Garnish with chopped green onions.

This soup would be a delicious addition to your child's lunchbox - thermos's work great for adding variety to those school lunches!  I love Miu Thermos.  It's great for older children or adults as it holds more than a smaller child-sized thermos.  You can find this thermos by clicking here.

This recipe comes in at $2.02 per serving with higher priced peppers in the offseason.  Stuffed Pepper Soup drops to $1.33 per serving with cheaper peppers during their growing season or when you can purchase peppers at a lower price.

Try these soup recipes for warm meals on cold nights:

Potato Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Butternut Squash Soup

If you enjoyed the recipe make sure to leave a comment and a star rating below!  Then follow me on social media and tag #createkidsclub if you make the recipe.  I love seeing what you come up with! 

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